Certificate Programs

Ball State University offers graduate certificate programs in the following areas:

Adult/Community Education
Applied Behavior Analysis
Artist Diploma in Music Performance
Athletic Coaching Education
Autism
Biotechnology
Business Essentials
College and University Teaching
Community College Leadership
Community and Economic Development - admissions suspended
Computer Education
Corporate Communications
Criminal Justice and Criminology
Curriculum Development and Leadership
Digital Fabrication
Disabilities for Post-Secondary Settings with an Emphasis on Autism
Diversity Studies
Early Childhood Program Administration
Early Childhood Education, Master Teacher
Education Communications
Elementary Mathematics Teacher Leadership
Emergency Management and Homeland Security
Emerging Media Design and Development
Emerging Media and Visual Reporting
Emotional and Behavioral Disorders
Enhanced Teaching Practice for Elementary Teachers
Entrepreneurial Studies in Music
Entrepreneurship
Foundational Mathematics Teaching in Community College
Geographic Information Science (GIScience)
Gifted and Talented Education
Health Economics
Historic Preservation
Human Development and Learning
Identity Leadership 
Institutional Research
Interpretive Ethnography
Literacy Instruction
Literary Journalism
Middle-Level Education
Neuropsychology
Planning and Design of Healthcare Environments
Post-Master’s Certificate in Nursing - Family Nurse Practitioner
Professional Meteorology and Climatology
Public Administration
Public Health Education – admissions suspended
Qualitative Research in Education
Real Estate Development
Response to Intervention
Selling and Sales Management
Social and Environmental Justice
Statistical Modeling
Sustainability
Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
Teaching Writing

Admission Requirements

Students must meet the minimum requirements for admission to a master’s degree program and, if accepted, will be classified as nondegree students. With the department’s approval, the student may defer admission for up to a semester.  If the student wishes to defer longer than a semester, the student may reapply for admission but must submit new application materials and meet all current admission requirements.

Curriculum Criteria

The number of graduate credits for a certificate must be at least 12 credits and not more than one-half of the credits necessary for a related graduate degree. All certificate requirements must be met within five years. Students must earn at least a 3.0 GPA to qualify for a certificate, but no course with a grade below 2.0 (C- or lower) can be counted toward the certificate. No transfer credit is allowed to count toward the certificate. Credits earned toward the certificate can apply to a degree-granting program with departmental approval.

Transfer of Credit Status

Clearance to enroll in graduate courses may be granted to students who are intending to transfer courses back to their home institution. Transfer of credit students are not taking graduate courses toward any graduate degree or licensure program at Ball State University and are not considered to be admitted to the Graduate School.

Clearance is granted to students who hold a baccalaureate degree and are actively pursuing a graduate degree program at another regionally accredited college or university and who wish to earn credits for transfer to that institution. Transfer of credit students normally will not be required to submit official transcripts (see next paragraph). However, students must request the dean of their graduate school to complete the Ball State University “Transfer of Credit Form” indicating they are in good academic standing (i.e., not under academic probation, suspension, and/or expelled).

If the student has been offered admission to a graduate school at another institution but has not taken any graduate courses at the time transfer for credit status is requested, then the applicant must apply for regular nondegree status and meet all of the requirements for “Admission as a Nondegree Student” found in the Graduate Catalog.

Approval for enrollment as a transfer of credit student is generally given for one academic semester. To be considered for an additional semester, students must reapply as a transfer of credit student. No application fee is required for clearance as a transfer of credit student.

Students who subsequently wish to be considered for admission to any graduate degree or licensure program at Ball State University must complete the regular admission procedure (including the appropriate application fee) and meet all requirements for their requested program. A prospective student should contact the department or consult the department's website and/or handbook for specific program requirements. No more than 9 credits earned as a nondegree student may be applied to any graduate degree program if a person is admitted as a degree-seeking student