Certificate Requirements

Twelve hours of graduate-level coursework are required for the Graduate Certificate in Culture, Language, and Social Practice. Three hours of coursework must come from the list of approved core courses (Group A); six hours of coursework must come from the list of elective courses (Group B); and the three remaining hours must come from a course in either social theory or research methods (Group C), subject to approval by the CLASP curriculum committee. The course chosen to fulfill the Group C requirement, while not necessarily language-related, should be a methodological or theoretical course that informs the student’s research interests in the relationship between language and society. At least one of the three selected courses from Lists A and B must be from outside the student’s home department.

A student may opt to substitute a University of Colorado M.A. thesis on the subject of culture, language, and social practice for one of the Group B courses, if approved by the curriculum committee, which is constituted by the CLASP faculty advisor and CLASP director. An independent study may also be substituted for a formal course, if approved by the committee.

A number of new and unlisted seminars on the subject of language and society are taught within individual departments each year. Students should check with the CLASP program director each semester for a list of additional courses that fulfill the requirements. Students wanting to substitute an unapproved course for one of the courses listed below must receive approval from the CLASP curriculum committee.

The acquisition of a CLASP Certificate is dependent on the successful completion of all courses in the academic curriculum with a grade of B or higher.

Group A: Core Courses

Students will choose one core course from the list below.

CourseTitle
ANTH/LING 6320Linguistic Anthropology
COMM 6410Discourse Analysis
COMM 6445Language, Ideology, and Identity 
COMM 6460Ethnography of Communication 
LING 5700Introduction to Conversation Analysis and Interactional Linguistics
LING 6300Talk at Work: Language Use in Institutional Contexts
LING 6310Sociolinguistic Analysis
LING 6320Linguistic Anthropology
EDUC 5615Second Language Acquisition
EDUC 5635Education and Sociolinguistics
SPAN 5450Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics

Group B: Elective Courses

Students will choose two elective courses. Recently offered courses that fulfill this requirement include:1

CourseTitle
ANTH 6320Linguistic Anthropology
COMM 5210Readings in Communication Theory 
COMM 5435Readings in Community and Social Interaction 
COMM 6410Discourse Analysis 
COMM 6445Language, Ideology, and Identity 
COMM 6460Ethnography of Communication 
EDUC 5425Introduction to Bilingual/Multicultural Education 
EDUC 5455Literacy for Linguistically Different Learners
EDUC 5615Second Language Acquisition 
EDUC 5635Education and Sociolinguistics 
EDUC 5465Introduction to ESL/Bilingual and Special Education 
EDUC 8615Language Issues in Education Research 
EDUC 8630Bilingual and Biliterate Development in Children and Adolescents
EDUC 8620Language and Power
LING 4100/5800Language, Race, and Indigeneity
LING 5700Introduction to Conversation Analysis and Interactional Linguistics
LING 6310Sociolinguistic Analysis 
LING 6320Linguistic Anthropology 
LING 7350Language and Gender in Cultural Perspective 
LING 7800-04Indigenous Peoples & Climate Change Communication
SPAN 5450Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics

Group C: Courses in Social Theory and Research Methods

Choose one course in either social theory or research methods that is appropriate for research goals, in consultation with their CLASP faculty advisor. 2

Examples of social theory courses include: 
CourseTitle
ANTH 4610/5610Medical Anthropology
ANTH 5530Theoretical Foundations of Sociocultural Anthropology 
ANTH 5605Anthropology of Neuroscience 
ANTH 5610Medical Anthropology 
ANTH 5730Latin American Politics and Culture through Film and Text 
ANTH 5745Science, Technology, and Society 
ANTH 5755Cultures of Expertise: Science, Power and Knowledge
ANTH 5780Core Course-Cultural Anthropology 
ANTH 5785Advanced Seminar in Cultural Anthropology 
ANTH 7010Seminar: Contemporary Theory in Cultural Anthropology
ANTH 7620Seminar: Ethnography and Cultural Theory
COMM 6360Social and Cultural Theory 
EDUC 5075Sociology in Education
EDUC 6325Anthropology of Education 
GEOG 6742Seminar: Cultural Geography
HIST 6330History of Sex and Sexuality
PSCI 7004Seminar: Political Theory 
SOCY 5201Graduate Seminar in Sociological Theory
SOCY 6041Cultural Sociology
SOCY 7006Sociology of Sex and Gender
SOCY 7036Feminist Theory
SOCY 7131Seminar in Social Psychology
WGST 5000Advanced Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies 
WGST 5001Advanced Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies (AH)
WGST 5001Advanced Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies (SS)
WGST 5400Critical Inquiries in Transgender Studies 
WGST 6090Feminist Theories 
WGST 6290Special Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies 
WGST 6796Queer Theories 
Examples of seminars in methods include:
CourseTitle
ANTH 7000Seminar: Current Research Topics in Cultural Anthropology 
ANTH 7300Seminar: Research Methods in Cultural Anthropology
COMM 6030Qualitative Research Methods
COMM 6455Community-based Research Methods 
EDUC 7346Ethnographic Methods in Educational Research
EDUC 8250Qualitative Methods I
EDUC 8260Qualitative Methods II
SOCY 5111Data 1: Introduction to Social Statistics 
SOCY 6111Data 2: Data Analysis 
SOCY 6121Qualitative Methods
SOCY 7026Feminist Research Methods
SOCY 7121Qualitative Analysis
WGST 6190Feminist Methodology

Total Credit Hours 12

1The courses listed in this category have been offered at ¶¶Òõ¶ÌÊÓƵ Boulder in the recent past. They are not necessarily offered on a regular basis, and they often have rotating faculty members and are subject to change. Students may also substitute an approved independent study with a CLASP faculty member as one of the required electives. 

2This is a working list of possible courses offered in these areas at ¶¶Òõ¶ÌÊÓƵ Boulder, as listed in the catalog. Note that these are not CLASP-approved courses. Unlike the courses specified in Categories A and B, these courses are a suggestion only, to provide examples of the kinds of seminars that might be used to fulfill this requirement. Because many of these courses are taught by revolving faculty member who are not CLASP-affiiated, this course content is subject to change from semester to semester. In addition, some of these seminars have prerequisites or limit student enrollment on the basis of disciplinary background. 

A Strong Foundation

  The interdisciplinarity fostered through CLASP made me a better scholar as I benefitted from the variety of methodological and theoretical perspectives that make the disciplines involved in the program so unique. As I now begin to ask my questions about language in an experimental setting, it is the strong reflexive foundation built through my participation in the CLASP program that keeps my research thoughtful, valuable, interesting and fun.  

-Alec Buchner
MA, Linguistics, 2012

Meaning & Depth

  Interconnectivity with complementary academic disciplines and a formal framework for training in research methods are two of the key standouts of the CLASP graduate certificate program, from which I benefitted immensely. CLASP provided me with a well-rounded interdisciplinary foundation for engaging in meaningful comparative research abroad in Latin America and the Caribbean that combined critical theory, sociolinguistic analysis, linguistic anthropology, and feminist theory, while also taking into account issues of race, class, gender, and political history. Both my coursework and my involvement with the CLASP faculty and student community added depth and texture to my overall graduate experience.  

-Sara Otis
MA, Linguistics, 2005