College Teaching, Graduate Certificate

The graduate Certificate in College Teaching requires a minimum of 12 s.h. of graduate credit. Previous teaching experience does not count toward certificate requirements.

The certificate program is open to all University of Iowa students enrolled in a PhD or other terminal degree program.

Students apply to the certificate program on the Office of Graduate Teaching Excellence (OGTE) website.

The Certificate in College Teaching requires the following coursework. Courses selected from the categories below can be completed in any order at any time.

Category 1

Category 1 coursework provides an overview of basic instructional issues and methods in college teaching. The work requires students to engage in discipline-specific thinking as they consider their own teaching situations.

Students choose two courses (minimum of 6 s.h. required) from the following.

Course # Title Hours
Students must take at least one of these:
EPID:7200Teaching in Epidemiology3
GRAD:7385/CSED:7385/EDTL:7385/EPLS:7385/PSQF:7385Teaching and Learning in Higher Education3
GRAD:6217/PSQF:6217Seminar in College Teaching3
PSQF:6205Design of Instruction3
PSQF:6417Introduction to Postsecondary STEM Teaching1,3
RHET:5352Seminar: Topics in Teaching and Professional Development3
SOC:7010Teaching Sociology3
Students may take one of these:
JMC:5600Teaching Media Writing, Production, and Design (must complete the series of three, 5-week, 1 s.h. sections to count)3
PSQF:6203Tools and External Representations in Individual and Social Learning3
PSQF:6211Universal Design and Accessibility for Online Instruction3
PSQF:6214Design of Learning Environments: Theory, Practice, and Method3
PSQF:6215Online Instruction: Design and Facilitation3
PSQF:6216Tools and Utilities for Online Teaching3
RHET:7940Public Speaking for Academics3

Category 2

Category 2 requires students to complete practicum courses under the guidance of two different professors. Prior or current experience as a teaching assistant does not count toward this requirement.

Students enroll in one of the following courses twice, with each enrollment supervised by a different faculty member. Students earn a total of 3 s.h. for the two enrollments. They can enroll in two practicums with two different professors in the same semester or they can complete practicum experiences in separate semesters.

Course # Title Hours
CSED:7380Internship in Teaching1-3
EDTL:7380Practicum in College Teaching1-3
EPLS:7380Practicum in College Teaching1-3
GRAD:7400Practicum in College Teaching (faculty member must be outside the College of Education)1-3
PSQF:7380Practicum in College Teaching1-3

Category 3

For Category 3, students develop a full portfolio that demonstrates their skills and competencies in teaching, research, and service. The portfolio requires sample syllabi, a statement of teaching philosophy, samples of assignments and student work, and reflective essays on critical issues in teaching in higher education. The portfolio artifacts are reviewed and evaluated by the course instructor.

Category 3 requires the following course.

Course # Title Hours
EALL:7475PhD ePortfolio in College Teaching3