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.

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

Group B: Elective Courses

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

Course Title
ANTH 6320 Linguistic Anthropology
COMM 5210 Readings in Communication Theory 
COMM 5435 Readings in Community and Social Interaction 
COMM 6410 Discourse Analysis 
COMM 6445 Language, Ideology, and Identity 
COMM 6460 Ethnography of Communication 
EDUC 5425 Introduction to Bilingual/Multicultural Education 
EDUC 5455 Literacy for Linguistically Different Learners
EDUC 5615 Second Language Acquisition 
EDUC 5635 Education and Sociolinguistics 
EDUC 5465 Introduction to ESL/Bilingual and Special Education 
EDUC 8615 Language Issues in Education Research 
EDUC 8630 Bilingual and Biliterate Development in Children and Adolescents
EDUC 8620 Language and Power
LING 4100/5800 Language, Race, and Indigeneity
LING 5700 Introduction to Conversation Analysis and Interactional Linguistics
LING 6310 Sociolinguistic Analysis 
LING 6320 Linguistic Anthropology 
LING 7350 Language and Gender in Cultural Perspective 
LING 7800-04 Indigenous Peoples & Climate Change Communication
SPAN 5450 Introduction 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: 
Course Title
ANTH 4610/5610 Medical Anthropology
ANTH 5530 Theoretical Foundations of Sociocultural Anthropology 
ANTH 5605 Anthropology of Neuroscience 
ANTH 5610 Medical Anthropology 
ANTH 5730 Latin American Politics and Culture through Film and Text 
ANTH 5745 Science, Technology, and Society 
ANTH 5755 Cultures of Expertise: Science, Power and Knowledge
ANTH 5780 Core Course-Cultural Anthropology 
ANTH 5785 Advanced Seminar in Cultural Anthropology 
ANTH 7010 Seminar: Contemporary Theory in Cultural Anthropology
ANTH 7620 Seminar: Ethnography and Cultural Theory
COMM 6360 Social and Cultural Theory 
EDUC 5075 Sociology in Education
EDUC 6325 Anthropology of Education 
GEOG 6742 Seminar: Cultural Geography
HIST 6330 History of Sex and Sexuality
PSCI 7004 Seminar: Political Theory 
SOCY 5201 Graduate Seminar in Sociological Theory
SOCY 6041 Cultural Sociology
SOCY 7006 Sociology of Sex and Gender
SOCY 7036 Feminist Theory
SOCY 7131 Seminar in Social Psychology
WGST 5000 Advanced Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies 
WGST 5001 Advanced Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies (AH)
WGST 5001 Advanced Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies (SS)
WGST 5400 Critical Inquiries in Transgender Studies 
WGST 6090 Feminist Theories 
WGST 6290 Special Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies 
WGST 6796 Queer Theories 
Examples of seminars in methods include:
Course Title
ANTH 7000 Seminar: Current Research Topics in Cultural Anthropology 
ANTH 7300 Seminar: Research Methods in Cultural Anthropology
COMM 6030 Qualitative Research Methods
COMM 6455 Community-based Research Methods 
EDUC 7346 Ethnographic Methods in Educational Research
EDUC 8250 Qualitative Methods I
EDUC 8260 Qualitative Methods II
SOCY 5111 Data 1: Introduction to Social Statistics 
SOCY 6111 Data 2: Data Analysis 
SOCY 6121 Qualitative Methods
SOCY 7026 Feminist Research Methods
SOCY 7121 Qualitative Analysis
WGST 6190 Feminist Methodology

Total Credit Hours 12

1The courses listed in this category have been offered at CU 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 CU 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.