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  • Education sub-menuEducation

    With a strong emphasis on student-centered learning, critical literacy, and liberal arts and sciences education, OSUN creates diverse global classrooms of students who learn from each other and collectively develop a culture of dialogue and debate.

    • Teaching
      • Birkbeck Summer School
      • Center for Liberal Arts and Sciences Pedagogy (CLASP)
      • Developing Teaching Professionals
      • Global History Lab
      • Global Teaching Fellowship Program
      • GLOBALED
      • Hannah Arendt Humanities Network
      • Network Collaborative Courses
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      Initiative

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    • Certificate Programs
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      • CORUSUS
      • Economic Democracy Initiative
      • Economic Policy Addressing Inequality and Poverty
      • Experimental Humanities Collaborative Network
      • Human Rights Program
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      • Policy Labs
      • Professional Development Program for University Administrators
      • Public Health and Human Rights
      • Strengthening the Core
      • Transnational Politics
      • Transnational Feminism, Solidarity, and Social Justice
  • Research sub-menuResearch

    OSUN promotes collaboration across its partner institutions, including the codesign of research projects, to explore issues of global and local relevance through socially engaged research, interdisciplinary collaboration, or comparative research.

    • Research Projects
      • The Democracy Institute
      • Economic Democracy Initiative
      • Engaged Scholarship
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      • Global Institute of Advanced Study
      • Global Observatory on Academic Freedom
      • Interruptrr
      • Open Society Research Platform
      • Research Creation Initiative
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      • Chatham House Academy Fellowships
      • Global Scholars Academy
      • Modular Doctoral Program
  • Access sub-menuAccess

    OSUN expands access to higher education by creating new pathways for underserved communities. Academic integration and connected learning bring educational opportunities to students beyond OSUN’s brick-and-mortar campuses.

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      • Enhanced Network Teacher Education Capacity
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      • Collaborative for Liberal Education for Adolescents
      • Consortium for the Liberal Arts in Prison
      • English Learner Success in Content Classrooms
      • Hubs for Connected Learning Initiatives
      • Microcollege for Just Community Leadership
      • OLIve
      • Roma Equity in Higher Education
      • The Socrates Project
  • Civic sub-menuCivic Engagement

    With a belief in the public purpose of higher education, civic engagement across OSUN promotes best practices and bold new initiatives to help students, faculty, and institutions realize their full potential as community actors and educators.

    • Student Engagement
      • Global Commons
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      • Certificate in Civic Engagement
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  • News sub-menuNews + Opportunities

    OSUN offers myriad opportunities and events to undergraduate and graduate students, researchers and scholars, and faculty. News and features provide updates on project impacts and the people involved.

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  • Resources sub-menuResources

    OSUN faculty and institutions have worked collectively to assemble this dynamic collection of student-centered teaching methodologies and instructional strategies. Whether working online, in person, or in a blended context, establishing a clear and consistent communication plan with students is central to all of these practices.

    • OSUN Resources
      • Academic Technology Guides
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  • About sub-menuAbout

    OSUN aims to educate students for tomorrow’s global challenges, fostering critical thinking and open intellectual inquiry to strengthen the foundations of open society amid the current authoritarian resurgence.

    • About OSUN
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Main Image for Certificate Programs

Certificate Programs

Education Menu
  • Teaching
    • Birkbeck Summer School
    • Center for Liberal Arts and Sciences Pedagogy (CLASP)
    • Developing Teaching Professionals
    • Global History Lab
    • Global Teaching Fellowship Program
    • GLOBALED
    • Hannah Arendt Humanities Network
    • Network Collaborative Courses
    • OSUN Courses
  • Curricula
    • CORUSUS
    • Economic Democracy Initiative
    • Economic Policy Addressing Inequality and Poverty
    • Professional Development Program for University Administrators
    • Experimental Humanities Collaborative Network
    • Hannah Arendt Humanities Network
    • Human Rights Program
    • Liberal Arts and Sciences Collaborative
    • Policy Labs
    • Public Health and Human Rights
    • Strengthening the Core
    • Transnational Politics
    • Transnational Feminism, Solidarity, and Social Justice
  • Threatened Scholars Initiative
  • Mobility
    • Undergraduate Students
    • Graduate Students
    • Faculty
  • Certificate Programs
    • Civic Engagement
    • Global Education Development
    • Public Policy and Economic Analysis
    • Human Rights
    • Social Enterprise and Leading Change
    • Food Studies
OSUN has developed academic certificate programs to further integrate curriculums, sequence coursework, and allow non-degree students, such as refugee and displaced learners, to obtain credits and a transferable micro-credential. Certificate programs are further linked to OSUN Online Courses and Network Collaborative courses. Institutions are asked, where possible, to recognize certificates on academic transcripts. Each certificate requires 3-6 courses and may include co-curricular activities. 
OSUN Certificate FAQS
Open Society University Network (OSUN) academic certificates are micro-credentials that students earn in select OSUN themes and areas of curricular focus. Each certificate program consists of 4-6 courses, including at least one OSUN course, and some also require co-curricular activities.

What are the benefits of having a certificate?
Students who enter certificate programs join cohorts of like-minded students from across the
globe taking OSUN classes and participating in co-curricular activities. Upon completion, they
earn OSUN certificates and, where permitted by home institutions, earn transcriptual recognition.

What certificates does OSUN offer?
OSUN Academic Certificates are currently offered in the areas of Civic Engagement, Food
Studies, Global Educational Development, Human Rights, Public Policy and Economic Analysis,
and Social Enterprise and Leading Change. See here for details. New programs under
consideration include Certificates in Cybersecurity, Global Justice, and Liberal Arts and
Sciences.

What are the program requirements?
Requirements vary by program; they can be found here. In general, each program requires 4-6
courses, including at least one OSUN Course. Some programs also require co-curricular
activities.

What if I have already completed program requirements?
Courses completed prior to application to a Certificate program will be counted towards the
program requirements. Interested students should consult with the relevant Certificate program
director for details; see here for contact information.

Who is eligible?
Students at all OSUN institutions are eligible to apply. Priority is given to first-, second-, and
third-year undergraduate students. Final-year students are eligible if they can complete all
program requirements by their final semester. Applications from graduate students are
considered on a case-by-case basis.

Can I apply to more than one certificate program?
Absolutely. Students are encouraged to apply to as many Certificate Programs as interest them
and that they can complete, consonant with the requirements of their home campuses.

Can the same course count towards multiple certificate programs?
Yes.

What if program requirements are not offered on my campus?
While all OSUN Certificate Programs require students to take at least one OSUN Course, some
are designed to be completed primarily online while others are designed to take advantage of
courses offered in-person on participating OSUN campuses. Because we want students on all
OSUN campuses to be able to participate in all Certification programs, each OSUN Academic
Certificate program is working to develop OSUN Online course options to allow students
without an in-person option to complete program requirements. This is a work in progress;
students without in-person course options are encouraged to consult with program directors to
discuss on-line alternatives to required courses being offered in-person only.

How do I apply?
You may submit your application through the application portal. After you register in the portal,
you can indicate the certificate program or programs that interest you and then complete the
relevant form(s). The application form will differ somewhat by certificate program.
Links to each certificate application portal are below:
Civic Engagement
Food Studies
Global Education and Development
Human Rights
Public Policy and Economic Analysis
Social Enterprise and Leading Change

What is the deadline?
Applications are invited once per semester. The fall semester deadline is the first Monday in
December; the spring semester deadline is the first Monday in April. Dates will be announced
on the OSUN website. Students are typically notified of the decision on their application to a
certificate program within 60 days.

I am a faculty member interested in teaching in a certificate program–how do I get involved?
Fantastic! Contact the director of the relevant program (see here).

I am a faculty member interested in starting a certificate program–whom do I contact?
Email David Shein ([email protected]) with a brief description of the program.

Who can answer further questions?
For further information, please contact David Shein ([email protected]).

Our Programs

There are currently five OSUN Certificate Programs:

  • Civic Engagement
    Students are provided with a structured path for merging curricular and co-curricular civic pursuits to deepen their knowledge and understanding of civic engagement.
  • Global Educational Development
    The certificate is a progressive micro-credential that combines coursework and practicums for students in the field of global educational development policy and practice.
  • Public Policy and Economic Analysis
    The program serves future policymakers committed to the principles of economic stability and economic rights for all by providing a set of cutting-edge interdisciplinary analytical techniques and theoretical approaches to tackle urgent twenty-first century problems.
  • Human Rights
    The certificate provides a structured path for students interested in deepening their knowledge and understanding of human rights theory and practice. Students engage in co-curricular activities outside of the classroom that inform their academic work. 
    Check back soon for more information.
  • Social Enterprise and Leading Change
    Students receive leadership training to develop critical thinking skills and other skill sets needed to create and build both nonprofit and mission-driven, for-profit organizations. Check back soon for more information.
     
  • Food Studies
    Students deepen theoretical and applied knowledge of food studies through a scholar-practitioner approach focused on sustainability and local practices. Classroom instruction is augmented by experience in food-related work environments.
Open Society University Network
For more information contact: 
[email protected]