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Environmental Planning and Design
Graduate Certificate
The graduate certificate in Environmental Planning and Design prepares you to develop strategies for implementing sustainable design practices at the landscape scale. You’ll be taught how to use planning tools, including the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), environmental impact analyses, and the principles of sustainable design. You will also learn the elements that are necessary to design, evaluate, and implement actionable strategies that adhere to professional environmental planning and sustainability principles.
This online certificate is intended for graduate students who want to expand their knowledge of environmental planning and design without committing to a degree program.
Program Courses
The curriculum for this program follows industry trends to help ensure relevancy to today's marketplace. View all courses.
Program Objectives
In addition to the institutional and degree level learning objectives, graduates of this program are expected to achieve these learning outcomes:
- Detail the elements necessary to design, implement, and evaluate sustainable developments, landscapes, and environments.
- Analyze the complex and dynamic interactions between humans and their environment.
- Explain the role of government policy at municipal, regional, national, and global levels to achieve sustainable development.
- Apply theoretical concepts to practical applications in order to design and implement sustainable environmental planning.
- Apply principles of environmental policymaking and environmental legislation, as well as socio-political influences to the field of environmental planning.
- Critically analyze complex, and often competing development plans for adherence to professional environmental planning and sustainability principles.
Degree at a Glance
- Number of Credits 18
- Max Transfer Credits 9
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Tuition Per Credit
$350 | $325 with military grant*
through 12/31/2019
$370 | $250 with military grant
effective 1/1/2020** - Program Length 1 year full time
- Program Format Online | Monthly course starts
- Program Director Kelly Reiss
- View all courses
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Admission Requirements
- All APU graduate programs require you to have earned a minimum of a bachelor’s degree from an institution whose accreditation is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).
- If you have a non-U.S. transcript, please view our International Admissions page for more information.
- There is no fee to complete the APU admission application. View steps to apply.
Please be prepared to submit a legible copy of your valid government-issued photo ID (civilian students) or government issued JST or CCAF transcript (military students) upon request.
An APU admissions representative will contact you with further details about how to submit the required documentation after you complete the enrollment application.
Need help?
Selecting the right program to meet your educational goals is a key step in ensuring a successful outcome. If you are unsure of which program to choose, or need more information, please contact an APU admissions representative at 877-755-2787 or info@apus.edu.
Master's Degree/Graduate Certificate Tuition
Per credit hour: $350 | $325 with military grant*
through 12/31/2019
$370 | $250 with military grant
effective 1/1/2020**
*U.S. active-duty servicemembers, their spouse/dependents, Guard members, Reservists, and veterans are eligible for a grant that currently caps tuition at $325 per credit hour.
**To help minimize out-of-pocket costs, U.S. active-duty servicemembers, their spouse/dependents, Guard members, and Reservists are eligible for a grant that will cap tuition at $250 per credit hour (military TA cap). See all military student benefits.
Paying for School
Because our university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), (the same as the Ohio State University, Univ. of Chicago, and U.S. Air Force Academy, to name a few), we can accept the following forms of financial aid and payments:
Ways to Save
Transfer Credits
Accelerate your degree completion by taking full advantage of our transfer credit options, including credit for your previous college courses, military service schools, American Council on Education (ACE) and College Level Examination Program (CLEP) tests, and prior learning experiences.
Employer Contributions
APU has educational partnerships with many employers and associations. Be sure to accurately enter your employer information when you complete our admissions application. Your employer might also offer a tuition reimbursement plan as one of your benefits.
School of Science, Technology, Engineering & Math
This program resides in the School of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) where more than 57 degree and certificate programs are available for students to find their area of interest ranging from space studies to environmental studies to IT and cybersecurity. American Public University is one of the few online colleges where you can work fully online to earn science and math bachelor’s degrees. Two of our bachelor’s programs (Natural Science and BSEE) are set up with full lab kits that are mailed to you to use at home. You won’t sacrifice hands-on experience with our online science programs! In addition, many of our STEM professors work to innovate their classroom, including Danny Welsch who uses video for you to learn from his virtual field trips.
The APU STEM program directors work with industry advisory councils to ensure that our students are prepared for the real world. APU also works with industry certifying bodies to ensure that our courseware meets the requirements of agencies such as the National Security Agency (NSA) Information Assurance Courseware Evaluation (IACE) and the DoD Directive 8570.1M Information Assurance Management (IAM).
At APU, we understand your need for flexibility because most of our students are working adult learners who balance school around work and other life commitments. This is why we offer 8-week or 16-week online courses that start monthly. Through an online virtual classroom, you’ll communicate with students and professors in forum communities as you work to complete your weekly written assignments on your own schedule from anywhere in the world. And with our mobile application, you can even work offline and upload your assignments when you reconnect.
We encourage you to browse the School of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math webpage to learn more about the school and to find a program that’s right for you.