Council on African Studies

The MacMillan Center
137 Rosenkranz Hall, 203.432.1425
http://african.macmillan.yale.edu
Graduate Certificate of Concentration in African Studies

Chair
Cajetan Iheka (English)

Faculty
For faculty listings, see African Studies under Degree-Granting Departments and Programs in this bulletin.

Special Requirements for the Graduate Certificate of Concentration in African Studies

The Graduate Certificate of Concentration in African Studies enables graduate and professional school students in fields other than African Studies to demonstrate interdisciplinary area expertise, language proficiency, and research competence in African Studies. The certificate program is intended to complement existing fields of studies in other M.A. and Ph.D. programs and to provide the equivalent of such specialization for students in departments and schools without Africa-related fields of study. The certificate program is designed to be completed within the time span of a normal Ph.D. residence. Professional school students and M.A. students in the graduate school may require an additional term of registration to complete the certificate requirements depending on the requirements of specific programs.

The certificate program includes interdisciplinary course work, language study, and research components. The specific requirements are as follows.

Courses Successful completion of at least six courses in African Studies from at least two departments or schools.

Language Demonstration of proficiency in an African language. Students may demonstrate proficiency in one of the following ways, subject to the approval of the African Studies DGS.

  1. A transcript from undergraduate or summer language study, showing two semesters or equivalent with grades of B or better. This work must have been completed no more than three years earlier, or in some cases it may be completed during the summer after the student’s first year in the Ph.D. program. The DGS may require detailed information about the coursework.
  2. Passing a reading/translation exam administered by a language department at Yale, if such an exam exists.
  3. Passing, with a grade of B, HP or better, two semesters of a language course given at Yale.
  4. Passing, with a grade of B, HP or better, a seminar at Yale that is fully conducted in the target language (this includes undergraduate courses).
  5. In the case of languages for which this is appropriate as determined by the DGS, students may pass an oral proficiency test administered by the Yale Center for Language Study.
  6. The DGS, at their discretion, may accept other evidence of language competence, such as (but not limited to) completion of secondary education at a school that principally uses the language in question.

Research Paper Evidence of research expertise in African Studies. Research expertise may be demonstrated by completion of an interdisciplinary thesis, dissertation prospectus, or dissertation, or by completion of a substantive research seminar paper or the equivalent as approved by the faculty adviser.

The certificate courses and research work should be planned to demonstrate clearly fulfillment of the goals of the certificate. Certificate candidates should design their course schedules in consultation with the DGS for African Studies. Ideally, students should declare their intention to complete the certificate requirements early in their program at Yale. Graduate- and professional-school students who intend to complete the certificate program must declare their intention to do so no later than during their penultimate term of enrollment.

Courses

For course listings, see African Studies under Degree-Granting Departments and Programs in this bulletin.