Graduate Certificate in Social Innovation Leadership

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Duration
0.5 years full-time, 1 year part-time
Location
Online
Next start term
Anytime
Study mode
Online
Course code
CV88
First-year fee
$8,400 (2026 Indicative) (FFP)
The Indicative Course Fee is the total approximate cost of enrolling in this course in a Full Fee Paying (FFP) Place in 2026. See Fees & Scholarships section for more details.
OverviewStructure & AvailabilityRequirementsFees & ScholarshipsHow to Apply
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Overview

The Graduate Certificate in Social Innovation Leadership is ideal if you are an ambitious individual working in any field or discipline wanting to develop your capacity to lead and encourage social entrepreneurship, social intrapreneurial impact, and positive social change. Gain a strong foundational knowledge in social innovation, entrepreneurship, and leadership skills and study a range of topics including design thinking, disruptive innovation, group dynamics, innovation and entrepreneurship for leaders. This hyperflexible degree is not bound by term dates or submission deadlines, allowing you to study when and how it suits you.

The Graduate Certificate in Social Innovation Leadership is a multi-disciplinary course that equips you with a strong foundational knowledge about social innovation, entrepreneurship, and leadership skills. 

You will study three units that prepare you to meet social challenges through the creative and sustainable development of new ideas, products, models or systems. You will be introduced to design thinking and collaborative ways of using an eco-system approach to resolve complex problems by offering ways of providing social benefit. You will gain an understanding of leadership in the context of entrepreneurship, examining the drivers and behaviours of people, group dynamics, and organisational and leadership processes. You will draw on theoretical frameworks and insights from the disciplines of management, human resources, sociology and psychology. You will develop a practical understanding of facilitating disruptive innovations and entrepreneurship within an organisation and creating market value. Your studies culminate with an innovation project which can be tailored to your workplace or interest area. You will prepare, design and implement a professional innovation project proposal to build contextual skills for designing and leading innovative projects with a social impact. 

You will benefit from practical learning experiences throughout your studies, including case study analysis, real-world examples and your final project. 

Designed for maximum flexibility, this course is entirely self-paced and 100% online. Access your course content on any device, anytime, and experience the ultimate flexibility and convenience.

Study Experience

Discover more about your online, self-paced social innovation degree, including an innovation project that will see you tackle a social problem and put theory into practice. Click 'Explore Study Experience' for more information.

  • Authentic Learning Experiences
  • Flexible Online Study
  • Self Paced
  • Start Anytime
  • Work Integrated Learning

Career Opportunities

The Graduate Certificate in Social Innovation Leadership focuses on building the professional capacity of managers and social entrepreneurs of the future across the corporate, government and third (not-for-profit) sectors. You will learn to lead organisations creating social and environmental value, developing your ability to operate in a changed cross-sector social landscape, where the dynamism of the market is also directed at social innovation. Specifically, as a graduate, you may seek employment in consulting and providing advice on business performance and improvements, including:

  • Social project design and management
  • New social venture developments, international venture assessment and capital raising in a social context
  • Corporate social innovation and social entrepreneurship
  • Social incubator and technological innovation, support services to new ventures in Not-For-Profit and small to medium enterprise (SME) sector
  • Design and development of teams and team dynamics working in social innovation Launchpad environments.

Structure & Availability

This course is offered fully online in hyperflexible format, meaning you can apply to start anytime.

Available Locations

Flexible Online Study

Designed for maximum flexibility, this course is entirely self-paced and 100% online. Access your course content on any device, anytime.

Your Course

You must complete three units (24 credits):

  1. 1
    The core structure (3 units)

Unit Details

The units you'll study are listed below. Click on a unit to learn more.

Additional Information

Innovation Project - BUSN28002

Students are required to complete a project that addresses a social problem in consultation with an organisation or social change group. Students may focus on challenges within their existing workplace, professional life or be involved in one of CQU's social innovation initiatives.

If you have completed prior study relevant to units within this course, you may be eligible for credit for your past studies. 

Learn more about credit and recognition of prior learning.

Requirements

To Be Eligible

For your application to be considered, you must meet the following entry requirements. 

During Your Study

While not needed to apply, you'll need to meet the following requirements throughout your studies. 

Fees & Scholarships

Indicative Course Fee

The Indicative Course Fee is the total approximate cost of enrolling in this course in a Full Fee Paying (FFP) Place in 2026. The indicative fee should be used as a guide only. Fees are charged per unit studied and the amount quoted above would be applicable if you completed all units in this course in 2026. Check the Cost per Unit spreadsheet available on our Understanding Course Fees webpage.

Fees are reviewed each year and are subject to change. Fee estimates for the following year are expected to be available in September each year.

You may be eligible for FEE-HELP, an Australian Government loan scheme that helps eligible students pay their tuition fees. Provided you meet the FEE-HELP eligibility criteria, you can choose to use FEE-HELP to cover all or part of your tuition fees. 

Learn more about paying for university or view the FEE-HELP information booklet on the Australian Government’s Study Assist website.

There may be additional costs as part of your studies, such as technology expenses. Learn more about other study costs.

How to Apply

How to Apply

Check what you need to do to apply to study this course. 

Your Application Options

Follow These Steps

  1. 1
    Check you meet the course requirements
  2. 2
    Get a Unique Student Identifier

Extra Admission Information

Learn about the assessment of applications and everything you need to know about receiving and accepting an offer to study with CQU.

Start Your Application

Use the Apply button below to access our Apply Online portal and start your application.

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