Fully online technical training designed around real industry demand, so you can specialize at your own pace.
11/07/2026
Start Date
6 months
Duration
750
Total Hours
8 Modules
Program
Duration
Total Hours
Program
Start Date
$3470
ICTESS’s Building Energy Auditing and Rating Specialization trains specialists to evaluate the energy performance of existing and new buildings. The program covers the full process, from on-site data collection to formal energy ratings, and includes infrared thermography and industry-recognized simulation tools.
You will learn the technical procedures required by current codes and standards: how to characterize the building envelope, analyze HVAC and lighting systems, calculate energy efficiency indicators and write reports with prioritized improvement measures. The program includes hands-on work with energy modeling and rating software, plus measurement and verification (M&V) based on the IPMVP protocol. It ends with a Capstone Project in which you apply everything you have learned to a complete energy audit.
Buildings are among the largest energy consumers in the United States, so energy rating and auditing are essential tools for meeting decarbonization goals. Energy codes such as IECC and ASHRAE 90.1, together with a growing number of state and local building performance standards and benchmarking ordinances, require owners to measure, report and improve energy performance. This creates steady demand for qualified technical professionals.
The program trains professionals to carry out formal energy ratings and complete technical energy audits in residential, commercial and industrial buildings. You will learn to characterize envelopes through visual inspection and thermography, evaluate HVAC and DHW systems, calculate energy balances with recognized software, find improvement opportunities and quantify potential savings with internationally recognized methodologies.
The program includes extensive practice with energy modeling and rating software. It ends with a Capstone Project in which you develop a complete energy audit and apply the IPMVP protocol to measure and verify savings.
The Building Energy Auditing and Rating Specialization prepares you for specialized technical roles at ESCOs, architecture firms, building engineering firms, environmental consultancies and facility management departments. You can work as an energy rating professional, a building energy auditor, an energy efficiency consultant or a sustainability manager at an organization with audit requirements.
The program prepares you to run the entire rating and auditing process. That means collecting data on site with measurement equipment, building energy models in recognized software, calculating energy ratings under current standards, writing technical reports with quantified improvement proposals and verifying savings with IPMVP protocols.
You will also learn to advise owners, condo associations, and HOAs on energy retrofits, prepare compliance documentation for local benchmarking and building performance programs, and take part in projects funded by federal, state, and utility incentives. You will also design action plans that improve building energy performance.
Study from anywhere with no commuting. You can fit your specialized technical training around your current job.
Study when it suits your schedule. Move through the modules at your own pace and go back to any topic you need to review.
Learn the energy modeling and rating tools used to evaluate building performance and produce formal energy ratings.
Get technical video lessons, up-to-date downloadable materials, forums with specialized instructors and hands-on energy rating exercises.
ICTESS offers specialized technical training focused on professional practice. It is designed to help you master the skills the building energy rating and auditing field demands, using current methods and professional simulation tools.
What you'll achieve
Apply current energy codes and standards (IECC, ASHRAE 90.1, ASHRAE Standard 211) and understand reporting requirements under state and local benchmarking and building performance programs.
Conduct data collection in existing buildings through visual inspection, document review and infrared thermography to detect thermal bridges.
Calculate energy balances and efficiency indicators, such as source energy use, CO₂ emissions and heating and cooling loads, using recognized methods.
Use energy modeling and rating software to model buildings and produce formal energy ratings.
Prepare technical audit reports with improvement measures ranked by technical and economic criteria, and design M&V plans that follow the IPMVP protocol.
Buildings account for a significant share of US energy use and are a strategic priority in the energy transition. Updated energy codes push new construction toward high-performance and zero energy buildings, and building performance standards set ambitious targets for existing buildings. Together, these create a structural need for professionals who specialize in energy diagnostics.
Expanding regulatory requirements: State and local governments have steadily expanded benchmarking, audit and building performance requirements. These rules raise the quality bar for energy assessments and require covered buildings to report and improve performance, which increases demand for professionals who can meet those standards.
A major opportunity with retrofit incentives: Federal and state programs, including tax incentives such as 179D and utility rebate programs, are directing significant investment toward building energy upgrades. Professionals trained in energy auditing are essential to assess buildings, propose eligible measures and document the resulting savings.
Professional differentiation in a competitive market: Specializing in building energy rating and auditing sets you apart from general technical profiles. Mastering recognized calculation methods, modeling software and internationally recognized verification protocols makes you a technical reference for demanding clients and deep energy retrofit projects.
Completing the Building Energy Auditing and Rating Specialization places you in a field where demand is growing, driven by energy codes, building performance standards and incentive programs for energy retrofits. Benchmarking and audit requirements in many states and cities create steady opportunities for specialized professionals across the country.
Access to a regulated professional field: In many jurisdictions, energy audits and benchmarking required by local ordinances must be performed or overseen by qualified professionals. This program gives you the technical foundation to meet those expectations with rigor.
Mastery of industry-standard tools: Hands-on skill with energy modeling and rating software lets you produce reliable ratings and audit results. Practical proficiency with these tools is essential for building energy assessments that hold up technically.
Ability to win retrofit projects: Federal, state and utility incentive programs are funding energy upgrades in buildings. Your auditing skills let you identify opportunities, quantify savings and guide owners and condo associations through incentive applications.
Recognized professional certificate: The ICTESS professional certificate backs your technical specialization in building energy rating and auditing. It strengthens your position in the job market and validates your skills with employers in the building and energy efficiency sectors.
This specialization is for professionals and technicians who want to specialize in evaluating and improving the energy performance of buildings. Recommended profiles include:
Program details
The Capstone Project is the final stage of the program and brings together all the technical skills you develop along the way. You will carry out a complete energy audit of a real building, from data collection to a final report with improvement proposals and a verification plan, using the professional methods and rating tools used in the industry.
The project includes a full characterization of the building. You will analyze the thermal envelope and identify thermal bridges through thermography, evaluate the HVAC, DHW and lighting systems, and build the model in energy modeling and rating software. You will calculate the energy balance, produce the formal energy rating, analyze consumption by end use and rank the main improvement opportunities by technical and economic criteria.
The project also includes a professional technical report with an estimated budget for the proposed measures, the expected energy and cost savings, a return on investment analysis and an M&V plan that follows the IPMVP protocol. The final documentation must meet the standards and format expected of energy audit reports for businesses, condo associations or public agencies. It should show you can deliver complete technical documentation ready for real clients.
ICTESS’s Building Energy Auditing and Rating Specialization includes hands-on training with energy modeling and rating software. You will use a detailed procedure to model the building fully, a simplified procedure for existing buildings, and alternative tools for residential projects. You will learn to enter envelope data, characterize building systems, interpret rating results and export the documentation needed for reporting.
You will also use infrared thermography to detect thermal bridges and insulation defects during field inspections. Mastering these tools is essential for producing reliable energy ratings and conducting audits with technical rigor.
A bachelor’s degree is not required, although the ideal profile includes technical training in construction, building systems or energy. The program is designed for architects, construction managers and building, mechanical and energy engineers. It is also open to people with an associate degree in energy efficiency, HVAC or construction technology.
Professionals with proven experience in building maintenance or facility management can also enroll if they have prior knowledge of construction and thermal systems. Keep in mind that requirements to sign energy audits vary by state and city. Some local ordinances require a licensed professional engineer (PE), a registered architect or a recognized credential such as CEM, BEAP or RESNET HERS Rater, so check what applies where you plan to work.
The ICTESS Professional Certificate validates your specialized technical training in building energy rating and auditing. However, the authority to sign audits or ratings required by law depends on the state and local requirements where the building is located, which may call for professional licensure or specific industry credentials.
The program gives you the specific technical skills to do the work with rigor: modeling in professional software, characterizing envelopes and systems, calculating indicators and writing reports. If you already hold a license or credential, this program adds current methods and intensive hands-on practice with professional tools, which sets you apart from professionals without a specialization.
The Building Energy Auditing and Rating Specialization takes a comprehensive approach that goes well beyond producing quick energy ratings. Many courses only teach the basics of a single rating tool. This program covers the full energy audit process in depth: data collection with thermography, detailed analysis of building systems, modeling with both simplified and detailed procedures, improvement measures with economic feasibility analysis, and M&V plans based on IPMVP.
The program also covers advanced skills that are in high demand on incentive-funded retrofit projects. On those projects a rating is not enough: clients need complete technical reports that justify the investment and quantify savings with recognized methods.
