The interdisciplinary graduate certificate program in Publicly Engaged Scholarship (PES) is offered by the School of Liberal Arts in collaboration with the Center for Public Service. Publicly engaged scholarship is understood broadly and encompasses a variety of approaches including participatory action research, collaborative scholarship, and public advocacy. The program’s goal is to provide graduate students with a distinctive educational experience that allows them to connect their graduate studies with the public outside of academia.
Applicants to the PES program must be graduate students in the School of Liberal Arts. First-year MA and MFA students are eligible to apply as are first- and second-year students in Ph.D. programs. (4+1 students are not eligible.)
Elements of the Publicly Engaged Scholarship Program:
- Twelve graduate students from a wide range of disciplines are selected every other year to form a cohort along with three community leaders and three faculty members, who serve as mentors and co-educators.
- Cohort members build robust relationships over three semesters of monthly dinners on Tuesday evenings from 6:30-8:00 pm, starting in the Spring semester of Year 1. These conversations have everyone speaking across disciplines and thinking about their scholarship, art, and studies from fresh perspectives.
- During each of those three semesters in the program, students also take a one-credit course that focuses on publicly engaged project development, project proposals, and project portfolios.
- Graduate students’ publicly engaged projects develop over time, resonate with their personal and scholarly interests, and are grounded in sustained collaborations with community partners and/or faculty members.
- In the fall before the program begins or in the fall during the program, students take Community-Engaged Research Methods (SOCI 7110; 3 credits).
- In the spring, students take Public-Facing Scholarship (SOCI 7120; 3 credits).
- Students complete the PES graduate certificate program in two years and earn nine credit hours, which are spaced out to prevent delaying time to degree.
- Publicly Engaged Scholarship graduate certificate program participants receive $1500 stipends each of three semesters in the program (in addition to any departmental stipends they may be receiving) and can apply for up to $3000 to fund their publicly engaged projects.
To apply, send a CV and letter of interest (the letter should be two pages maximum) describing why the PES program interests you and how your graduate studies and/or art making might be enriched through a deeper and more intentional consideration of the methods and practices of public engagement. Please send your CV and letter of interest to rmcbride@tulane.edu by Jan 5, 2026.
Please reach out to Ryan McBride at rmcbride@tulane.edu with any questions.