Capstone Certificate in Community and Nonprofit Leadership

The Community and Nonprofit Leadership Capstone Certificate embraces a multi-disciplinary, ecological, community-centered approach that focuses on community dynamics and community-led efforts in addition to organizational management approaches. It encourages critical thinking and skill-building which acknowledges and addresses root causes, alongside the development of tactical, operational, and management skills typically associated with nonprofit leadership.

Community partner relationships and community-wisdom-centered teaching are a central feature to this program. Students can expect to benefit from the contributions of a network of local, regional, statewide, tribal, national and international guest contributors, and in-the-field observations and experiences while learning from UWMadison-based instructional faculty. Students also benefit from a rich learning community of fellow learners who are engaged with and interested in a broad range of interest areas across different communities and types of nonprofit organizations.

Through this community-engaged program, students will also have the opportunity to customize their learning experience pairing universal nonprofit and community leadership skills development with explorations in their own area of interest (i.e. food systems, human services, youth organizations, the arts, advocacy or environmental efforts).

1. Identify and describe key competencies for thoughtful, effective leadership and participation in the community and non-profit sectors and in other mission-based enterprises.
2. Evaluate current trends and common or novel approaches to issues in community, nonprofit, and mission-based enterprise, taking into consideration historic lessons learned and observations and experiences from the field, in addition to scholarly critique.
3. Obtain familiarity and comfort with particular tasks, strategies, and efforts commonly needed for leadership and change agent roles in mission-based work; obtain skills in independent professional development to remain apprised of changing trends and approaches
4. Refine skills and competencies that can be directly applied in mission-based work.
5. Make connections with a network of practitioners and other change agents who will serve as collegial resources for future mission-based work.

A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited U.S. institution or a comparable degree from an international institution is required. International applicants must have a degree comparable to a regionally accredited U.S. bachelor’s degree. You must have completed your undergraduate degree, or similar, before starting graduate school.

A minimum undergraduate grade-point average (GPA) of 3.00 on the equivalent of the last 60 semester hours (approximately two years of work) or a master’s degree with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 is required. Applicants from an international institution must demonstrate strong academic achievement comparable to a 3.00 for an undergraduate or master’s degree. The Graduate School will use your institution’s grading scale. Do not convert your grades to a 4.00 scale.

Every applicant whose native language is not English, or whose undergraduate instruction was not in English, must provide an English proficiency test score. TOEFL scores must be submitted electronically via ETS. IELTS scores can be submitted electronically or by paper.  Our office address is: UW-Madison Graduate School, Office of Admissions, 232 Bascom Hall, 500 Lincoln Drive, Madison, WI 53706.  Your score will not be accepted if it is more than two years old from the start of your admission term. Country of citizenship does not exempt applicants from this requirement. Language of instruction at the college or university level and how recent the language instruction was taken are the determining factors in meeting this requirement.

Applicants are exempt if: