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Educational Policy Online
Graduate Certificate

On-campus Graduate Certificate

Advance your education at UMassD

The UMass Dartmouth Educational Policy Graduate Certificate provides students who have earned a bachelor's degree with the essential principles of educational policy within the context of public policy.

This certificate program is offered 100% online. Successful completion of this certificate program waives the GRE requirement for applicants to the Master of Public Policy (MPP) program.

Application requirements

Review the admission process for the Educational Policy certificate program. Additional materials required

  • College transcripts
  • Statement of purpose (1- to 2-page essay)
  • Resume

Curriculum

To earn their certificate, UMass Dartmouth Educational Policy certificate program students must complete 12 credits. These two courses are required:

  • Public Institutions and the Policy Process
  • Social, Historical and Philosophical Foundations of American Education

Students choose 2 electives from courses such as:

  • Organizational Behavior in Educational Settings
  • Program Evaluation
  • Law and Education
  • Public Finance in Education
  • Administrative Law*

Students who successfully complete this certificate and are subsequently accepted into the Master of Public Policy (MPP) program who receive at least a grade of B (3.0) or higher in each course will receive credit for those courses towards the 12 course MPP program.

More information is available on the Public Policy Department website.

*This course is part of the MPP core curriculum. Students who complete this course as part of the certificate and then choose to pursue the MPP will need to take a different Educational Policy course to complete the MPP with the public management concentration.

University requirements for graduate admissions

  • Submit an application via the online portal. Be sure to provide your full legal name and to capitalize the first letter of all proper nouns.
  • Pay non-refundable $60 application fee (American Express, Discover, MasterCard or Visa) via the online portal. For Nursing applicants, the non-refundable application fee is $75.
  • Statement of Purpose, minimum 300 words. Unless otherwise indicated in the program requirement details, indicate your graduate study objectives, research interests and experience, and business or industry experience if applicable. If you are applying for a teaching or research assistantship, include any special skills or experience that would assist us in making assistantship decisions.
  • Resume
  • Transcripts for all post-secondary institutions attended (regardless of whether a credential is earned or not). Unofficial transcripts are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled a final official transcript is required. International students applying with an transcript evaluation, please submit that document with your unofficial transcripts. International applicants for Data Science must submit semester-by-semester transcripts as well as consolidated transcripts. 
  • Many programs have specific recommendations/requirements, please see the additional program-specific requirements for more information.
  • International students: official TOEFL iBT, IELTS, Pearson PTE or Duolingo (if accepted by program) score. Unofficial scores are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled official scores are required and must be sent by the testing agency (copies/scans not accepted). This is required of any applicant who did not earn a bachelor’s degree or higher degree from an accredited academic institution in the U.S. or accepted English-speaking country, see exemptions for more details. We require an overall/total minimum score of 72 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.0 on the IELTS or a 52 on the Pearsons PTE Academic for entrance to any program and a minimum score of 79 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.5 on the IELTS for consideration for a teaching assistantship. Some programs require higher minimum scores (see program-specific requirements). Most programs also accept the Duolingo with a minimum score of 95. The following programs do not accept the Duolingo: Art Education, Biology/Marine Biology, Nursing (MS, DNP, PhD), Psychology: Clinical, and Public Policy. 
  • All official documents are required for enrollment, please have documents (ie. test scores) sent prior to the expiration. 

Program deadlines

Customize your education and receive the help and guidance to finish as planned:

  • Value and affordability of a UMass education
  • One-on-one personal advising from enrollment through graduation
  • Free online and in-person tutoring and writing center 

Learning style: online

Online courses are taught by UMass Dartmouth faculty to provide high quality instruction and personal attention. Students have the flexibility to accommodate work and home responsibilities within the structure of defined assignment due dates. The majority of our online courses are taught asynchronously.

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UMassD Course Catalog

Course descriptions, schedules and requirements

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