Many University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) students take advantage of U-M's other high-quality academic programs and interdisciplinary resources to pursue a graduate certificate. Graduate certificate programs allow students to design courses of study that integrate multiple fields of interest. These programs provide the opportunity to hone a specialized skill set to complement the regular master’s degree program of study. SEAS offers four graduate certificates.

All certificate programs can be pursued by current University of Michigan graduate students in conjunction with a degree-seeking program, or anyone who has earned a University of Michigan post-baccalaureate degree within the previous five years. Credit-hour requirements can be reduced when enrolled concurrently in a Rackham graduate degree program by one-sixth of the number of required hours for the degree program. For example, students may integrate the 15-credit-hour program in Industrial Ecology certificate with a 42-credit-hour MS program (totaling 57 credit hours) into a 51-credit-hour program, with six credits double-counted.

Graduate Certificate Program in Environmental Justice 

Environmental Justice (Numeric code 01987/ Program level = certificate)

You must be enrolled in a Master's or PhD degree program at the University of Michigan to be eligible to apply.

This is a 15-credit program. The 15 required credits are above and beyond your other program requirements. Rackham does allow some double-counting between two degrees.  You can double count up to 1/6 of the total of two programs but no more than half of the certificate credit requirements. Download program requirements and courses here.

Environmental justice refers to cultural norms and values, rules, regulations, behaviors, and policies that determine whether people will have confidence that their environment is safe, nurturing, and productive. Environmental justice is most successful when there are no environmental barriers to one's personal or collective potential; it is supported by decent paying and safe jobs, quality schools and recreation, decent housing and adequate health care, democratic decision-making, personal empowerment, and communities free of the violence that often emerges from poverty. Environmental justice communities are characterized by respect for cultural and biological diversity and a commitment to distributive justice.

The Environmental Justice Certificate program aims to provide fundamental skills and knowledge, methods and applications of environmental justice to enhance the education of students from a wide range of relevant disciplines at the University of Michigan. Students will:

  • Examine the historical, scientific, social, legal, cultural, and political complexities of the relationship between people and the built and natural environment
  • Examine past research on the environment and design new research to study and enhance our knowledge of how race, class, and gender affect our environmental experiences, attitudes and perceptions, and influence how we construct environmental discourses
  • Master research methods and approaches to rigorously study perspectives about and impediments to safe, sustainable communities for all people
  • Participate in efforts to educate policymakers, educators, lawmakers, health professionals, industry leaders, and the public about environmental inequalities
  • Participate in educational and strategic planning efforts to help communities take effective action to ameliorate harmful environmental conditions

Graduates of this program use their skills in such professional settings as Sierra Club, Surdna Andrus, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and more. 

Contact the SEAS Student Services Team (seas-admissions@umich.edu / (734-764-6453 or Professor Rebecca Hardin, Program Coordinator (rdhardin@umich.edu) for more information.

You can find additional information on how to apply to the certificate here.

Graduate Certificate Program in Industrial Ecology 

Industrial Ecology (Numeric code 01584/Plan (subplan) 4720 CGR/Program level = certificate)

You must be enrolled in a Master's or PhD degree program at the University of Michigan to be eligible to apply.

This is a 15-credit program. The 15 required credits are above and beyond your other program requirements. Rackham does allow some double-counting between two degrees.  You can double count up to 1/6 of the total of the current graduate program but no more than half of the certificate credit requirement. Download program requirements and courses here.

Industrial ecology includes technological and industrial innovation, consumer behavior and consumption patterns, policy and regulatory issues, as well as economic factors and market forces to achieve more sustainable systems. If you are interested in designing and managing natural and industrial systems to meet human needs in an environmentally, economically and socially sustainable manner, consider pursuing this program.

Contact the SEAS Student Center Team (seas-admissions@umich.edu / (734-764-6453) or Professor Greg Keoleian, Program Director (gregak@umich.edu).

You can find additional information on how to apply to the certificate here.

Graduate Certificate Program in Spatial Analysis

Spatial Analysis (Numeric code 01633 / Plan (subplan) 8970 CGR / Program level = certificate)

You must be enrolled in a Master's or PhD degree program at the University of Michigan to be eligible to apply.

This is a 12 credit program. The 12 required credits are above and beyond your other program requirements.  Rackham does allow some double-counting between two degrees. You can double count up to 1/6 of the total of the current graduate program but no more than half of the certificate credit requirement.  Download program requirements and courses here.

The program is available to students who are currently in a graduate program at the University of Michigan, or who have finished a post-graduate degree program from the University of Michigan within the last five years. 

Spatial analysis describes a set of theories, methods, and tools used to illuminate the spatial context of events and phenomena, including applied remote sensing, geographic information systems, and others. At SEAS, spatial analysis has been used to analyze land use in Africa and China, habitats around the Great Lakes, and many other large data sets in other regions. If you are interested in bolstering your research through the use of aggregated data sets, this program would be of value.

Contact the SEAS Office of Academic Programs (seas-admissions@umich.edu / (734) 763-6453) or Dr. Kathleen Bergen, Program Director (kbergen@umich.edu) for more information.

You can find additional information on how to apply to the certificate here.

Graduate Certificate Program in Sustainability

Sustainability (Numeric code 02132 / Plan (subplan) 9140CGR / Program level = certificate)

This certificate is open to students enrolled in any University of Michigan graduate program and persons not currently enrolled in a University of Michigan graduate program. Applicants not enrolled in a University of Michigan graduate program must have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher and can apply directly through standard admissions procedures. A person admitted to the certificate program must complete the requirements within four years from the date of first enrollment in the program.

This is a 12-credit program.  The 12 required credits are above and beyond your other program requirements.  Rackham does allow some double-counting between two degrees. You can double count up to 1/6 of the total of the current graduate program but no more than half of the certificate credit requirement.  Download program requirements and courses here.

With an ever-growing global population and climate change on the rise, there is a strong need for individuals and organizations to design and implement effective and sustainable management solutions. At SEAS, sustainability is examined by analyzing human behavior as it relates to conservation efforts, environmental education, and information, observing federal water policies and river systems, and more. If you are interested to find the emerging global green economy intriguing and seek a position in the private for-profit, public or non-profit sector, this program may be a good fit.

Graduates of this program use their skills in such professional settings as the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Huron River Watershed Council, and U.S. Geological Survey.

Contact the SEAS Office of Academic Programs (seas-admissions@umich.edu / (734) 763-6453) or Dr. Jennifer Blesh, Program Director (jblesh@umich.edu) for more information.

SEAS requires additional information from applicants:

  • Identify a faculty advisor
  • Create a proposed program of study from this course list
  • Identify an experiential learning capstone experience

These items should be included within the document that is uploaded with the application.

You can find additional information on how to apply for the certificate here.  

Graduate Certificate in Climate Change Solutions

Climate Change Solutions (Numeric code 02388 / Program level = certificate)

Any student with a bachelor’s degree who has been admitted to one of the University’s science (natural or social), engineering, or professional graduate degree programs or who is currently enrolled in one of these graduate programs is eligible to submit an application to the Climate Change Solutions Graduate Certificate Program.

The Climate Change Solutions Graduate Certificate requires 12 credit hours of coursework, including three core courses and one elective of the student’s choice. These courses can be taken in any order. Learn more about the requirements and coursework here.

Earth’s climate is changing with far-reaching consequences. The challenges presented by climate change are large and broad, and for students to become leaders that pioneer solutions a breadth of expertise is needed. In the Climate Change Solutions Graduate Certificate Program, students will address the physical basis of changing climate, its impacts on humanity and be introduced to engineering solutions. The core courses establish a knowledge of climate science and the effects of warming on society, strategies for slowing and reversing the amount of warming that will be realized, and methods for responding to the growing consequences of climate change. The three core courses cross the formal framework of climate change, mitigation, and adaptation.

The Climate Change Solutions Graduate Certificate Program was developed in partnership between Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering (CLaSP) and the School for Environment and Sustainability and is designed for students already enrolled in a graduate degree program at the University of Michigan. Master’s or doctoral students from any field, CoE, SEAS, LSA and the professional schools, are welcome to apply.

You can find additional information on how to apply for the certificate here.