Certificate Program Regulations

Certificate programs provide opportunities for postgraduate training to those with undergraduate degrees. Certificate programs are narrower in scope and shorter in duration than master’s degrees. Certificate programs are not “degree” programs.

Admission Requirements

Applicants who are currently enrolled in a graduate degree program at UTSA have already met University requirements for admission. In this case, no formal application process is necessary. The applicant should contact the Certificate Program Advisor and complete a form requesting permission to enter and complete the certificate program. If the request is approved, this form will be signed by the Certificate Program Advisor and the Dean of the College or Director of the Center in which the certificate program is housed. A copy of this form will be sent to the Graduate Advisor of Record for the student’s degree program, the department in which the applicant’s program is housed, and the Graduate School.

Applicants who are not currently enrolled in a graduate degree program at UTSA will be required to apply for admission to UTSA as a special (non-degree-seeking) graduate student and indicate their intent to seek admission into a certificate program. Applicants will be required to meet University admission requirements for special graduate students.

If it is determined by the Certificate Program Advisor that an applicant requires prerequisite background courses to adequately prepare for the courses included in the certificate program, this will be noted in the applicant’s file. The applicant will be notified that the prerequisite courses must be taken before enrolling in certificate program coursework.

Any applicant who is admitted into a certificate program without being currently enrolled in a graduate degree program is considered to be a special graduate student. If the applicant wishes to be admitted into a degree program, they will be required to apply to that program as a degree-seeking student. Admittance into or completion of a certificate program is not considered to be qualification for entry into a graduate degree program.

Applicants who are pursuing a certificate as a special graduate ­student will not be eligible for financial aid.

Applicants who are admitted into a certificate program while also pursuing a graduate degree will be classified as degree-seeking students. Undergraduate students may not enroll in graduate certificate programs.

Transfer of Credit

Students are expected to complete the majority of all coursework at UTSA. UTSA awards credit for college-level transfer coursework of no more than 3 semester credit hours, earned with a grade of “B” or higher, from accredited colleges and universities. Admitted students may submit a petition for credits to the related Graduate Program Committee and academic College to receive credit earned from foreign institutions and non-accredited colleges or universities. Based on course level, rigor, quality, comparability, and degree program relevance, credits may be awarded on an individual basis at the discretion of the Graduate Program Committee, academic College and the Graduate School.

UTSA reserves the right to refuse recognition of credit from a college or university if it is determined the course does not meet the department’s standards of level, rigor, quality, comparability, and degree program relevance. Applicability of such coursework toward the UTSA degree plan is at the discretion of the major academic department. Work counted toward a degree at another institution cannot be transferred.

Conditions for transfer of credit:

  1. Students must complete the form “Transfer of Graduate Credit towards Master’s Degree.”
  2. Student must be in a current master’s degree or graduate certificate program.
  3. Student must be in good academic standing.
  4. The courses must have been completed with a grade of “B” (3.0) or better.
  5. Coursework cannot be used in another degree program.
  6. An official transcript from the institution where the coursework was completed must be submitted.
  7. All coursework must have been completed no more than six years before the degree was awarded.
  8. Coursework is subject to approval of the appropriate Graduate Program Committee and academic College in which the program is administered.
  9. Courses must be defined as graduate-level work at the institution where the credit was earned.
  10. International transcripts must be evaluated by a UTSA approved foreign credential evaluation service agency.

Completion of Requirements for a Certificate

Completion of a certificate program, with or without completion of a degree program, will be recorded on the student’s transcript if the following conditions are met:

  1. The student’s Certificate Program Advisor has prepared a Certificate Degree Plan, which will be sent to the Office of the Registrar prior to the end of the semester in which the student completes the requirements of the certificate.
  2. The student has applied officially, by submitting an Application for Graduate Certificate to the One Stop Enrollment Center, no later than September 15 for the Fall Semester, February 15 for the Spring Semester, or June 15 for the Summer Semester. The application of any student applying for a certificate after the established deadlines will be processed the following semester.

It is the responsibility of the student to meet with the Certificate Program Advisor during the last semester of certificate coursework in order to determine that all requirements of completion have been met. It is also the responsibility of the student to apply for the certificate by the established deadline by submitting a paper application to the Office of the Registrar, as explained above.

If a student has graduated from one of UTSA’s approved graduate degree programs and then wishes to apply for a certificate using hours previously earned, the student must apply for admission to UTSA as a special (non-degree-seeking) graduate student and indicate their intent to seek admission into a certificate program. See admission policy for certificate programs.

The student’s completion of a certificate program, with or without completion of a degree program, will be recorded on the student’s transcript.