Certification

Questions? Contact Safa Alzohairy at 517-353-9903 or safa@msu.edu

A person applying a pesticide product in the course of their employment or other business activity in the state of Michigan must be a certified pesticide applicator or a registered applicator. 

To know the difference between the certified pesticide applicator vs registered applicator visit MDARD Website. To determine whether a certification is the appropriate option for you, The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) has developed a certification flowchart.  

How to become Michigan Certified Pesticide Applicator  

To clear up any confusion with the Pesticide Applicator certification process, the Michigan State University Pesticide Safety Education Program compiled this guide to ensure certification is as easy as possible. 

Private Certification: Required for applying restricted use pesticides (RUPs) to agricultural products to their own or their employer’s property. 

To become a Private Certified Applicator: 

Study the manuals then you would need to take the Private Core exam, which includes the National Pesticide Standards and the Michigan Private Applicator Addendum). These are 2 separate study manuals. If you are applying fumigants; you would also need to have the fumigation standard. The aerial standard is only required for private applicators when they are planning to aerially apply restricted use pesticides. There is a private applicator fee of $50. 

Commercial Certification: Required for those applying pesticides for-hire or during their employment. 

To become a Commercial Certified Applicator: 

Study the manuals then you would need to take the Commercial Core Exam which includes the National Pesticide Standards and the Michigan Commercial Applicator Addendum). These are 2 separate study manuals. Applicators must pass the commercial core exam and at least one category exam. Refer to the Commercial Pesticide Application Certification Categories List for category selection. There is a commercial applicator fee of $75 

Printed copies of the study manuals are purchased online. To access the study manuals, go to Training Manuals 

Registered Applicators: An alternative for applicators who apply general use pesticides for a commercial purpose. RUPs are not allowed to be applied by registered applicators. Registered application fee - $45  

Requirements 

The minimum age is 18 years old to be certified in any of the three categories above. 

Resources 

Click to get the Certification application (PDF) 
For more information on how to obtain certification, see these resources from the Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development.  

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