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Teaching Certificates

Graduate students and postdocs can earn certificates as a way to demonstrate their commitment to improving their teaching. Certificates are granted on a rolling basis throughout the year.  They are granted digitally, with hard copies available upon request.

Certificates Offered

Striving for Excellence in Teaching

Notre Dame graduate students and postdocs who attend five teaching workshops and write a two-page reflective essay are eligible for the Striving for Excellence in Teaching Certificate. The five workshops may be attended over multiple semesters. Workshops do not count for academic credit.

To receive a certificate, email the following information to kaneb@nd.edu:

  • Date of each workshop, title, and brief description of each workshop (workshop attendance will be verified by signature on sign-in sheets).
  • A two-page essay reflecting on aspects of the workshop content that the applicant found most relevant to his or her teaching interests and goals.

Advanced Teaching Scholar

Graduate students and postdocs who have completed the Striving for Excellence in Teaching Certificate can go on to pursue an Advanced Teaching Scholar certificate. Requirements are as follows:

  • Previous completion of the Striving for Excellence in Teaching Certificate.
  • List of 5 workshops attended. These must be additional workshops beyond those completed for the Striving for Excellence Certificate. Evidence of participation in other pedagogy workshops (e.g. departmental teaching workshops) may be counted; contact kaneb@nd.edu with questions.
  • Observation with consultation. A Kaneb Center observer will attend your class and meet with you afterward to discuss observations and future directions. The Graduate Peer Observation Program can be used to satisfy this requirement. If you are done with your teaching, we suggest looking for opportunities to guest teach in a class. (In the absence of teaching opportunities, this requirement may be waived with permission.)
  • Teaching portfolio. This should include at least the following, compiled into a single PDF with page numbers included.
    • Table of Contents
    • Teaching Statement
    • Teaching experience and training overview
    • 2 sample syllabi
    • 3 sample course materials
    • Student evaluations

In certain cases, other major projects such as SOTL research could be considered as substitutions for the teaching portfolio—please set up an individual meeting if you hope to pursue this option.

  • Reflective narrative. 500-800 words, reflecting on what you experienced during and learned from the workshops and the process of completing your consultation and portfolio.
  • Final meeting and portfolio feedback. Contact kaneb@nd.edu when you have completed the above steps and are ready to schedule your feedback meeting. This is a chance to get professional feedback on your teaching portfolio and, if desired, discuss more about your experiences pursuing the certificate. Typically, the certificate is considered completed at the conclusion of this meeting. If any of the elements listed above are unsatisfactory or incomplete, you will be asked to complete or update them before being granted a certificate.