Certificate in Sustainable Tourism

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Pavlina McGrady, Coordinator

The certificate in Sustainable Tourism is an undergraduate interdisciplinary program designed to prepare individuals for leadership roles in tourism organizations looking to commit to sustainable practices. The program will provide learners with an understanding of corporate sustainability and sustainable practices in tourism development. More specifically, learners will study tourism community impacts, sustainable destination planning and management, and managing a sustainable tourism business while addressing global issues such as poverty, climate change, globalization/localization, and environmental degradation.

To be awarded the Certificate in Sustainable Tourism , students must be in one of the following categories: a) current SOU students who are meeting the requirements for the BA or BS degree, b) students who already have a BA or BS degree (post-baccalaureate), or c) students who have completed approximately two years of college coursework or have at least three years of significant professional work experience and meet the prerequisite for admission to certificate program. To be awarded this certificate, students must complete the course requirements listed below. All courses taken for the certificate must be completed with a grade of C- or better. Students must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.5 or higher in all certificate courses.

Prerequisites (8 credits)

BA 208 - Introduction to Sustainability and Tourism 4 credits
ES 200 - Introduction to Environmental Science 4 credits

Core Courses (23 credits)

BA 411 - Sustainable Tourism 4 credits
BA 483 - Sustainability Leadership 4 credits
BA 490 - Case Studies in Corporate Sustainability 4 credits
ES 408 - Workshop 1 to 16 credits (4 credits required)
ES 439 - Land Use Planning 4 credits
OAL 362 - Sustainability in Outdoor Programming 3 credits

Electives (7-8 credits)

Select a total of two courses from the three sections below. Both courses cannot be from the same section.

Select one from the following:

BA 410 - Event Management 4 credits
BA 413 - Tourism Economics 4 credits
BA 415 - Tourism Policy and Planning 4 credits

and/or select one from the following:

ES 420 - Environmental Sociology 4 credits
ES 421 - Ecological Economics and Sustainable Development 4 credits
ES 423 - Sustainability and Natural Resources 4 credits
ES 437 - Conservation in the United States 4 credits)

and/or select one from the following:

BA 407 - Seminar 1-12 credits (must be approved by certificate coordinator)
BA 409 - Internship (for BA/BS Majors) 1-12 credits (must be approved by certificate coordinator)
OAL 452 - Minimal Impact Adventuring 3 credits
SOAN 311 - Community Studies 4 credits (has SOAN 204 as prerequisite)
SOAN 452 - Global Environmental Movements 4 credits (has SOAN 204 as prerequisite)

* Other courses as approved by certificate coordinator (must be in related area and approved in advance by certificate coordinator).