The Graduate Certificate in Energy Efficient and Sustainable Building provides students with a multidisciplinary environment that introduces them to the science, design, and management of sustainable buildings. The course covers foundational topics including thermodynamics and heat transfer for building science, integrated building systems, sustainability principles in the built environment, and project management — equipping graduates with both the theoretical knowledge and applied skills to address real-world challenges in sustainable construction and retrofit. It is a postgraduate qualification typically completed in one semester of full-time study and serves as both a standalone professional development credential and a formal pathway into graduate diploma and master's degree programs in the same field.

This course has been especially designed to suit the needs of current architects, engineers, project managers, and other design professionals looking to gain further professional development in the built environment. It appeals to professionals who are already working in construction, property, urban planning, or engineering and want to pivot into or deepen their expertise in sustainable building practice. Graduates are employed across a broad range of sectors including Environmental Sustainable Design (ESD) consultancies, architecture and engineering firms, building energy management organisations, government agencies, and property development companies.

The qualification also reflects a direct response to a widening skills gap across the Australian built environment industry, where shifting environmental priorities and increasingly stringent regulatory frameworks have placed sustainability front and centre. Graduates are equipped to recommend and implement new directions in sustainable building design, engage effectively with interdisciplinary project teams, and communicate complex sustainability strategies to diverse stakeholders including clients, councils, developers, and contractors.

Applicants are typically required to hold an Australian bachelor degree (or equivalent overseas qualification) in any discipline to be eligible for entry. Degrees in disciplines such as architecture, interior architecture, landscape architecture, interior design, industrial design, building, construction management, mechanical engineering, civil engineering, property economics, property valuation, urban planning, environmental science, environmental sustainability, or project management are particularly well-suited and may attract advanced standing credit. Applicants who do not hold a bachelor degree in a relevant area may still be considered on the basis of significant professional experience — generally a minimum of three years in middle to upper management roles related to energy efficiency, sustainability, or building and construction. Professional experience applicants must submit a CV and a personal statement demonstrating their academic foundation, critical thinking, and communication skills, and how their experience relates to the program.

International applicants must meet the university's minimum English language proficiency requirements. Typically this means achieving an IELTS (Academic) minimum overall band score of 6.5 with no individual band below 6.0, or a TOEFL iBT minimum overall score of 79 (with minimum sub-scores in each component). Equivalent results from other accepted English tests such as PTE Academic or Cambridge English are also generally considered. There are typically no prerequisite subjects required for entry, and no selection tasks or portfolios are required — though applicants with prior learning or industry accreditations may apply for recognition of prior learning (RPL) or credit transfer, which can reduce overall study duration.