What is the certificate program in Unbound Judaism?
The UnYeshiva’s certificate program in Unbound Judaism is a course of study designed to develop Jewish knowledge, skills, and holy chutzpah! The Certificate Program is trans-generational community of Jewish learning and growth, spanning multiple time-zones, featuring a rich diversity of Jewish backgrounds and experiences, predicated on the ancient Jewish tradition of changing Jewish tradition. Through ongoing immersion in digital spaces of Jewish learning and unlearning, including monthly cohort meetings and courses in the UnYeshiva, students will emerge with the confidence to participate in the ongoing project of re-shaping Judaism in our time.
Our Certificate Program hones the talents and uniqueness of our students: a central component of the program is the co-creation of one’s own learning, in partnership with UnYeshiva faculty. Each student will explore core principles that shape Judaism Unbound’s lens, but they will also have the flexibility to customize their own experience, in order to meet their specific goals, passions, and visions for the Jewish future. This program is flexible in its length, with a minimum length of 3 semesters (just under 1.5 years) and a maximum length of 5 semesters (2.5 years).
NOTE: this is not an ordination program, rabbinic or otherwise.
LENGTH
3–5 semesters
(1.5–2.5 yrs)
CREDITS
4 courses + capstone project
FORMAT
Online (Zoom + Discord)
COURSEWORK
A full-semester, 8-week course = one credit. Courses are offered in both Fall and Spring. Students complete four credits before moving on to the capstone. The four credits are distributed among the three areas below plus one wildcard in any content area.
LEARNING
Courses built around traditional Jewish texts, approached from an unbound perspective.
UNLEARNING
Courses that upend assumptions about the Jewish past, present, and future.
JEWISH STUDIES
A university-style scholarly approach to Jewish history and ideas.
What about mini-courses? A 3-week mini-course counts as ¼-credit. Three mini-courses can be combined into one full credit by writing a synthesis paper for the final ¼-credit — with advisor approval.
COMMUNITY
The UnYeshiva Cohort is a trans-generational community of Jewish learning and growth, spanning multiple time zones, featuring a rich diversity of Jewish backgrounds and experiences. We are a community that is predicated on the ancient Jewish tradition of changing Jewish tradition. If accepted, you will be a part of this cohort community as you pursue a certificate in unbound Judaism.
Async Discord community
Ongoing conversation with your cohort in a vibrant async chat — spanning time zones and life schedules.
Monthly Zoom gatherings
Live sessions with guest speakers and group learning with your full cohort.
Opt-in chevruta (learning pairs)
1-on-1 partnerships with fellow students for deeper study and conversation.
Your Madrich (advisor)
A member of UnYeshiva's staff who meets with you regularly to guide your course of study, approve your capstone proposal, and validate its completion.
THE CAPSTONE PROJECT
After four credits of coursework, every student's fifth and final credit is earned through a capstone project — "applied Judaism" designed to make a direct impact in their community. The capstone combines each student's personal passion and Torah with connection to a broader unbound Jewish world.
Recent Capstone Projects
Golems for Trans Youth
Emmett H. — Cohort 1
A minyan of handmade golem plushies in bright colors sent to trans and nonbinary youth, each with a midrashic zine on golem folklore in Jewish texts.
Exploring Jewish Conscientious Objection
James M. Branum — Cohort 1
A hybrid day-long seminar on the history, theology, and ethics of Jewish abstention from wartime drafts — curriculum available for Jewish and interfaith education.
Dreaming in Jewish
Lisa Heineman — Cohort 1
A community retreat using Judaism's history of crashes and reinventions to ask: what do we build when old systems fail? Open to "Jewish, Jew-ish, Jew-Curious, or Just Plain Human."