An eCertificate Program in Transportation Planning (UTCM 11-13-72)

In this project, researchers developed a proposal to extend the delivery of the recently developed Graduate Certificate in Transportation Planning at Texas A&M University (TAMU) to a wider audience via distance education (online or eCertificate). While the need for an interdisciplinary approach to transportation is widely recognized by the professional community, there are few educational programs that address the field of transportation in a truly comprehensive, interdisciplinary manner. The TAMU university-wide graduate Certificate in Transportation Planning was established in August 2008 to address this need. The certificate provides an interdisciplinary perspective on how economics, public policy, finance, and urban design influence the effectiveness of transportation systems. This certificate has proved to be very successful. However, a limitation has been its availability to graduate students only at TAMU in College Station. This project sought to convert four courses in the existing certificate into online courses, to develop a proposal for delivering the courses via distance education, and to move the proposal through the TAMU approval processes. The eCertificate will increase access to transportation courses and Texas A&M's transportation curriculum substantially, and it will strengthen Texas A&M as a national and global leader in the education of transportation professionals.