Academics

Graduate Certificate in Urban Economic Development

The Graduate Certificate in Urban Economic Development provides expertise in economic development for students and practitioners in urban planning, public administration, community development, utilities, foundations, and allied professions. The Certificate seeks to equip students with the knowledge and skills to affect positive economic change at the local and regional levels in urban regions, acknowledging and leveraging the urban position in a global economy, and while confronting issues of urban population decline. The Economic Development faculty have diverse backgrounds as researchers and practitioners, in both the public and private sectors.

The program is designed for working professionals seeking to expand their knowledge of urban economic development issues, as well as graduate students enrolled in urban planning and development degree programs. Graduate students enrolled in the program often secure internships through the Center for Public Management and/or student employment with either the Center for Economic Development or the Center for Community Planning and Development.
 

Admission Information

Applicants who are not enrolled in a graduate degree program at Cleveland State must apply for graduate certificate admission. Applicants must have a career commitment to local/urban development and/or management. To facilitate the admission process, please use the online application system.

Students must meet one of the following admission criteria:

  1. For bachelor's degrees earned within the past six years, the applicant must have a minimum cumulative GPA for the bachelor’s degree of 2.75 (4 point scale),
  2. OR if the bachelor's degree is more than six years old, the applicant must have a minimum 3.00 cumulative GPA,
  3. OR a minimum GRE score of the 50th percentile,
  4. OR completion of 12 graduate level credits at CSU with a minimum "B" in each course,
  5. OR completion of regionally accredited U.S. masters or Juris Doctorate degree.

Upon admission, all students must meet with a Graduate Program Advisor to prepare a program of study. Students enrolled in a graduate degree program at Cleveland State University must file, prior to graduation, a letter to the Graduate Program Advisor of the Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs indicating their anticipated date of completion for each course taken to fulfill certificate requirements.

Credits earned for the certificate may apply toward a graduate degree, if approved by the student's graduate program director and in keeping with policies of the College of Graduate Studies.

For further information, contact:

  • Dr. Joanna Ganning, Certificate Coordinator
    Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs
    Urban Affairs Building, Room 222
    Telephone: (216) 687-3884 or (216) 687-2221 / Email: j.ganning@csuohio.edu 
  • Public Affairs Student Services Center
    Telephone: (216) 687-3884 / E-mail: passc@csuohio.edu
     

Course Requirements

Certificate students must maintain a minimum graduate GPA of 3.0.

Prerequisites
A grade of B or better in UST 300 - Economics of Policy Analysis or UST 603 - Public Sector Economics or their equivalent, is a prerequisite for the certificate program. The program coordinator for this certificate will make rulings about whether a course is equivalent to UST 300 or UST 603.

Required courses (Three Courses)
UST 605 - Regional Theory and Analysis
UST 622 - Economic Development Policy
UST 629 - Economic Development Finance

Electives (One Course)
Select any one of the three following courses.
UST 524 - Inequality and Economic Development
UST 623 - Urban Development Finance
UST 626 - Workforce Development