Teaching Certificate Programs

Why Earn a Sheridan Center Teaching Certificate?

In today's increasingly competitive academic job market, more emphasis is being put on teaching. When Brown graduate students enter the job market, they are asked to present not only their scholarly credentials, but also evidence of their commitment to teaching. Earning a Sheridan Center Teaching Certificate is a tangible way to demonstrate that commitment. The Center's three Teaching Certificate programs are designed to help graduate students develop a reflective teaching practice. A reflective teaching practice has four fundamental components: an understanding that effective teaching requires careful planning; knowledge of one's audience and the ability to accommodate different learning styles; a recognition of the importance of establishing learning goals (and means to determine if such goals have been achieved); and a willingness to be innovative.

The Sheridan Center's Teaching Certificate I program, established in 1987, helps graduate students prepare for their roles as instructors. The Center has awarded Certificate I to over 700 Brown graduate students, many of whom have secured teaching positions at universities and colleges in the United States and abroad. The Teaching Certificate II program focuses upon teaching tools that instructors may wish to implement in efforts to reach the broadest possible learning population. The Teaching Certificate III program for advanced graduate students emphasizes the scholarship of teaching and the development of a teaching portfolio providing evidence of professional development, whether in preparation for the academic job search or tenure and promotion. All Teaching Certificates (I, II and III) are awarded at the annual Awards Ceremony. A brief description of each certificate program and its requirements follows.