Graduate Certificate in Climatology and Climate Change

The Graduate Certificate in Climatology and Climate Change program will train both traditional and non-traditional students. It can enhance your career opportunities in industry, local, state, and federal government, laboratories, academia, and entrepreneurship by providing you with an interdisciplinary education focused on climate science and climate communication and policy. The program will attract researchers and students to LSU and prepare them to succeed with a grounding in climatology.

The Climatology and Climate Change Certificate is a 12 credit hour standalone certificate with courses offered in the Departments of Geography and Anthropology, Agricultural Economics, Manship School of Mass Communication, School of the Coast and Environment, and the LSU Law School. Students must complete at least two courses from a climate science module (6 credit hours) and two courses from a climate communications and policy module (6 credit hours) for a combined total of 12 credit hours.  At least one-half of the minimum required coursework credit in the student’s certificate program must be in courses at or above the 7000-Level (6 hours).

Graduate certificates must be completed within five years from entrance into a certificate program.  See the general catalog for more information on course time limits for graduate certificates.

Course Breakdown

The course breakdown is as follows (3 credit hours for each course):

Climate Science

Choose any 2 for 6 hours

  • GEOG 4014: Climatology
  • GEOG 4015: Physical Climatology
  • GEOG 4016: Methods of Climatological Analysis
  • GEOG 4018: Geographical Hydrology
  • GEOG 4221: Tropical Atmosphere
  • GEOG 4083: Environmental Change of Ice Ages
  • GEOG 7917: Climatology of Extreme Events
  • OCS 7129: Global Climate Change and Wetlands

Climate Communication, Human-Dimensions, and Policy

Choose any 2 for a total of 6 hours

  • AGEC 7513: Dynamics in Natural Resource Economics
  • AGEC 7523: Nonmarket Valuation Methods in Agriculture and Nat Res
  • ANTH 4997: Environmental Anthropology
  • ARCH 4041: Issues in Sustainability
  • CMST 4160: Persuasive Communication on Climate
  • ENVS 4261: Energy and the Environment
  • ENVS 4600: Global Environmental Change: Past, Present, and Future
  • ENVS 7047: Environmental Economics and Policy
  • GEOG 4080 Historical Geography
  • GEOG 4997: Global Change
  • LAW 5337: Law of Coastal Adaptation and Global Warming
  • LAW 5414: Climate Change Law
  • MC 7040: Crisis Communication
  • MC 7015: Mass Communication and Society
  • RNR 4107: Human Dimensions in Natural Resources

Graduate Office

If you have any questions regarding coursework or particular aspects of the Climatology and Climate Change Certificate program, please contact the Program Advisor, Dr. Barry Keim. If you have questions about the application process, please contact the Graduate Coordinator at gradsec@lsu.edu or by phone at 225-578-6792.