The purpose of the Higher Education Administration Graduate Certificate is to prepare current and future professionals with the knowledge base necessary to be successful within their current positions within higher education, as an avenue for work-related advancement and promotion, and/or enrollment in a future degree-seeking graduate program in Higher Education.

• View the 222-23 Higher Education Administration Handbook
• View the 21-22 Higher Education Administration Handbook
• View the 20-21 Higher Education Administration Handbook

Admission Requirements

Applicants must meet the following requirements for admission to the Graduate Certificate in Higher Education Administration:

• Completed undergraduate degree with an overall GPA of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale OR current UAB undergraduate students in good standing with 60+ credit hours completed and an institutional GPA of 3.0 (Applicants do not need to have earned a degree in education nor be currently pursuing a degree in education).
• Applicants must submit an official copy of their transcripts.
• Submit a purpose statement outlining the reason the student is pursuing the Graduate Certificate (not to exceed one page).
• Provide a letter of recommendation from your current (most recent if currently unemployed) supervisor.

Note: If undergraduate students meet the certificate admission criteria stated above, they can start the Higher Education Administration Graduate Certificate while still pursuing their bachelor’s degree. However, because of their admission to a Graduate Certificate program, these undergraduate students cannot use the graduate credit hours from this certificate program towards their undergraduate degree. After having earned their UG degree and also having earned the Higher Education graduate certificate, alumni will be able to use up to 12 credit hours from their graduate certificate toward an M.S. in Higher Education Administration at UAB if completed within five years of having earned their undergraduate degree.

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Coursework

Through this five-course program (15 credit hours), current and future higher education professionals will develop the critical skills necessary to support their programs, departments and institutions, and students. This Graduate Certificate will prepare certificate-seekers with competency in areas such as the following:

• Organization, culture, diversity, and history of higher education.
• Governance, structure, and management of higher education institutions.
• Research, theoretical, and practical issues surrounding access to college and equity in higher education.
• Critical support systems within higher education that promote student success.