About the Certificate Program

The points-based framework of Sewickley Academy's Global Studies Certificate Program emphasizes four learning domains and creates flexible pathways for students to meet the requirements of each domain while charting a path that will allow them to pursue their unique interests.
The four learning domains are Language Study, Global Issues Study, Cultural Engagement, and Global Action. Each provides a focus for a student’s path to the Global Studies Certificate. In order to receive the Global Studies Certificate students need to earn a total of 1,000 points, 200 in each of the four Certificate domains,  and 200 additional floating points to be earned in their domains of interest. 

  • Students may choose from several year-long or trimester-long Global Studies courses published by the Global Studies Department in the Senior School Catalog.
  • Students are encouraged to chart their own paths and be creative in imagining for themselves a meaningful and personally enriching pathway.
  • Candidates may enroll in the spring of their Grade 8 year or in Grades 9 or 10.
  • Students are encouraged to enroll as soon as possible to allow for more flexibility to design a program that will meet his or her needs.
  • Successful candidates will possess a desire to learn about people, cultures, and places  that are very different from their own.
  • While there is no GPA minimum required for participation, Global Studies Certificate candidates will be successful students who have demonstrated an ability to handle a range of academic and extra-curricular demands.
  • Candidates should see themselves as the architects of their experiences rather than as passive consumers of experiences that have been designed by others.
  • Curiosity, imagination, and a willingness to take personal risks to stretch oneself even to the point of discomfort are qualities that will best suit a candidate.
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