Applications are not required to participate in nearly all our programs. You can enroll directly for your program of interest.
An application is required for the 9-month Certificate in Foundational Leadership program. To apply for this program, submit your application here by June 15th.
In our 9-month Certificate in Foundational Leadership, students say that they spend an average of 5-10 hours per month on classes and coursework. In the 6-month Certificate in Healthcare Leadership, students spend 3-4 hours per month outside of class sessions.
Visit the program page of the course you are interested in to learn more about the specific time commitment for that course.
Certificates are not eligible for federal aid. There are a number of ways to fund a certificate:
- Employer Funding: Many employers sponsor their employees to participate in continuing education and professional development programs. Some employers pay fees directly, some submit tuition vouchers to the university, and some reimburse the employees after they have successfully completed the course.
- To find out whether your employer will cover the cost of your programs, reach out to your supervisor or Benefits department.
- Payment Plans: If you would like to pay in installments, no problem! You can easily set this up when you are enrolling in the course.
- Discounts: For some programs, we offer a limited number of 30%-off discounted spots to employees of 501(c)3 non-profits and government agencies. The discount also extends to public K-12 employees, first responders, military personnel, military spouses, and veterans. You can easily apply the discount when enrolling in the course.
- Scholarships are considered on a case-by-case basis. To be considered for a scholarship, complete a scholarship application. Priority will be given to scholarship applications submitted by June 1 for fall programs and by November 1 for winter/spring programs.
Those who successfully complete the following certificates - Foundational Leadership, Design Thinking, Health Care Leadership, Servant Leadership, and Women’s Leadership - have the option of applying a maximum of three (3) credits towards completion of a Master’s in Organizational Leadership, Master’s in Communication and Leadership or Master’s in Business Administration at Gonzaga, contingent upon admission and within 5 years of certificate completion.
The Master’s in Nursing Leadership Healthcare also awards three (3) transfer credits to graduates of the Certificate in Health Care Leadership, contingent upon admission within 5 years of completion.
If you hope to transfer credit from a certificate into a graduate or doctoral program either at Gonzaga or another university, we recommend that you confirm whether this will be possible before starting the certificate.
No, courses through the Center for Lifelong Learning do not provide academic credit. They provide continuing education credits/units (also referred to as CEs/CEUs/CECs).
No, we do not issue letter grades for our courses. Each course is graded on a pass/fail basis.
An online program can be completed without attending any in-person classes. These courses may include online discussion boards, Zoom sessions, and other components that can be completed virtually.
A hybrid program has both online and in-person components. In such a course, you may be asked to complete online activities such as posting on a discussion board or engaging in a Zoom session, while also being expected to attend in-person classes.
Yes, international students are welcome to enroll in our programs.
A certificate is a professional, non-academic credential earned by completing a post-secondary program that focuses on a specific skill or knowledge area. When you complete a certificate at Gonzaga University, it will appear on an official transcript as a continuing education course.
A certification is a credential that an individual earns when they pass an exam (usually a national- or state-recognized assessment), often in conjunction with completing a certain number of hours of work in the field. Certifications are typically awarded by a third-party, standard-setting organization recognized at the state or national level. A certification often results in credentials to be listed after one's name (e.g., SPHR, PE, PMP, etc.). Certifications have on-going requirements and usually require a minimum number of CE credits per year. It is important to note that a university course can prepare an individual to pursue a certification or license; however, the course itself does not culminate in a certification.