The Developing Child Summer Minor and Certificate

The minor and certificate will enrich your area of study and give you hands-on skills to work with or on behalf of young children. It will help you develop an interdisciplinary approach to understanding child development in a variety of contexts. This program will deepen your understanding of developmental science and its positive impact as it relates to your area of study or career pursuits.

The Developing Child is distinguished by its:

• Specific focus on the prenatal period to 8 years;
• Interdisciplinary breadth across education, psychology, social welfare, public health, and public policy;
• Innovative curriculum that incorporates design thinking and a practicum;
• Nexus between theory and practice; and
• Application of developmental science for positive impact.

Upon completion of The Developing Child Summer Minor and Certificate, students will:

• Understand the theoretical bases and empirical science of early development and learning, from prenatal to age 8;
• Examine the interaction of biological, psychological, and socio-cultural mechanisms that shape young children’s health, development, and learning;
• Develop an interdisciplinary and scholarly approach to research, practice, and policy issues across early development and learning science domains;
• Learn how to apply developmental science for positive impact in the lives of young children and their families;
• Become reflective and critical thinkers who are familiar with the range of research methods and design used in ED&LS studies, and who have the knowledge, skills, and experience to address crucial issues; and
• Understand how to establish and foster effective partnerships with families, schools, organizations, and communities, at local, state, national, and international levels to create more responsive systems to serve diverse young children and their families.

Yes. Graduating seniors with an EGT of Spring 2026 can still apply to become part of the Summer 2026 cohort. If accepted, all graduating seniors must change their EGT to Summer 2026. To do so, graduating seniors must contact their major advisors to make this EGT change as soon as possible. Once the EGT is changed, the graduating senior can declare the minor and enroll in all five required courses. Please keep in mind that this will require the graduating senior to complete all five courses (15 units) in one summer session.

Students must complete all 5 courses in one or two summers. These are:

• EDUC 135: Early Development & Learning Science Core Seminar (3 units)- This course is an overview of core issues in children’s early development & learning science. We will address how best to promote children’s robust early development and learning, using developmental science: evidence-based, interdisciplinary, and integrated approaches for impact. We will define the key variables in developmental domains and examine connections among them; we will examine children’s development and contexts, and the practices and policies that affect them. We will hone our communication skills to translate and articulate developmental science in ways that deepen our understanding of and support for young children. 
• EDUC 134: Applied Early Developmental Psychology (3 units)- This course will examine the development of young children—from the prenatal period to age 8—in the varied contexts in which development occurs. The course is designed to introduce the basic theories and the research approaches that have been used to develop them. We will also explore how the contexts, the influences of environments in which children are growing and living, affect their development and our understanding of children. We will discuss how this understanding may be different, depending on your area of study (e.g. psychology, neuroscience, education, social welfare, public health, public policy, etc.), and how each contributes to our deeper understanding of children’s healthy development. 
• Or, EDUC 114A: Early Development and Learning (3 units)
  EDUC 135A: The Developing Child Practicum; Linking Research and Practice (3 units)- This course will explore the process of translating research into practices that affect the lives of children, from the prenatal period to 8 years of age. Our perspective will span disciplines—biology, psychology, and education, social welfare, public health, and public policy—in order to construct a more integrated approach to better understand and serve young children, as well as their families, and communities. Students will apply this knowledge while working with young children, in the required practicum placement. 
• EDUC 135B: Context of Early Development (3 units)- This seminar will examine the developmental contexts of young children— from the prenatal period to age 8. Building on foundational understandings of developmental psychology, this course is designed to introduce research on how various contexts, such as individual (e.g., gender), family (e.g., SES), community/institutional (e.g., schools), and digital media (e.g., virtual learning) among others, influence children’s development and learning. We will take an interdisciplinary approach to discuss how each context contributes to our deeper understanding of children’s development. 
• EDUC 135D: Early Childhood Policy (3 units)- Early Childhood Policy examines how the diverse policy contexts in which children are born and raised have dramatic implications for their life trajectories. This course examines how, when and why the government intervenes in children’s lives, through family, early care and education, and community solutions, aiming to improve their developmental trajectories. From this basis, we investigate the effects of policies, programs and initiatives on children locally, nationally, and internationally. Students will gain a deep understanding of policy goals and development by creating their own Project for Change, exploring new approaches, programs, or policies as solutions to improve outcomes for young children.

The minor is available to enrolled undergraduate UC Berkeley students. The certificate is available to Visiting Students. Both require a Declaration of Minor/Certificate Form to be submitted and must be completed in one or two summers.

Dependent upon the specific program offering, both the minor and certificate can be completed in one or two summers. Courses are divided into two, 6-week sessions to allow for maximum flexibility.

All UC Berkeley students interested in pursuing the minor must submit a Declaration of Minor/Certificate Form by the University deadline. Once this form is received, the minor advisor will officially declare the minor on your behalf.

Please note: The L&S Minor Declaration Policy

If you are a major within the College of Letters and Science (L&S) then, per L&S Policy, you must declare any minor (including The Developing Child) by the last day of RRR week, in the term preceding your EGT. For example, if you are graduating with an EGT of Summer 2030, then you must declare your minor by the last day of RRR week in Spring 2030. Similarly, if you are graduating with an EGT of Spring 2030, then you must declare the minor by the last day of RRR week in Fall 2029.

IMPORTANT: Minor Declaration Processing Time information:

You must submit your Declaration of Minor Form two weeks prior to your appropriate RRR week. This will assure that we will be able to declare your minor within the appropriate time.

Students interested in pursuing The Developing Child minor are encouraged to declare the minor prior to enrolling in the required courses. This will guarantee that no deadlines are missed. Please consult with the minor advisor, Luvy Vanegas-Grimaud (lvanegasgrimaud@berkeley.edu), if you have any questions.

UC Berkeley Students receiving The Developing Child minor:

Once you complete all five required courses, students must submit a Completion of Minor Form to the minor advisor. This form can be found here or on the program’s website.

Please note that this form requires multiple signatures. Before officially submitting, students must first send the form via email to their major advisor(s) to sign and process for any overlapping courses. Depending on the student's major, one may be able to overlap a total of one (1) course with your major requirements. Once the sign form is received back from the major advisor, students must send the signed form to the minor advisor for further processing. Once received and verified, the minor advisor will approve the minor on the student’s record. If you have any questions, please email the minor advisor at lvanegasgrimaud@berkeley.edu.

Non-UC Berkeley students receiving The Developing Child Certificate:

Visiting Students who have completed all five of the required courses must submit a Completion of Certificate Form to the minor advisor. This form can be found on the program's website. Once received and verified, the minor advisor will process the certificate.

Enrollment in the required courses can begin as soon as the Summer Sessions enrollment period begins for both UC students and visiting students. Keep in mind the separate dates for each. Please refer to the listed Summer Program Dates section of this page.

If you are a UC Berkeley student and you are declaring the minor, you are encouraged to submit the Declaration of Minor/Certificate Form and register for classes as soon as possible. Students are encouraged to enroll in all five courses as soon as they are allowed to enroll. Please note that students must complete the minor in one summer.

No. There are no course prerequisites.

Yes. A $1,500 scholarship is available to UC Berkeley students who are enrolled in a summer minor. Visiting students completing the certificate do not qualify to receive these funds.

You are eligible if you:

• are currently enrolled as a UC Berkeley undergraduate student.
• successfully complete the academic requirements of the minor in one summer.
• complete all coursework prior to graduation and receive a minimum of a 2.0 grade point average (GPA) in all courses used to satisfy the minor requirements.

The scholarship will be posted to your CalCentral account in the month of December following your completion of the minor. If you are a graduating senior with an EGT of Summer 2025, then a reimbursement check will be mailed to your mailing address. Be sure to follow the department's directions to declare the minor so your coursework can be reviewed for completion. For more information on the Summer Sessions Scholarship, visit their website!

All students enrolled in EDUC 135A, regardless of minor or certificate declaration, will be required to complete a 24-hour in-person practicum placement working with children ages 0-8, as part of the course's requirements.

Students enrolled in EDUC 135A must:

• Sign up for a 5-hour/week practicum placement in an Early Childhood Education Program (ECEP) classroom. This is in addition to the EDUC 135A course seminar meeting times (T,TH, 12-4:00PM). Placements will take place on Tuesday or Thursday mornings for a total of 6 weeks. 
• Provide copies of immunization records verifying:
  • Covid-19 Vaccines or approved exemption or declination form (Form will be provided to you)
  • Recent (within the last 12 months) Negative Tuberculosis (TB) clearance
  • Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Immunization (MMR)
  • Pertussis/Whooping Cough Immunization (Tdap, Dtap)
  • Influenza (Flu) Vaccination (dated on or after 9/1/25) or signed Flu Opt-out form (Form will be provided to you)
  • Signed Health Statement (Form will be provided to you)
  • Signed Megan's Law Statement (Form will be provided to you)

For questions regarding immunization requirements and records, please contact edls@berkeley.edu.

Please email edls@berkeley.edu.