university of new orleans
graduate certificates-planning & urban studies

Graduate Certificates-Planning & Urban Studies

How to Apply:

1. Submit an online application for admission

2. $40 application fee

3. Submit official transcripts from your degree-granting institution

Apply Now Request for Information

Graduate Certificates-Planning & Urban Studies

Get the skills you need to advance in an emerging field:

Certificate in Disaster Management & Community Resilience

The certificate in Disaster Management & Community Resilience can be completed in just 12 credit hours, or 4 courses, at times convenient for you. Demand is growing for people with the ability to assess and plan for emergencies. The Disaster Management & Community Resilience certificate provides you the opportunity to learn from experienced practitioners so you can put the skills you learn to use in the real-world.

12 hours

PADM 6130-US Disaster Policy & Administration (core required) 3

Three additional courses from:

URBN 5150 – Planning for Hazards 3

SOC 5875 – Sociology of Disasters 3

GEOG 5805 – Fundamentals of Mapping and GIS 3

MURP 6030 - Social Policy Planning 3

MURP 5140 - Environmental Planning 3

MURP 5145 - Coastal Zone Planning and Administration 3

URBN 5140 - Citizen Participation 3

URBN 6165 - Urban Public Policy Analysis 3

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

This certificate, which can be completed in as few as four courses, offers students an opportunity to get hands-on training in the in-demand field of Geographic Information Systems. Students will master skills that are valued across many career fields, including urban & regional planners, policy analysts, construction managers, surveyors, cartographers, geographers, mapping technicians and others. UNO puts the latest technology in students’ hands so they are prepared for both the job market and the job itself. The skillset provided by the GIS Certificate program will enable you to work on major projects such as real estate site selection, route/corridor selection, evacuation planning, conservation, natural resource extraction, and more.

12 hours from

GEOG 5805 – Fundamentals of Mapping and GIS

GEOG 5810 – Introduction to Remote Sensing

GEOG 5820 – Remote Sensing II: Digital Image Processing & Analysis

GEOG 5830 – GIS Theories and Concepts

GEOG 5832 – Advanced Techniques in GIS

MURP 5081 – Information Technology for the Planning profession

All courses are offered on-site with access to labs for practical training in essential techniques.

Historic and Cultural Preservation

Through the Historic and Cultural Preservation Certificate program you can join the UNO Department of Planning and Urban Studies (PLUS) and the Department of Anthropology and Sociology as they study contemporary issues in Urban Studies and public policy. Students in this certificate program study subjects such as housing and community development, local economic development, and tourism planning and environmental planning. You will conduct research as well as participate in class projects and internships involving neighborhood revitalization, programs for neighborhood and community commercial centers, and initiatives using economic development from tourism to spark preservation and the reuse of historic structures. You can gain firsthand experience in projects involving the preservation of cultural heritage and historic resources through archaeology, oral history, ethnography, and other anthropological methods. In doing so, you will be able to examine how regulations at the federal, state, and local level affect heritage management and preservation.

Students, with any academic background, interested in gaining knowledge about historic preservation may participate in the certificate program and take fifteen credit hours from a list of required and elective courses.

15 Credit Hours (all courses are 3 credits unless noted otherwise)
* courses are with the approval of the Dr. Fallon Aidoo, the Jean Brainard Boebel Endowed Professor of Historic and Cultural Preservation.
** courses are with the approval of Dr. D. Ryan Gray, the Richard Wallin Boebel Endowed Professor in Anthropology.
*** courses are with the approval of Dr. Molly Mitch or Dr. D. Ryan Gray, co-Directors of the Midlo Center for New Orleans Studies.

Two required courses (typically offered in alternating fall semester)

ANTH 5720 –Cultural Resource Management: Theory and Practice (required)

MURP 5010 – Introduction to Historic Preservation (required)

Three elective courses within or across the fields below:

Career Pathway #1: Preservation Policy and Law

MURP 5071-Historic Preservation Law

MURP 6071-Zoning-Land Use Regulation

URBN 6165-Urban Public Policy Analysis

MURP 6450-Local Economic Development

URBN 5100-Gentrification in Historic Districts

MURP 6900-Independent Study*

Career Pathway #2: Preservation Planning

MURP 6620-History & Theory of Planning

URBN 5002-The Shape of the City

MURP 5005-Introduction to Neighborhood Planning

URBN 5100-Gentrification in Historic Districts

MURP 5050-Urban Land Use Planning and Plan Making

MURP 5081-Information Technology for Planning Professionals

MURP 6800-Planning Internship*

Career Pathway #3: Cultural Resource Management

ANTH 5070-Qualitative Research

ANTH 5991-Advanced Field Research in Anthropology (1-6 credits)

ANTH 6201-Analysis Tech Writing CRM

GEOG 5805-Fundamentals of Mapping and GIS

ANTH 5790-Internship in Anthropology **

Career Pathway #4: Public History & Heritage Studies

HIST 6603-Research in New Orleans History

HIST 6008-Introduction to Public History

URBN 5002-The Shape of the City

URBN 5100-Gentrification in Historic Districts

HIST 6992-History Internship***