Archival Administration

About

The Graduate Certificate in Archival Administration at Wayne State University, one of the oldest archival programs in the country, was established both for individuals entering the archival profession and for those with experience in the field.

The certificate program provides a professional education to individuals wishing to identify, preserve, and make historical records accessible for use.

The Graduate Certificate in Archival Administration prepares today's archivists in three distinct areas of solid archival professionalism: theory, professional service and cultural heritage. Today's archivist needs to be well-schooled in traditional theories as well as skilled in digital problem-solving while understanding cultural context and professional demeanor.

Located within an urban university surrounded by numerous cultural institutions and a modern Digital Media Projects Lab, the certificate program is uniquely situated to train archival professionals that are capable of working in any archival environment.

The Archival Administration certificate includes courses that teach students basic archival theory, methods and practice of appraisal, arrangement, description, preservation, reference, and the legal and ethical concerns regarding traditional, visual, and electronic records. In addition, there are courses in records management, administration of historical institutions and a required archival practicum. Students are immersed in one hundred years of theory as well as given ample hands-on work to employ preservation techniques, descriptive analysis and community outreach.

The 15 credit Archival Administration certificate includes 9 credit hours of required course work and 6 credit hours of elective course work. Students working concurrently on the MLIS degree and the Certificate in Archival Administration are required to complete an additional six credits beyond the 36 required for the MLIS degree. For additional information, students are referred to the Degree and Certificate Requirements regulations as stated in the Wayne State University Graduate Bulletin.

Students interested in pursuing only the Archival Administration certificate should review our Certificate policy. Before enrolling in the certificate program, students must meet the program's technology requirements.

Courses

For students who will complete INF 7710 during Fall 2016 and after must complete the following courses and the certificate Graduation Assessment requirement:

To obtain the Archival Administration Graduate Certificate, students must complete the following required courses:

INF 7710 (pdf) Archival Administration
INF 7780 (pdf) Description and Access for Archives
INF 7970 (pdf) Practicum in Archives
Prerequisite INF 7710 plus 6 credits of AAC electives (final 3 AAC elective credits may be taken concurrently with LIS 7970)

To fulfill the requirements of the Archival Administration Graduate Certificate, students must choose two (minimum) of the following elective courses:

INF 6780 (pdf) Records Management
INF 7730 (pdf) Administration of Audio Visual Collections
INF 7740 (pdf) Archives & Libraries in the Digital World
INF 7750 (pdf) Introduction to Archival & Library Conservation
INF 7770 (pdf) Oral History
INF 7885 (pdf) Cultural Heritage Institutions: Management and Leadership

To fulfill the requirements of the Archival Administration Graduate Certificate, students must complete the certificate graduation assessment requirement.

For students who completed INF 7710 prior to Fall 2016:

To obtain the Archival Administration Graduate Certificate, students must complete the following required courses:

INF 7710 (pdf) Archival Administration
INF 7970 (pdf) Practicum in Archives
Prerequisite INF 7710 plus 9 credits of AAC electives (final 3 AAC elective credits may be taken concurrently with INF 7685)

To fulfill the requirements of the Archival Administration Graduate Certificate, students must choose three (minimum) of the following elective courses:

INF 6780 Records Management
INF 7730 (pdf) Administration of Audio Visual Collections
INF 7740 (pdf) Archives & Libraries in the Digital World
INF 7750 (pdf) Introduction to Archival & Library Conservation
INF 7770 (pdf) Oral History
INF 7780 (pdf) Description and Access for Archives
INF 7885 (pdf) Cultural Heritage Institutions: Management and Leadership

Requirements

Entry Requirements

International applicants must complete the equivalent of a U.S. four-year bachelor's degree, including all state and external/internal examinations required for the degree. Some three-year general degrees (from Canada, India, Pakistan, France, Lebanon, etc.) may not be equivalent to a four-year U.S. bachelor's degree. However, if you have completed an honors degree, additional undergraduate coursework beyond the three-year bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree, you may be considered for admission.

If you are applying to a master's program, your minimum undergraduate GPA must be 2.75 or its equivalent in upper division coursework. If you are applying to a doctoral program, your minimum undergraduate GPA must be 3.0 or its equivalent in upper division coursework.

Submit your transcript(s)

To begin the application review, upload unofficial copies of English-translated international transcripts from all post-secondary educational institutions from which you earned a bachelor's degree or higher, including Mark Sheets, if applicable. If you are admitted, you must submit an official course-by-course academic evaluation of your completed bachelor's degree.

Demonstrate English proficiency

Non-native speakers of English must demonstrate English proficiency by meeting the minimum requirements. You are required to submit an official qualifying score meeting minimum Graduate School requirements. Send official test scores to Wayne State University Graduate Admissions, using the school code 1898.

To begin the application review, upload an unofficial copy of your English proficiency test score(s). Once admitted, an official test score must be submitted to Graduate Admissions.

English Requirements

IELTSMin 6.5
TOEFLMin 80

Fee Information

Application Fee 50

How to Apply

You should apply as an international student if you are not a permanent resident or citizen of the United States. You should also apply under this status if you have graduated from a secondary institution and completed pre-university educational curricula in your own country.

International students can apply for 2023 using the undergraduate admission application.
If you are a citizen or permanent resident of Canada, or if you are a U.S. Citizen living in Canada, apply for 2023 using the undergraduate admissions application.

Graduate students

Those interested in pursuing a graduate degree, visit the Graduate School website and apply.

Contact the Office of Undergraduate Admissions if you have questions about the application process.