Certificate Requirements

Those interested in the Certificate must be members of the University of Pennsylvania community.  An Advisor Approval Form (link here) is required for graduate students enrolled in programs that require such approval.

Coursework

The Certificate requires the successful completion of two (1CU) graduate-level courses and one asynchronous online course.  Certificate candidates must complete the courses required for the Certificate during their primary course of study.  Certificate candidates must achieve a grade of B- or better in all courses counting toward the Certificate. Listed in bold are modifications to the requirements for students using the Bridging the Gaps (BTG) program to complete the CES certificate.

Required Courses

PhD Students 

The Penn Experience

NGG5900

Medical Students

The Penn Experience

Educational Pipeline Program, Bridging the Gaps, or CLINICOM Leadership 

For students following the BTG pathway, the Community Health Internship Program (CHIP) fills this requirement.

Elective Courses

In addition to required coursework, one elective course is required. 

View Required and Elective Coursework.

Community-Engaged STEM Research Seminar

Certificate students must participate for at least one year in a monthly research seminar under the leadership of Certificate Advisory Committee. During the Fall semesters, the research seminar will be led by faculty and will focus on readings about the nature of science literacy and STEM community engagement, cross-disciplinary work that includes STEM, aspects of engagement with community partners, and similar topics. The specific topics to be addressed will be generated by participants in the research seminar and will change from year to year depending upon the interests of the group. During the Spring semesters, the research seminar will focus on student capstone projects. The seminar will be a community where students can develop, hone, and share their capstones.  The seminar will include a session designed to assess the students’ developing competencies in best practices in community engagement, social determinants of health, and education inequities.

Students who are following the BTG pathway to the certificate are required to attend six seminars BTG seminars plus 2 CES seminars.  The BTG Seminar Series draws upon the expertise of participating community partners and academic health centers to address topics related to population health and care coordination. The sessions are designed to augment professional curricula in various content areas and to offer concrete strategies for addressing issues affecting under-resourced populations. 

Engagement

Certificate students will complete a minimum of 40 hours of STEM-related engagement with members of the public. This can take several forms, subject to approval of the Certificate Advisor. These include, but are not limited to, teaching and/or facilitating discussion among pre-college students or members of other community groups, making presentations to out-of-discipline audiences at conferences/events, and working with the leadership of a community organization for capacity building. 

For students following the BTG pathway, CHIP fills this requirement.

Capstone Project

This will consist of a scholarly product of the student’s Community-engaged STEM work. It could take the form of a research paper, a presentation at a professional conference, or a contribution to an annual Penn STEM and Community Workshop.

For Students following the BTG pathway, the poster and presentation at the BTG Symposium fulfills this requirement.  The BTG Annual Symposium highlights the work of CHIP. The Symposium is open to the broader community and provides a forum for dialogue and networking opportunities with community representatives, public health officials, agency personnel, grant-makers, and university faculty, staff, and students in the work of the program.