Quantitative Methods for Behavioral Sciences - Graduate Certificate

The purpose of the graduate certificate in quantitative methods is fourfold:

• to strengthen interdepartmental links and communication among social and human science departments at CU Boulder, both in general and specifically with regards to quantitative research methodology and statistical analysis,
• to provide incentive and recognition to graduate students from a diverse set of departments who choose to cultivate expertise in quantitative research methods and methods of statistical analysis,
• to increase the visibility of and promote courses in quantitative research methods (possibly with the benefit that additional quantitative courses can be developed and taught), and
• as a consequence of all of the above, to improve the quality of quantitative training of graduate students at CU Boulder, increasing students' chances of employment upon completion of their graduate studies.

Requirements

Application Process

1. Review the course requirements below.
2. Complete the application form (see also example form).
3. Review application with the advisor to ensure the courses meet the advisor's expectations for expertise in quantitative methods training.
4. Submit the application electronically—along with all available syllabi and an unofficial transcript—to soe.gradvise@colorado.edu.

Note: If a student's course plan meets the requirements and all courses have already been completed at the time of application, the student will receive approval for the certificate. If some of the intended coursework will take place in future semesters, then the student will be given “conditional” approval. Once all coursework is completed, the student must submit an updated application that includes an unofficial transcript showing that the courses were satisfactorily completed. 

Applications will be reviewed once per semester. Deadlines are Nov. 1 and March 1.

Course Requirements

Students will be awarded the certificate if they complete a two-semester foundational sequence in statistics (e.g., EDUC 8230/EDUC 8240, PSYC 5741/PSYC 5751, SOCY 5111/SOCY 6111) as well as a minimum of four additional courses from the approved list below, at least one of which must be outside the student’s home department.

The guidelines serve as a minimum threshold for the application process. However, each student's advisor may require their students to take more than the minimum of 6 courses, or to decide that certain courses are not sufficiently rigorous to count towards the certificate. The application will then be reviewed by a cross-disciplinary committee to evaluate whether the course plan meets the certificate requirements. 

Required Courses and Credits