Grassland Management - Certificate

The Grasslands Management Graduate Certificate program is part of the Great Plains Interactive Distance Education Alliance (Great Plains IDEA), a consortium of 11 universities offering fully online graduate programs. Each university brings a unique strength to the multi-institution academic programs. Students apply, and are admitted at one university; enroll in all their courses at that university; and graduate or receive a certificate from that university. However, students in online courses are taught by the best faculty in the discipline from cooperating Great Plains universities. These courses cover a diversity of topics and provide the subject matter needed by students wanting to develop their expertise in grassland management. Classes follow the academic calendar at these institutions.

Grasslands (including rangelands, pasturelands, and haylands) are the principal land resource type in the Great Plains, comprised of more than 50 percent of the land surface area. Grasslands represent a fundamental resource of the region that determines the environmental and economic future of the Great Plains states. Grasslands need to be managed properly to prevent overgrazing, minimize undesirable botanical composition shifts, maintain or improve grassland health, and ensure long-term productivity.

The multi-institutional Grasslands Management Certificate program, through UNL and the AG*IDEA Program, prepares students to manage our world's changing landscapes through grassland assessment and restoration, grazing management, prescribed burning, and creating plant and animal habitat.  The purpose of the 12-credit hour, Grasslands Management Graduate Certificate program is to provide current and future grassland professionals (i.e., managers, advisers, and conservationists) and others with distance education opportunities that lead to a graduate certificate in grasslands management.