Western American Studies Certificate

Program Requirements

  1. Completion of a major in any discipline offered by the University of Colorado or any other accredited college or university.
  2. Completion of 24 hours of course work from the certificate program course list, of which a minimum of 15 must be upper division, and a minimum of 12 must come from outside the student’s major:
    • 24 credit hours total:
    • 3 hours introductory course (CAMW2001, offered fall semesters only)
    • 3 hours of social sciences (e.g., economics, sociology, political science)
    • 3 hours of humanities (e.g., literature, film, music)
    • 3 hours of natural sciences
    • 3 hours capstone course (CAMW4001, offered spring semesters only)
    • 9 hours of elective credits
  3. Maintenance of a C or better average.
  4. A maximum of 9 transfer credits may be accepted (upon director’s approval of transfer credit request form), of which no more than six may be upper division.
  5. A maximum of 6 credits of independent study (CAMW4840) and Center of the American West internships (CAMW3939) may be applied toward program electives and subject areas (social sciences, natural sciences, and humanities).
  6. Only courses for which a student receives a grade, rather than credit/non–credit or pass/fail, will count toward completion of the program.
  7. All course work must be completed within a period of 8 years.
  8. Students must attend a minimum of 2 Center of the American West events and submit a brief (one–page, double–spaced, typed) response to each.
  9. Undergraduate certificates will be awarded upon approval for graduation following a satisfactory review of official transcripts and the certificate checkout form.
  10. Petitions to alter any of the above requirements must be approved by both the student’s CAW advisor and the Center’s director.
  11. Students are required to meet with the Center advisor initially upon entrance to the program, at which time a coursework plan form will be completed, signed by both the student and advisor, and placed in the student’s file at the Center office. Students are encouraged to meet with the advisor at the beginning of each subsequent semester to reveiw their progress and make adjustments to their plan if needed.