Northeastern University Online Graduate Certificate in AI Applications

This is the low-cost, low-barrier option: 16 credits and four courses for $5,250, fully online and asynchronous, with no GRE, no essays and no programming required. It teaches you to use and judge AI at work, not build it. Federal financial aid does not cover this certificate, so plan to pay on your own or through your employer.

The Graduate Certificate in AI Applications is offered online by Northeastern University in Boston. The school describes it as 100% online, fully asynchronous and built for working professionals. You complete four courses totaling 16 credits.

The admission bar is low. You need a bachelor's degree in any field, and the school says there is no GRE, no essays and no application fee. It also says no programming experience is required.

The school says you can finish in as little as four months, which is the fast end of the range. If you hold a full-time job, expect a gentler pace.

Northeastern also offers online Master of Professional Studies programs in Applied AI, which are a much bigger commitment.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

Total tuition is $5,250 for 16 credits, which the school says works out to about $328 per credit. Scholarships can lower it to as little as $4,725, according to the school.

That is a low price for a certificate from a private university. For comparison, the school's Applied AI master's is listed at $30,500 in tuition for the 2026-2027 academic year, and the Applied AI Connect version is $71,079.

Ask whether fees come on top and what else you will pay. Also ask how to qualify for the scholarship price.

16 credits at $328 a credit comes to $5,248 in tuition, before fees.

Who It Fits

• You work in a non-technical role and want a credible, affordable AI credential from a well-known school.
• You want to set your own hours, since the classes are fully asynchronous.
• You are curious about responsible and human-centered AI as well as business uses, because the courses cover both.

Who Should Skip It

• You want to build models and write code. The program is aimed at professionals who apply AI, and the page says no programming experience is needed.
• You want a full master's. The Applied AI master's is a separate program with a much higher price.

Four notable courses are named. AAI 5004 Applied AI for Professionals is the foundation. PHIL 5110 Responsible AI looks at ethics and fairness. ARTG 6460 Human Centered AI comes from a design department, and MISM 6450 Strategic AI for Business is about decisions and strategy.

That mix is unusual, and it is a selling point. Only one of the four sounds like a pure technology course. The rest ask how AI should be used, who it affects and how it fits a business.

If you want to sound informed in meetings and shape AI decisions, that is useful. If you want to learn how neural networks are trained, look at a more technical certificate.

Courses the School Names

• AAI 5004 Applied AI for Professionals
• PHIL 5110 Responsible AI
• ARTG 6460 Human Centered AI
• MISM 6450 Strategic AI for Business

The classes are fully asynchronous, so you do not log in at set times. You work through the material on your own schedule, which is good for shift workers and people in other time zones.

The school says you can finish in as little as four months. That is a fast pace for four graduate courses, and the words as little as matter. Ask how many courses most working students take at once and what a realistic timeline looks like for you.

Ask about discussion boards, office hours and feedback on assignments.

You would earn a Graduate Certificate from Northeastern University, a private nonprofit school in Boston. It is not a degree.

The credential works best as proof that you studied AI formally, including its responsible use. If you plan to move into a technical AI job, it will not be enough alone.

The school's master's programs are separate admissions, so ask whether the certificate credits count toward them before you assume they do.

Where this degree can lead: Data Scientist Jobs, Jobs You Can Get With an AI Degree.

• With no programming required, the technical depth is limited.
• The four-month timeline is the fastest case, not a promise.

• Do fees come on top of the $5,250 tuition?
• How do I qualify for the scholarship that lowers the price to $4,725?
• How many courses do working students usually take at once, and how long does it take them?
• Can these 16 credits count toward the Applied AI master's if I apply later?
• How much contact is there with instructors in an asynchronous course?
• How often do the four courses start, and can I take them in any order?

• Best AI Certificate Programs Rank 1 of 54, graduate certificate
• Self-Paced Programs Rank 1 of 16, graduate certificate

• Master of Professional Studies in Applied AI (Online)

  M.P.S., Master's

  Fully Online Score 71.0

• Master of Professional Studies in Applied AI Connect (Online)

  M.P.S., Master's

  Fully Online Score 71.0

Also at Northeastern University, but not counted here because they are not fully online: Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence (master's, on campus); Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence Align (master's, on campus).

• The University of Texas at Austin

  Graduate Certificate in Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning (Online)

  Texas $417 per credit Score 94.0

• Stevens Institute of Technology

  Enterprise AI Graduate Certificate

  New Jersey $583 per credit Score 90.9

• Georgia State University

  Graduate Certificate in Generative AI and Machine Learning for Business

  Georgia $464 per credit Score 79.0

• University of Colorado Boulder

  Artificial Intelligence Graduate Certificate (Coursera)

  Colorado $525 per credit Score 78.3