Laddering
Ladder one or two graduate certificates into a course-based Master of Arts Degree program — your graduate certificate(s) count toward the 30 units required to complete your Master of Arts Degree!
1. Start with one graduate certificate
Begin with any KSR Graduate Certificate. Earn 12 units
2. Optional: Add a second certificate
Choose to complete a second Graduate Certificate. Earn 12 units
3. Ladder your completed certificate(s) into a course-based master of Arts degree program.
- Apply to the Master's Degree program (either Master of Arts or Master of Arts, Recreation & Leisure Studies)
- Complete your coursework — program advisors will guide you based on how many certificates you’ve finished. Your certificates count toward your degree (which requires 30 units).
- Complete your capping project — conduct independent research on a topic of interest. Earn 6 units
- Graduate with your Master’s Degree
Laddering of Freestanding Graduate Certificates into a Course-based Master of Arts Degree
Laddering of freestanding graduate level certificates into a master's degree means that a student who holds specific graduate certificates may be able to use the completed courses from the graduate certificate to receive advanced standing in a course-based master's degree.
Completion of a graduate certificate does not guarantee admission to a master's program. Graduate certificates may be used for both the basis of admission and laddering into a course-based master of Arts degree.
Once admitted to the master's program, the graduate courses taken in the certificates may be recognized as advanced standing toward the master's degree. To be incorporated into a master's degree, the student must indicate their intention to ladder at the time of application to the master's program. Except where otherwise specified by a program, courses must be taken within the six years prior to admission to the master's program.
Where presenting graded-courses, the student must have obtained individual grades in these courses that are sufficient for credit in the master's program and meet other quality assurance considerations of the master's program outlined in the program-specific section of the calendar at the time of admission.
To receive the master's degree, the student must complete all remaining master's program requirements including the capping exercise. The student will pay tuition and associated fees for the time registered in the master's program.
Contact
For additional information on how to ladder your completed Graduate Certificate(s) into a course-based master’s degree from the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, please contact:
Jill Cameron
Manager, Community and International Education
Phone: 780.492.8369
Email: KSRCertificates@ualberta.ca