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With the expanding legalization of recreational and medical cannabis nationwide has come an increased need for well-trained people to work in the highly-regulated, complex cannabis industry.

The legal cannabis industry already supports over 428,000 full-time jobs nationwide, and the industry is growing significantly faster than other industries. Arizona alone exceeded $1 billion in total annual cannabis sales in 2022.

The need for credible cannabis information extends beyond the cannabis industry itself - to health professionals, legal professionals, law enforcement, and many other professions affected by cannabis legalization.

About the University of Arizona Cannabis Certificate Programs

The University of Arizona Continuing & Professional Education non-credit Cannabis Certificate programs are designed to meet the current and future cannabis industry workforce needs and position participants for professional success in this thriving industry.

Instructors are experts in the cannabis industry, including cannabis entrepreneurs, board-certified physicians, pharmacologists, attorneys and public policy specialists.

Participants can choose to earn a Certification in the 8-week Cannabis Associate Certificate program or in the 16-week: Cannabis Retail & Sales Specialist, Cannabis Cultivation Specialist, Cannabis Compliance Specialist, Cannabis Product Development Specialist, or Medical Cannabis Specialist. Each Specialist program includes the eight-week Associate course plus eight more weeks of advanced training in
high-growth job sectors.

• Cannabis Associate Certificate: This 8-week program is designed to provide foundational knowledge in the cannabis industry. Students will learn about cannabis biology, cultivation techniques, product knowledge, legal regulations, and essential business practices. Ideal for those aspiring to pursue careers in cultivation, retail, or management, this program equips participants with the skills needed to succeed in the evolving cannabis landscape.
• Cannabis Retail & Sales Specialist: Prepares students for successful careers in the cannabis retail industry. This course covers essential topics such as product knowledge, customer service techniques, compliance with regulations, and effective sales strategies. Ideal for aspiring Retail Associates and Store Managers, this program equips participants with the skills needed to thrive in the growing cannabis marketplace.
• Cannabis Cultivation Specialist: This in-depth online program focused on the science and art of growing cannabis is designed to equip students with the skills necessary for careers in the cannabis cultivation sector. Students will learn about essential cultivation techniques, plant health management, and the operational aspects of running a grow facility. This program is ideal for those seeking hands-on roles, including Grow Assistants, Cultivation Technicians, and Cultivation Managers.
• Cannabis Compliance Specialist: This certificate program aims to prepare students for roles in cannabis compliance and regulatory oversight. This course covers critical topics such as state and federal regulations, compliance strategies, and best practices for maintaining operational integrity in the cannabis industry. Ideal for individuals seeking careers as Compliance Officers or Regulatory Specialists, this program provides the necessary expertise to navigate the complex legal landscape of cannabis.
• Cannabis Product Development Specialist: This program educates students on the diverse range of cannabis products, how they are made, and their applications. Participants will explore topics such as product formulation, quality assurance, and market trends. This program is ideal for those aspiring to work in roles such as Product Developers and Quality Assurance Specialists, equipping them with the knowledge to excel in the evolving cannabis market.
• Medical Cannabis Specialist: Aimed at providing students with knowledge about the medicinal applications of cannabis. Participants will explore the therapeutic properties of cannabis, patient care practices, legal aspects, and current research developments. This program is perfect for healthcare professionals, caregivers, and anyone interested in the medical uses of cannabis, empowering them to better assist patients in their needs.

Each Certificate consists of 8-16 weeks of online coursework. Students can study at their own pace and on their own schedule, as long as they complete the final exam within the course timeline.

Who Should Earn a Cannabis Certificate?

The Cannabis Certificate Programs are ideal for a diverse range of individuals seeking to enhance their careers in the cannabis industry, including:

• Cultivation Enthusiasts: Those interested in hands-on roles such as Grow Assistants or Cultivation Technicians, looking to gain expertise in cultivation techniques and plant health management.
• Retail Professionals: Aspiring Retail Associates or Store Managers who want to develop skills in product knowledge, customer service, and compliance within the retail landscape.
• Compliance Specialists: Individuals aiming for roles as Compliance Officers or Regulatory Specialists, seeking to understand the complexities of cannabis regulations and compliance strategies.
• Product Developers: Those interested in working as Product Specialists or Quality Assurance Specialists, eager to learn about product formulation, quality control, and market trends.
• Healthcare Providers: Medical professionals or caregivers wanting to deepen their understanding of the therapeutic uses of cannabis and how to support patient needs effectively.

Learn More

Course Schedule and Format

Each non-credit Specialist Certificate starts with the Cannabis Associate Certificate 8-week course, introducing the history, culture and industry of cannabis. After completing the first 8-weeks, participants complete an additional 8-week specialized course to earn their non-credit Cannabis Specialist Certificate.

The courses are fully online and asynchronous, meaning you do not need to be online at a specific time to complete your coursework. There are weekly assignments and activities to keep you engaged and on-track to complete your Certificate. You will also develop a portfolio of case studies and projects that you can use to demonstrate your sector-specific cannabis knowledge.

You should expect to dedicate 6-10 hours per week to complete your coursework. 

What Is Included in the Cannabis Certificate Program?

• 8-(Associate) to 16-(Specialist) week courses
• Completion of a portfolio of case studies and projects to demonstrate your cannabis industry knowledge
• A Certificate of Completion from University of Arizona Continuing & Professional Education upon successful completion of the program

• Access to the GF Institute Employer Network upon successful completion of the program: includes a digital badge to display your credential, as well as membership to the GF Institute, the professional organization dedicated to promoting the highest standards of professionalism, credibility, and equity in the cannabis industry

  All graduates also gain access to the Cannabis Career Resource Center — a free platform unlocked the moment you complete any of these programs.
  Here's what's inside:
  1. The Employer Network – Direct access to cannabis companies that are actively hiring and have agreed to recognize our Certificate holders when they apply for a job.
  2. Continuing Education – A growing library of training videos covering career development, advanced cannabis knowledge, entrepreneurship, and more.
  3. Exclusive Opportunities –  So you can keep learning and growing to expand your cannabis career. 
   

Paying For Your Program

Payment plan options are available for qualifying participants. Payment plan options may include additional fees.

Questions?

For additional information, please contact Green Flower at cannabis-ce@arizona.edu.

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) includes a variety of methods for settling disputes without litigation, including Mediation, Arbitration, Summary Jury Trials, Mini-Trials and Moderated Settlement Conferences.

What You Will Learn

Participants will review the growth and application of settlement options in the United States. The course focuses on both traditional and non-traditional dispute resolution options. Participants will learn negotiation skills and how to select the most cost-effective and least intrusive ADR method to achieve the most positive result for both parties. 

Topics include: Why Conflicts Escalate, Why Alternative Dispute Resolution Works, The Mediation Process and Role of the Mediator, The Arbitration Process and Role of the Arbitrator, Coming to an Agreement, Problems Encountered in Alternative Dispute Resolution, Developing ADR Programs for Government, Business and Personal Disputes, Employment Disputes and Employer/Employee Relationships, and Divorce Settlement.

View the ADR course syllabus.

Who Should Take the Alternative Dispute Resolution Course?

This is a non-credit professional development course designed to train participants to develop or participate in conflict mediation processes. 

Class Schedule and Format

This noncredit professional development program includes 45 clock hours of training.

The course is fully online, and you can work at your own pace to complete the course activities each week. You do not need to be online at any particular time to complete your course work. You will interact with the instructor via email and an online discussion board.

This is an accelerated course. You will be expected to spend an average of at least 8 hours per week completing course activities. Course activities include reading assignments, writing assignments, exams and online discussions.

Alternative Dispute Resolution Session Start Dates: see start dates in the right sidebar.

What Is Included

• 45 clock hours of training
• A Certificate of Completion from University of Arizona Continuing & Professional Studies upon successful completion of the program
• A digital badge upon successful completion of the program

Note: books and materials are not included in registration fee.

Legal secretaries perform administrative and secretarial support duties for law firms, government agencies, corporations, hospitals and the court system. 

What You Will Learn

This course covers topics such as: legal terminology; legal process; jurisdiction and venue; ethics; written communications including letters, pleadings, discovery, notices and motions; filing procedures, billing and accounting; time management; records management; an overview of commonly used word and data processing programs; legal research; memoranda preparation, and citation format.

View the full Legal Secretary Course syllabus.

Who Should Take the Legal Secretary Course?

This course is designed for both beginning and experienced legal secretaries who are interested in improving their skills and working more efficiently in a legal support professional role.

Class Schedule and Format

This noncredit professional development course is fully online, and you can work at your own pace to complete the course activities each week. You do not need to be online at any particular time to complete your course work. 

You will be expected to spend an average of at least 8 hours per week completing course activities. Course activities include reading assignments, writing assignments, exams and online discussions.

Legal Secretary course start dates: see start dates in the right sidebar.

What Is Included

• 45 clock hours of training
• A Certificate of Completion from University of Arizona Continuing & Professional Education upon successful completion of the program
• A digital badge upon successful completion of the program

Note: books and materials are not included in registration fee.

Employment law is a branch of contract law that deals with relationships between employers and employees.

What You Will Learn

This course will cover statutes such as the National Labor Relations Act, the Railway Labor Act, and other various statutes dealing with public employees. Topics also include wages and hours, anti-discrimination in employment, minimum wages and maximum hours, as well as regulation of working conditions. View the Employment Law course syllabus.

Who Should Take Employment Law?

This noncredit professional development course is useful for those in legal professions, as well as Human Resources professionals, managers and others who require knowledge of employment law.

CLS is also recognized by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) to offer Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP recertification. SHRM certification holders are eligible for 45 SHRM Professional Development Credits upon successful completion of the course.

Class Schedule and Format

This noncredit professional development program includes 45 clock hours of training.

The course is fully online, and you can work at your own pace to complete the course activities each week. You do not need to be online at any particular time to complete your course work. 

This is an accelerated course. You will be expected to spend an average of at least 8 hours per week completing course activities. Course activities include reading assignments, writing assignments, exams and online discussions.

Employment Law Start Dates: see start dates in the right sidebar.

What Is Included

• 45 clock hours of training
• A Certificate of Completion from University of Arizona Continuing & Professional Education upon successful completion of the program
• A digital badge upon successful completion of the program

Note: books and materials are not included in registration fee.

The certificate in Spanish/English Interpretation is designed to respond to the increasing local, national, and international demand for professionals, educators, and students interested in meeting the challenges of an increasingly multicultural and multilingual society.

This three-course non-credit professional development certificate program is designed to train entry-level interpreters in Spanish to meet the needs of doctors' offices, hospitals, public health settings, courts, legal offices, schools, etc.

Who should take Spanish/English Interpretation?

It is intended for bilingual (English-Spanish) speakers with no formal training in interpretation who wish to improve or expand their knowledge and skills in interpretation. The online format is ideal for professionals who, due to career and family obligations, cannot attend face-to-face classes.

What you will learn in the Spanish/English Certificate Program

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• complete interpretation tasks appropriate to a beginning professional level interpreter
• explain the role of the medical, legal and educational interpreter
• explain the role of certification in the interpretation field
• demonstrate the ability to handle the interpretation of the most commonly encountered events in the medical, legal and educational setting at a beginner professional level
• exercise professional argumentation skills in group discussions
• list basic resources and research tools available to interpreters and use them successfully to complete an interpretation task at a beginner professional level
• demonstrate professional awareness (knowledge of professional norms and ethics) in their discussions and interpreting work
• explain personal strengths and weaknesses with regard to a variety of interpreting encounters
• explain how to deal with weaknesses in a professional manner
• exercise basic customer education skills in this domain of interpreting

A University of Arizona non-credit Certificate in Interpretation is awarded upon successful completion of the program (three courses).

Apply Now

Spanish/English Interpretation Courses

Each course is usually 16 weeks long and offered 1-2 times per year. Courses start in January, May and August.

Courses are self-paced, with weekly deadlines for activities such as reading, interpretation assignments and exams.

Medical Interpretation

The Medical Spanish/English Interpretation course provides guided practice in the successful completion of professional interpretation tasks in the medical domain. Medical Interpretation will be particularly useful to practicing interpreters with no formal education in the field as well as to those interested in pursuing careers in translating, interpreting, and cross-cultural communication.

Dates: New dates coming soon

Legal Interpretation

Spanish/English Legal Interpretation provides guided practice in the successful completion of professional interpretation tasks in the legal domain. Legal Interpretation will be particularly useful to practicing interpreters with no formal education in the field as well as to those interested in pursuing careers in translating, interpreting, and cross-cultural communication.

Dates: January 5-April 26, 2026

Educational Interpretation

The Educational Spanish/English Interpretation course provides guided practice in the successful completion of professional interpretation tasks in the educational sphere, including both general education and special education scenarios. Educational Interpretation will be particularly useful to practicing interpreters with no formal education in the field as well as to those interested in pursuing careers in translating, interpreting, and cross-cultural communication.

Dates: May 4-August 23, 2026

Application and Registration

To apply, you will need to complete and submit a background information form and an oral recording to test your proficiency in English and Spanish.

Applying to the program is free, and you can apply any time. Please allow 2 weeks before contacting us about the results of your application.

If you are accepted into the program, you will be notified when classes open for registration.

Paying for Your Interpretation Certificate

Discounts are available for University of Arizona employees and military, as well as early registration (1 month before course start). Only one discount can be used per registration.

Payment plans are not available for the May 2026 session. However, learners can reserve a seat by selecting the third-party payment option at checkout. You will receive a payment link 10 days before the course start date, at which point full payment will be due.

Questions about the Spanish/English Interpretation Program?

For more information, please call 520-626-3343 or see our FAQ section.

Mentorship is an integral component of higher education. Enhanced mentoring practices support improved outcomes such as career advancement, academic milestones, and graduation. Quality mentoring practices are also linked to a better sense of belonging and overall work satisfaction.

Unfortunately, mentors and mentees may not be aware of strategies and best practices to make the most of a mentoring partnership.

The University of Arizona MENTOR (Mentorship through Effective Networking, Transformational Opportunities, and Research) Institute designed this training program to improve all types of mentoring partnerships for both mentors and mentees.

Who Should Take Mentoring Training?

This training is designed for faculty, graduate student and post-docs at any institution who want to enhance their mentoring skills.

You do not need to be affiliated with the University of Arizona to take this training (University of Arizona faculty, staff and students can access a separate University of Arizona version of this training).

This training can also help satisfy the new mentoring training requirement from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for all new proposals submitted after July 31, 2023.

What You Will Learn

In this non-credit professional development training, you will discover important strategies for creating an effective mentoring universe. This includes:

• Utilizing a wide range of mentoring types such as peer mentors, mentoring communities, and one-to-one mentoring
• Using practical strategies for building trust and communicating effectively
• Setting ground rules and strategic goals and re-evaluating them at key times

Training Schedule and Format

The program is completely online and self-paced. This training consists of seven modules with videos, information in written form, interactive elements, links to resources, and knowledge checks.

It takes approximately 75-90 minutes to complete the training.

Once you register for the training, you will have one month to complete it.

What is Included?

• Mentoring Best Practices for Faculty and Graduate Students online training (75-90 minutes total)
• A Certificate of Completion from University of Arizona Continuing & Professional Education, upon successful completion of the training

About the MENTOR Institute 

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This training was designed by the University of Arizona MENTOR Institute, a research institute that offers evidence-based resources and training on mentoring for faculty and students.

The training was created with expert consultation from University of Arizona faculty, post-docs, and graduate students. The training also integrates current best practices from mentoring organizations including the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences (CIMER), the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD), and the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN).

Registering for Your Mentoring Training

Registering is easy. There is no application required. Just click the 'Register for Class' button to get started.

A 10% discount is available for military-connected learners and K-12 educators.