FAQ - Berkeley Certificate in Design Innovation

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Who can participate?

The Certificate is available for any currently enrolled UC Bekeley undergraduate. All our current undergraduates are welcome from throughout the campus!
Unfortunately, the certificate is not available to current graduate students, our alums, and those not affiliated with the campus.

Are course substitutions/petitions allowed?

Course Substitutions – Course substitutions are usually reserved for students having issues enrolling in certain courses. Under these circumstances, Advanced Design courses can be used to fulfill Design Skills and Design Foundations course requirements; Design Skills courses can be used to fulfill Design Foundation course requirements; Course substitutions must still meet the requirements of each category, i.e., Design Foundations courses must be taken outside of your home College or School and no more that one course can be used toward your major requirements. Please consult with the BCDI Student Services Advisor, Tyshon Rogers @ trogers@berkeley.edu before making any enrollment decisions about course substitutions.
Not all courses offered by Design Innovation (DES INV) count toward fulfillment of the Certificate requirements. Please see the list of approved certificate courses for specific DES INV courses that count towards fulfillment.
Breadth Requirements- Courses used to fulfill non-major breadth requirements can also be used to fulfill Certificate requirements.
Course Petitions – Other Berkeley courses that do not appear on the approved course list can be petitioned for review by the BCDI Academic Committee. Please fill out the BCDI Course Petition form on the Course Petitions page. These courses will be approved on an individual basis. If you have any questions, please contact the BCDI Student Services Advisor, Tyshon Rogers @ trogers@berkeley.edu.
Courses taken at other institutions cannot be used for the Certificate.

Can I take BCDI courses pass/fail?

Normally, courses must be taken for a letter grade. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are revising our P/NP policy. Courses taken as P/NP during the following semesters will fulfill certificate requirements: Spring 2020, Summer 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Summer 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Summer 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Summer 2023 & Fall 2023 semesters. If you have any questions, please contact the BCDI Advisor, Tyshon Rogers @ trogers@berkeley.edu.

Is there enrollment priority for Certificate students? Are seats reserved?

For now, there is no enrollment priority for BCDI students in any of the approved courses. The departments need to manage enrollment for their majors first. We will be working to increase sections where possible for BCDI students once we better understand enrollment trends.

Where is BCDI administered? How can I meet with an advisor?

This unique campus-wide undergraduate certificate is co-offered by the College of Engineering, College of Environmental Design, College of Letters and Science – Arts and Humanities Division, and the Haas School of Business.
If you would like to meet with an advisor to discuss the certificate in detail, you can book a remote appointment with Tyshon Rogers, the BCDI Advisor, here, or you can reach him by email at trogers@berkeley.edu.