What are badges?

Badges are credit courses that appear on a transcript indicating that academic work was successfully completed in a short course for less than a full credit hour. Students will receive either a 鈥淏G鈥� (badge earned) or 鈥淣BG鈥� (no badge earned) when the class ends. While this information will appear on a student鈥檚 transcript, it will not affect a student's GPA.

Who are badges for?

The badge program was designed with the practicing professional in mind. Coursework is structured for students to complete at their convenience. Information is organized into 0.5 credit hour classes (one 0.5 credit hour class equals one badge), which also makes the workload more manageable for someone who works a full-time job. While some badges may be offered in a classroom setting, many are also offered online.

Students in this category are not seeking a graduate degree, but want to continue professional development through skills acquired in the badge coursework.

Can I use badge coursework for a degree later?

Depending on a program's structure, badge credit may not be used in the future for a degree or certificate program. If a badge student later applies and is admitted to a degree-seeking program that does allow badge coursework, all graduate rules with respect to coursework will apply to the badges (e.g. time limits; non-letter graded coursework limits).

What are the requirements to be admitted to a badge program?

Admission to a badge program provides students the opportunity to take badge coursework for which they have the prerequisites. Students apply for admission to a badge program must meet the following requirements:

  1. Hold a bachelor's degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution
  2. Have a GPA of at least 2.75 based upon the last 60 hours of coursework (or nearest semester or term break to this), including any post-bachelor's or graduate work.
  3. Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, or hold a non-student visa that allows enrollment (H1-B, for example).

How do I apply?

Although there is no specific deadline for application, we recommend that you submit the following items no later than two to three weeks prior to the start of the badge course in which you wish to enroll:

  1. A completed and signed . You will create a new account, select online application, then select the graduate badge program application form.
  2. The $10 application fee
  3. Upload copies of your official transcripts online

Uploading documents for admission

Please follow the instructions below carefully to make sure your documents will be matched to your application.

  1. Scan your supporting materials. All applicants should scan their official transcripts. Please include the back of the transcript if it is not blank. Note: Scan your documents into a pdf (Adobe Reader format), if possible.
  2. Create the files to be uploaded. Include your full name when you create the file to be uploaded. Examples of how to name the files:
    • STUDENT鈥橲 NAME Transcript.pdf
    • STUDENT鈥橲 NAME Transcript2.pdf

Please note the following:

  • Do NOT upload the same documents multiple times.
  • Do NOT share a DropBox folder with us.
  • Do NOT zip (or compress) files that you upload or send.

Once you have uploaded your documents through the easy Dropbox interface, you will receive a green "DONE" confirmation box, as well as an automated confirmation email from Dropbox indicating the documents were received. Graduate School staff will download documents from Dropbox daily, and update the information in our database in the order in which materials were received. During high-volume time frames, this can take several days. If you received the upload confirmation email (check your junk mail folders), rest assured that we have received the documents. We will update the database to reflect that uploaded documents were received as soon as we are able. When an admissions officer processes the file further, we will specify what documents were received, and what might still be needed.