Online Grassland Management Graduate Certificate

Program Summary
Cost per credit hour:

2023-2024: $600
2024-2025: $610
Learn more about Tuition and Cost

12 Hours

The Online Grasslands Management Graduate Certificate provides current and future grassland professionals a well-rounded curriculum that focuses on conservation, utilization, and sustainability of managed grassland systems.  Our online courses provide flexibility for busy adults who don’t have access or time to attend on-campus classes.

Whether you want to enhance a major or jump-start an M.S. degree in ecology, agriculture, or natural resources with specialized courses, or are a professional looking to advance in your career, the Grasslands Management Graduate Certificate promises an understanding of core concepts in grassland ecology and management. 

Who will benefit from this certificate?

  • Rangeland management specialists and conservationists in federal and state agencies
  • Ranch managers or landowners of expansive grasslands
  • Land stewards working for private organizations
  • Extension educators in the Great Plains
  • Wildlife habitat managers
  • Integrated crop-livestock producers
  • Environmental consultants
  • Graduate students in agriculture and natural resource degree programs

Learn how Laura Rubeck, a former Grassland Management student through the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, earned her graduate certificate while balancing work and life with school.

Why should I care about grassland management?

Grasslands (including rangelands, pasturelands, and haylands) are the principal land resource types in the Great Plains, composing more than 50% of the land surface area. The major use of the region's grasslands is livestock grazing. The beef cattle industry is prominent in the Great Plains, making up more than 50% of the U.S. beef cow inventory.

Grasslands in the region are also critically important for providing wildlife habitat, recreation, high-quality water and air, and other environmental services. Grasslands represent a fundamental resource of the region that determines the environmental and economic future of the Great Plains states.

Travis Jones is a student in the Grassland Management program"Great Plains IDEA benefits students and the learning process by providing diverse and engaged instruction. The format allows for students of different backgrounds and knowledge bases the ability to interact and share experiences that are unique locally and regionally. I have enjoyed learning with my classmates from different professions and hearing their perspectives, this has definitely enhanced my learning experience."
Travis Jones, student in the grassland management graduate certificate program

What will I learn from this certificate program?

  • Fire ecology and management
  • Productivity and maintenance of grassland resources
  • Improved grassland diversity and health
  • Grassland monitoring
  • Ecology and management of grazing lands
  • Identification of grassland plants
  • Evaluating forage quality
  • Watershed management
  • Invasive species ecology

Program Information at Participating Universities

This unique 12-credit hour certificate pulls together university professors from different parts of the Great Plains and students from throughout the world, giving you the opportunity to learn about more than just your part of the globe. Learn more about the programs at each participating university. program.

AG IDEA Student Handbook

Certificate titles vary by university. Consult each university for the title as it will appear on the certificate.

"For decades I’ve visited the Nebraska Sandhills in pursuit of waterfowl and upland game.  Wanting to learn more about the land and its inhabitants, I completed the graduate certificate in Grassland Management offered by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln through AG IDEA.  Upon completion of this program, I’ve gained a far greater appreciation and understanding for this area and its people, and was inspired to continue my education by earning a master’s degree online in wildlife and fisheries biology."

Michael Murphy, Senior Analyst, LinQuest Corporation

This graduate certificate provides current and future grassland professionals a well-rounded curriculum that focuses on conservation, utilization, and sustainability of managed grassland systems.  

Course List for Grassland Management Certificate

University Contact
These campus coordinators can help you navigate Great Plains IDEA. Click on the university name to learn more about how Great Plains IDEA works at that campus. Ashley Schultz
Stacy Duffield
Brianna Cooper-Kordinak
Sarah (Heewon) Kim
Melissa Sailors
University Members
Members of the Great Plains IDEA are universities accredited by a regional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Member universities recruit, admit and graduate students, teach in an academic program and contribute to the leadership and maintenance of the alliance. Membership in the alliance is a selective process that engages institutional leadership at all levels.

Janice Santiago is a graduate student in the family and community services program.I was looking for the education I needed to take the next step in my career to a program director or executive director.  I spent a lot of time searching for a university and degree that matched my education in community organizing and advocacy and aligned with my interest in families and community services and supports.  Finding GP IDEA and reading about the courses and career tracks of those who earned the MA in Family & Community Services, I knew right away that this was the degree and program for me. It has lived up to all I had hoped!

As a single mother who works full-time and is raising a son with Autism, and is a member of the sandwich generation taking care of family elders, everything about this program from the courses, schedules, available resources, support of peers and professors have made this the best possible learning experience I could have asked for.  

– – Janice Santiago, Family and Community Services Student,
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