The graduate certificate in Digital Studies and Methods (DSAM) consists of 15 credit hours. Any student enrolled in a graduate program at the University of Pittsburgh, and who is in good academic standing according to the guidelines of their unit of matriculation, are eligible to apply. The curriculum begins with two core courses that, while designed for this certificate, will be open to all. It then proceeds to require two electives drawn from a list that will be curated from offerings across the university, and concludes with a capstone project.

Core Courses

1. Digital Studies and Methods: Seminar, a 3-credit introductory core seminar that presents the theories and ideas behind the mindful use of computing in the humanities and allied social sciences. This course requires students to produce a small-scale, digitally-engaged research project in their own discipline of expertise. This course is offered every Fall Term.
2. Digital Studies and Methods: Practicum, a 3-credit studio-based, semi-structured learning environment in which students focus exclusively on producing and sharing their own, more advanced, work using digital computing within the context of the humanities and allied social sciences. In this practicum, the students begin to investigate more fully the particular digital tools and methods that seem most promising to their longer-term research agenda.This course is offered every Spring Term.
3. Elective One, a 3-credit course that aligns with the student’s stated disciplinary and methodological goals, selected in conversation with the DSAM Graduate Advisor. See below for a more extended description of the courses that may count as one of the two electives for this certificate. Pre-approved electives vary by semester.
4. Elective Two, another 3-credit course as described above.Pre-approved electives vary by semester. 
5. DSAM Capstone, a 3-credit independent research project that requires three major efforts on the part of the student. First, the student will undertake (or substantially add to) a large-scale, independent research project that reflects the mindful use of digital technologies in the humanities and/or allied social sciences that contributes meaningful scholarly knowledge to a field therein. Second, they will produce an annotated portfolio of the work that they have done during the DSAM certificate that also includes methodological reflections on the use of digital methods in the humanities and allied social sciences. Finally, they will present this portfolio and their capstone work at the end of the term in a DSAM showcase. This event will be open to the public and will be attended and juried by faculty. This course is offered every Fall and Spring Term.

Elective Courses

The elective courses, which can be drawn from departments and units across the university, may be taken both at the graduate level or one from the graduate level and one at the undergraduate level. They will, in general, be drawn from a pool of appropriate courses posted to the DSAM website, all of which will be pre- approved by the DSAM faculty leadership.

The electives for the certificate may be also fulfilled by any graduate seminar for which the primary research output is planned in advance to be substantially based on digital studies and methods. That is, if a student commits to producing a digitally-focused project for any graduate seminar, and the seminar instructor confirms that they have the skills and/or desire to support this work alone, or by means of an advisory collaboration with digitally-focused member of the faculty (including the DSAM Graduate Advisor), this course may count towards the elective credits. Such courses will be accepted on a case-by-case basis by the DSAM faculty leadership. In unusual circumstances, and if approved by the DSAM Advisory Board, students may be allowed to use a 3-credit DSAM Directed Study course to count towards one of the two elective courses.

One but not both of the electives may also be taken at an institution outside the University of Pittsburgh that participates in the Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education (PCHE) consortium, a group that includes, among many others, Carnegie Mellon University. These courses will be approved for the certificate by the DSAM Graduate Advisor on a case-by-case basis.

One-Course-per-Term Schedule (5 successive terms)

Condensed Schedule (3 successive terms)