Ethnic Studies Graduate Certificate

The Ethnic Studies Graduate Certificate explores the ways racial and ethnic identities, social relations, cultures, and geographical spaces have been shaped over time. Focusing on the institutions and political/economic/social processes that have staged race at the center of the nation’s histories, Ethnic Studies provides an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the significance of race in contemporary US society.  The scholarship and training of the faculty of Ethnic Studies is interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary. While the core courses offered by the department speak to the intellectual roots of Ethnic Studies in the US civil rights movement and student activism, our faculty also has strong expertise in globalization, immigration, and diaspora and cultural studies.  Thus, Ethnic Studies provides an ethically and socially responsible scholarship that engages you in thinking critically about the world you live in and your place in it.

An Ethnic Studies Graduate Certificate can be pursued along with an MA or Ph.D. program or as stand-alone credential. The certificate strengthens your credentials in race and ethnic studies in both national and global contexts. It demonstrates your training in issues relating to diversity, globalization, migration, social and economic inequities, and contemporary realities. 

All applicants seeking admission to the certificate program, must complete the application required by the Graduate College and upload the requested materials.  

In addition to filling out the Graduate Application, applicants will be asked to submit the following materials:

Applicants not currently admitted to a BGSU master’s or doctoral program must submit: 1) three letters of recommendation, and 2) a personal statement (2 pages maximum) of career goals and reasons for applying to the program.

Students currently enrolled in a BGSU master’s or doctoral program should submit a personal statement (2 pages maximum) of career goals and reasons for applying to the program.

Students currently enrolled in the ACS MA, ACS PhD, or POPC MA program should NOT submit a graduate application - instead email Dr. Susana Peña regarding your interest to be added to the certificate program.

To earn the Ethnic Studies Graduate Certificate, you must complete 15 credit hours (five 3-credit courses) including:

This course provides an advanced introduction to classical theories of race and ethnicity, cultural studies, postcolonial studies, critical race theory, and the politics of multiculturalism. It focuses on questions of racial and ethnic systems of social organization and signification.

This course is typically offered every Fall semester.

Select From: ETHN 6820, ETHN 6800, ETHN 6730, ETHN 6700, ETHN 6600, ETHN 6500, ETHN 6400, ETHN 6300, ETHN 6250, ETHN 6050


One course may be substituted by with a cognate course offered by another program or department at BGSU.  Cognate courses need to be approved by the Ethnic Studies Graduate Committee.

ETHN 6200
ETHN ______
ETHN ______
ETHN ______
ETHN ______ (may be a cognate course)


Recent ETHN Graduate Course Offerings:

  • ETHN 6500 Sexuality, Race, and Nation
  • ETHN 6730 US/Mexico Borderlands
  • ETHN 6730 Japanese American Incarceration
  • ETHN 6730 Divisive Concepts of CRT: Myth and Reality
  • ETHN 6800 Black Women, Popular Culture, and Respectability
  • ETHN 6820 Gender & Transnational Migration

For more information about the Ethnic Studies Graduate Certificate, please contact:

Dr. Susana Peña
Chair and Graduate Coordinator, Department of Ethnic Studies
419-372-2796
susanap@bgsu.edu

Updated: 01/19/2024 11:39AM