Introduction

AAPI studies integrates the study of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities in the United States with analysis of the histories, politics, cultures, and societies of countries in Asia and the Pacific and Asian and Pacific Islander diasporic communities. AAPI Studies certificate courses deal with changing political, social, economic and cultural realities, including US imperialism, US military interventions, settler colonialism, migration, and transnational communities; gender, racial, sexual, and ethnic identities; social movements; diverse forms of cultural expression; ongoing political and economic restructuring in Asia and the Pacific Islands; and the challenges of cultural, political, and economic empowerment for AAPI communities in the United States.

Training and Application

An AAPI studies certificate prepares students to work with Asian American and Pacific Islander communities in Denver, elsewhere 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, global business, health care, legal services, library science, music, publishing, and research. Students will be encouraged to intern in local organizations working with the AAPI population.

Please click here to see Ethnic Studies department information

Additional information about the AAPI certificate may be obtained from Ethnic Studies

Plaza Building, Suite 102
Phone: 303.315.7205
https://clas.ucdenver.edu/ethnic-studies/academic-tracks/certificates#asian_american_studies_certificate-172
 

Program Delivery

• This is an on campus program with some courses available online.

Declaring This Certificate 

Students interested in completing this certificate should complete this form: CLAS Undergraduate Certificate Intent to Declare Form, which requests that the certificate be added to your student record. Once added, you will be able to run a certificate degree audit. The certificate degree audit should be used in collaboration with the Certificate Advisor to ensure successful completion of the requirements.

Students should then work with Faye Caronan (Faye.Caronan@ucdenver.edu) – the certificate advisor, to ensure completion of all certificate requirements.

Completing This Certificate

Students must also complete the CLAS Undergraduate Certificate Completion Verification Form, before graduation, in order to confirm completion of their certificate. The certificate advisor will confirm that your certificate has been successfully completed, and will work with campus partners to apply the certificate to your transcript.

Students must fill out the Certificate Completion Form before the deadlines below, to ensure the certificate is applied to your transcript correctly. If you are a non-degree seeking student, please fill out this form in the term in which you intend to complete your certificate.

Spring semester – April 1
Summer semester – July 1
Fall semester – November 1

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 Asian American Pacific Islander Studies advisor to confirm the best plans of study before finalizing them.

General Requirements

Students must satisfy all requirements as outlined below and by the department offering the certificate. 

• Click here for information about Academic Policies

Certificate 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. 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.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Complete the following required Asian American Pacific Islanders Studies courses:
ETST 2357	Asian American & Pacific Islander Cultures
ETST 3297	Social History of Asian Americans
Complete two of the following Asian American Pacific Islanders Studies elective courses:		6
ETST 3060	AAPI Communities and Health
ETST 3697	Contemporary Asian American Experience
ETST 4297	Theorizing the Transpacific
ETST 3939	Internship
HIST 3470	Intro to East Asia: Since 1800
HIST/CHIN 4421	Modern China
HIST 4423	China in the World
Total Hours		6

By the end of a certificate in AAPI Studies students should be able to:

1. Summarize the contributions that Asian and Pacific Islander individuals and populations have made in US history, culture, and society.
    
2. Recognize differences in national origin, mode of immigration, citizenship, skin color, gender and sexuality among Asian American and Pacific Islander individuals and populations and how these shape their experiences.
    
3. Articulate how US economic, political, and military occupation and interventions in Asia and the Pacific and the changing roles of U.S. - Asia relations impact Asian American and Pacific Islander experiences.
    
4. Analyze Asian American and Pacific Islander communities within cultural, social, political, and historical contexts.