Introduction

Please click here to see the Ethnic Studies department information.

African American Studies is a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary field examining the histories, cultures, and political and social engagements of people of African descent in the United States.  Courses offered through the African American Studies certificate program encourage students to explore a broad range of historical and contemporary issues impacting native-born African Americans as well as African, Caribbean, and Afro-Latin American immigrants to the USA.  Our courses address transformations in the social, political, gender, sexual, religious, and ethnic identities of people of African descent; meanings of race and family; social justice movements and activism; literature and cultural expression; and the nature of diaspora in the Black experience.

African American studies is the cornerstone discipline of Ethnic Studies, both in the history of our university and in the larger movement for inclusive educational frameworks in the United States.  As a field, it has developed a tradition that weds incisive critical thinking, creative problem solving and a commitment to applied approaches that benefit the larger society beyond the walls of the university. 

An African American Studies certificate prepares students to work with racially and ethnically diverse communities in the United States or abroad in a wide variety of careers, including teaching, higher education administration, community organizing, community and government service, journalism and the media, environmental science, non-profit administration, global economics, health care, legal services, library science, music, publishing, and research.

Additional information about the undergraduate certificate in African American studies may be obtained from the Ethnic Studies department at 303-315-7205 or email: ethnic_studies@ucdenver.edu

Additional information about the African American Studies certificate may be obtained from Ethnic Studies, Plaza Building, Suite 102

Website: https://clas.ucdenver.edu/ethnicstudies

Faculty Advisor: Professor Rachel Harding email: Rachel.Harding@ucdenver.edu

Program Delivery

• This is an on-campus program and some courses are available online.

Declaring This Certificate 

• Please contact the certificate faculty advisor Rachel Harding email: Rachel.Harding@ucdenver.edu

These program requirements are subject to periodic revision by the academic department, and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences reserves the right to make exceptions and substitutions as judged necessary in individual cases. Therefore, the College strongly urges students to consult regularly with their African American Studies advisor to confirm the best plans of study before finalizing them.

General Requirements

• Click here for information about Academic Policies.

Program Requirements

1. Students must complete a minimum of 12 credit hours from the approved courses below.

2. Students must complete a minimum of nine upper-division (3000-level and above) credit hours taken from among the approved courses.

3. Students must earn a minimum grade of C- (1.7) in all courses that apply to the certificate and must achieve a minimum cumulative certificate GPA of 2.0. All graded attempts in required and elective courses are calculated in the certificate GPA. Courses taken using P+/P/F or S/U grading cannot apply to certificate requirements.

4. Students must complete all credit hours applying to the certificate with CU Denver faculty.

Certificate Requirements

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Complete the following required African American Studies course:		3
ETST 2155	African American History
Complete three African American Studies elective courses from among the following:		9
ETST 3155	The African Diaspora
ETST 3211	Hip Hop Music & Culture
ETST 3230	African American Family
HIST 3347	African-American History, 1619-Present
ENGL 3750	American Literature after the Civil War
HIST 4055	The Atlantic Slave Trade: Africa, Caribbean and U.S.
ETST/ENGL 4220	African-American Literature
HIST 4212	Civil War and Reconstruction
HIST/WGST 4225/GEOG 4625	Urban America
HIST 4308	Crime, Policing, and Justice in American History
Total Hours		12

To learn more about the Student Learning Outcomes for this program, please visit our Ethnic Studies Learning Outcome page.