Sustainability Certificate -
New & Improved

The Sustainability Certificate has been redesigned to ensure that each student develops literacy in all four dimensions of sustainability — that is, the environmental, social, and economic dimension of sustainability, as well its inherent systems nature. Admission and completion requirements have changed. All changes went into effect September 1, 2018.

Apply

Click here to apply for the Sustainability Certificate.

Who is affected by these Changes?

• Students who enrolled in the Sustainability Certificate prior to September 1, 2018 can choose to fulfill the old certificate requirements or the new requirements.
• Students enrolling in the certificate after September 1, 2018, must fulfill the new requirements.

What exactly has changed for the Sustainability Certificate?

• A revised set of Learning Goals
• Students will be able to identify, critically analyze, and propose solutions to the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability
• Students will be able to engage in systems thinking and practice so as to address the interrelationships among the three dimensions of sustainability
• Students will develop the capacity for an engaged life in which theory, practice, and reflection are integrated in the pursuit of a more sustainable world
• Admission Requirements
• Undergraduate students enrolled at the University of Wisconsin-Madison may apply for the sustainability certificate if they
• are not earning the Environmental Studies Certificate or the Certificate in Engineering for Energy Sustainability, and
• have completed one of the approved courses for the certificate with a grade of B or better.
• Completion Requirements
• Completion of the certificate requires a 3.0 GPA in all coursework that counts towards the certificate. This GPA requirement only applies to sustainability courses and thus does not equate to the student’s overall GPA.
• Curriculum Structure
• 12-credit requirement
• The Community Engagement Requirement remains in its current form.
• There is no capstone requirement.
• Curriculum Requirements
• To meet the 12-credit requirement, students need to select at least 3 credits from each of the four categories listed here.
• A fifth category, also listed here, captures miscellaneous sustainability courses. Under special circumstances, students can ask to use a maximum of 3 credits from this fifth category to substitute for 3 credits from one of the four main categories. Such a request is granted on an individual basis and requires that the student explains how the substitute class assists the student in optimizing his or her individual goals for taking the certificate in light of the student’s current major and later professional aspirations. The request requires approval by the certificate’s faculty advisor, Ann Terlaak, in coordination with the certificate’s oversight committee

Other Questions?

Please email the faculty advisor for the certificate, Professor Ann Terlaak at the School of Business. Please use this subject line: "INFO REQUEST: SUSTAINABILITY CERTIFICATE." As part of your message, please include your full name, student ID number, and anticipated graduation date.