The Certificate in College and University Teaching (CCUT) is designed for doctoral students who wish to demonstrate superior competence and experience in preparation for teaching at the university or college level. Official CCUT certificates are issued by the Office of the Registrar and are noted on the student's transcript. The Certificate is awarded in conjunction with a Ph.D. or MFA degree upon completion.

CCUT Competencies

The awarding of the Certificate in College and University Teaching signifies that the applicant has demonstrated the following five competencies:

  • The ability to successfully plan and conduct discussion or lab sections, to use a variety of instructional strategies to promote student learning, and to evaluate student performance in section or on exams;
  • The ability to apply appropriate research, theory, models, and/or principles of student learning to his or her teaching;
  • The ability to appropriately use instructional technologies through an instructional design aimed to meet a specific learning goal, or to challenge the efficacy of instructional technology for a specific learning goal within an academic discipline;
  • The ability to effectively and independently instruct a class as the Instructor of Record by developing a new syllabus or analyzing an existing one, providing feedback to enhance student learning, and appropriately evaluating student performance;
  • The ability to cogently discuss and demonstrate both the theory and practice of his or her own teaching.

CCUT Requirements

Candidates must complete five requirements:

  1. Participate in all required TA Training programs and events
  2. Enroll in and complete a CCUT approved course that encompasses college-level pedagogy
  3. Complete an activity aimed at improving instruction with technology (a classroom project, research-based discussion, or research paper)
  4. Teach a course as the Instructor of Record
  5. Prepare and submit a teaching portfolio that describes and reflects on all five requirements. The portfolio is reviewed by a Faculty Advisory Board, who must approve the portfolio in order for the CCUT Certificate to be awarded.


For more information, see Instructional Development's CCUT website.

Interested candidates can also visit and join the CCUT GauchoSpace site, which will give you access to more detailed information on CCUT and allow you to receive reminder emails and important announcements of workshops that support the program.

Application Process

  • Carefully read through and join the CCUT GauchoSpace site to get more details on the Requirements, Frequently Asked Questions, Announcements and the Portfolio
  • Attend one of the quarterly CCUT Information Workshops
  • Some requirements are best completed early on in your graduate career, so check the Requirements early.
  • You must add the certificate to your degree list by petition through the Graduate Division. The cost of a filing a Graduate Division petition to add any degree program is $20 (fee is subject to change).
  • The petition to add CCUT must be approved by your departmental graduate (not your personal research) advisor and Diane Mackie (the CCUT Program Director). You can submit petitions to Diane Mackie for approval through campus mail (Diane Mackie, Department of Psychology, Mail Code, 9660) or by arranging to collect the signature by e-mailing her at mackie@psych.ucsb.edu.
  • It is important to remember that the petition to add CCUT must be filed at least one quarter before you intend to graduate.
  • Begin your portfolio as soon as possible. Don't leave writing all of the portfolio to your last year, when you will also be busy completing your dissertation. If you've completed the CCUT requirements, make sure you get credit for them!
  • Complete all requirements, including the portfolio. If you think that you may have experiences, courses, or projects that meet the intention of a particular CCUT requirement, you may request an exception. See "Petitioning for an Exception" on the CCUT GauchoSpace site.
    • CCUT Portfolio workshops are offered each quarter by Instructional Development to help answer your questions and set you up for success.
    • You are strongly encouraged to make an appointment to get feedback on a draft of your portfolio from Dr. Mindy Colin, CCUT Portfolio Consultant (mindy.colin@id.ucsb.edu)
  • Be sure you have petitioned Graduate Division to add the Certificate at least one quarter prior to the quarter in which you will graduate.
  • Complete the Signature Page including all required signatures.
  • Portfolios are due on the last day of the quarter preceding the quarter in which you will graduate, with the following exception. Portfolios are reviewed Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarters only; if you are graduating during summer, you must submit your portfolio by the 5th week of Spring Quarter so that it can be reviewed before the summer.
  • To submit, email an electronic version of your portfolio to Dr. Lisa Berry, co-chair of the Faculty Advisory Board (lisa@id.ucsb.edu).

Important Deadlines
and Dates

You may petition and submit your portfolio at any time, the sooner the better, but financial deadlines are as follows:

  • The Petition: The last day to petition Graduate Division to add the Certificate to your degree list for graduation is the last day of the quarter PRIOR TO THE QUARTER you intend to graduate.
  • The Portfolio: The last day to submit your CCUT portfolio is the last day of the quarter before you graduate, except for summer graduations. Summer graduates need to submit by the fifth week of Spring Quarter because faculty Board members are often conducting their research during the summer months and unavailable to review portfolios.

Contact Information

Anudhi Munasinghe

CCUT Fellow
ccutrep@id.ucsb.edu

Diane Mackie

Director & Co-Chair of CCUT Faculty Advisory Board
Department of Psychology
893-2858
mackie@psych.ucsb.edu

 

Lisa Berry

Co-Chair of CCUT Faculty Advisory Board
Instructional Development
893-8395
lisa@id.ucsb.edu

Mindy Colin

CCUT Portfolio Consultant
Instructional Development
893-2828
mcolin@ucsb.edu

Faculty Advisory Board

The College and University Teaching Certificate (CCUT) Advisory Board will be composed of twelve members representing all Colleges, Schools, and Divisions at UCSB. The Board is appointed by the Dean of the Graduate Division in consultation with the Chair of Graduate Council.

Current CCUT Faculty Advisory Board (FAB) members include:
 

  • Javiera Barandiaran (Global Studies)
  • Miya Barnet (CCSP)
  • Tengiz Bibilashvili (Physics)
  • Joseph Blankholm (Religious Studies)
  • Maribel Bueno (Mathematics)
  • Andrew Carter (Stats and Applied Probability)
  • Karel Casteels (Mathematics)
  • Joe Chada (Chemical Engineering)
  • Nadege Clitandre (Chemical Engineering)
  • Thomas Even (EEMB)
  • Ruth Finkelstein (MCDB)
  • Morgan Gainer (Chemistry)
  • Myriam Gonzales-Smith (Spanish/Portuguese)
  • Danielle Harlow (Education)
  • Peter Huk (Writing Program)
  • Lorraine Lisiecki (Earth Science)
  • Eric Matthys (Mechanical Engineering)
  • Helen Morales (Classics)
  • Karen Myers (Communication)
  • erin Khuê Ninh (Asian American Studies)
  • Dar Roberts (Geography)
  • Madeleine Sorapure (Writing)
  • Karen Szumlinski (PBS)
  • Stefanie Tcharos (Music)
  • Amber VanDerwarker (Anthropology)
  • David Walker (Religious Studies)
  • Kevin Whitehead (Sociology)
  • Vanessa Woods (PBS)
  • Salim Yaqub (History)