The Center for Agricultural Profitability offers self-paced, online courses designed to support Nebraska farmers, ranchers, and agricultural professionals in building essential business management skills. Whether you're just starting out, seeking tools to manage your finances, or looking to meet program requirements, these virtual courses are built to deliver practical, flexible learning that fits your schedule.
Explore the options below to find the program that best fits your needs.
LLCs for Nebraska Farms and Ranches
The Nebraska Women in Agriculture program, in partnership with the Center for Agricultural Profitability at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, developed the online course, “LLCs for Nebraska Farms and Ranches.” The program is designed to help farm and ranch families make informed decisions about whether an LLC is the right structure for their business and avoid costly mistakes.
Course participants will learn how to: decide whether an LLC is the right entity structure for their operation, navigate the steps and costs of forming an LLC in Nebraska, and identify and avoid frequent legal and tax missteps through better business management.
The course includes short video interviews with attorneys, accountants and ag professionals, as well as checklists, worksheets and links to podcasts and articles that address specialized topics.The cost for the course is $150 per person. Participants will have access to the course for 90 days from the date of enrollment.
This course is supported by USDA/NIFA under Award Number 2024-70027-42470. All attendees are welcome to participate regardless of race, gender, or any other protected status.
Know Your Numbers, Know Your Options
The curriculum covers topics like goal setting, risk management and financial planning. By the end of the course, participants will be equipped to set specific farming or ranching goals, understand key financial documents and use them to make sound business decisions. Participants have six months to complete the course and receive a certificate of completion.
The program is available through NU Advance, the university’s course delivery platform for online non-credit and professional development offerings. Jessica Groskopf, a Nebraska Extension educator and course instructor, said the dynamic learning experience works on desktop and mobile devices, making course content like videos, discussion boards and activities more accessible for enrolled participants.
Quicken for Farm and Ranch Financial Record-Keeping
The course is led by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Center for Agricultural Profitability and was first developed by Oklahoma State University. It leads users through hands-on sessions to develop a simple set of financial records and reports using Quicken. Exercises based on scenarios from a case farm allow participants to practice many of the steps that they might use to keep records on their farm or ranch.
The course is available through NU Advance, the University of Nebraska’s non-credit and professional development learning system. Course elements include videos, engaging learning activities, quizzes, a Q&A board as well as access to content experts. The course is divided into seven modules which can be completed at your own pace. The total class time is approximately 3 ½ hours. Participants have 60 days to complete the course.
Quickbooks Training for Farm and Ranch Record-Keeping
This course helps agricultural producers learn to use QuickBooks Desktop to manage their operations. Lessons include account setup, entering transactions, generating reports, and using data to inform decision-making.
Note: this course is currently being updated to provide the most current and helpful information, however the older course content has been made available for free when you register at the link below.
Beginning Farmer Tax Credit Training
For Nebraska Department of Agriculture NextGen Participants
This course designed to assist farmers and ranchers with understanding financial record-keeping and planning that been approved as a tax credit training course by the Nebraska Department of Agriculture for producers taking part in the NextGen program.
The tax credit training course is the only online asynchronous certification available to agricultural producers in Nebraska. It is geared toward established producers who own agricultural assets and are interested in earning tax credits through rental agreements with new and beginning farmers as part of the NextGen program.
The course is a five-part, 15-hour program designed to help participants strengthen their financial and operational management skills. The curriculum covers topics like goal setting, risk management and financial planning.
USDA FSA Borrower Training
This course designed to assist beginning farmers and ranchers with understanding financial record-keeping and planning has been approved as a borrower training course by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency.
Produced by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Center for Agricultural Profitability, the USDA FSA Borrower Training course is the only online asynchronous borrower training certification available to agricultural producers in Nebraska.
The course is a five-part, 15-hour program designed to help participants strengthen their financial and operational management skills. The curriculum covers topics like goal setting, risk management and financial planning.