Master's in Environmental Sciences
The Department’s course offerings reflect the priority areas identified by the 2003 National Science Foundation’s report on environmental research and education (NSF 2003: Complex Environmental Systems: Synthesis for Earth, Life, and Society in the 21st Century). These are:
- Biophysical Systems (Coupled Biological and Physical Systems)
- Environmental Planning and Management (Coupled Human and Natural Systems)
- Environmental Assessment and Analysis (Coupled People and Technology)
All the graduate courses offered by the Department are categorized into one of these three areas, and are listed in Table 1.
The following are the minimum course requirements for the MS thesis option. A suggested sequence of courses is summarized in Table 2.
- 36 credit hours beyond the bachelor degree level; at least half at the 7000 level.
- ENVS 7700 – Integrated Environmental Issues (3 hours)
- ENVS 7995 – Environmental Seminar (1 hour)
- 6 hours from each of the three priority areas (18 hours)
- An additional 3 hour course from priority area of choice (3 hours)
- 5 hours of elective coursework, which can be additional coursework taken within or outside the department (5 hours)*
- ENVS 8000 – thesis research (6 hours)
The student must complete a thesis and successfully defend the thesis in an oral examination. The thesis must be acceptable in subject matter and exhibit creditable literary workmanship to the satisfaction of the thesis committee and meet with the approval of The Graduate School.
* courses taken outside of the department must have the approval of the student’s advisor committee
Priority Area | Course Name |
Core Courses |
ENVS 7700 Integrated Environmental Issues ENVS 7995 Environmental Seminar (1 credit hour) |
A: Biophysical Systems (Coupled Biological and Physical Systems) |
ENVS 4010 Applied Ecology ENVS 4035 Aquatic Pollution ENVS 4101 Environmental Chemistry ENVS 4045 Air Pollution (proposed)* ENVS 4477 Environmental Toxicology – Introduction and Application ENVS 4500 Health Effects of Environmental Pollutants ENVS 4600 Global Environmental Change ENVS 7110 Toxicology of Aquatic Environment ENVS 7112 Concepts in Marine Ecotoxicology ENVS 7151 Watershed Hydrology and Floodplain Analysis ENVS 7623 Toxicology I ENVS 7626 Genetic Toxicology |
B: Environmental Planning and Management (Coupled Human and Natural Systems) |
ENVS 4261 Energy and the Environment ENVS 4262 Environmental Hazard Analysis ENVS 4264 Regulation of Environmental Hazards ENVS 4266 Ocean Policy ENVS 7040 Environmental Planning/Management ENVS 7041 Environmental Policy Analysis ENVS 7042 Environmental Conflict Resolution ENVS 7043 Environmental Law and Regulation ENVS 7061 Water Quality Management and Policy ENVS 7044 Regulation of Toxic Substances ENVS 7045 Land Use Law and Regulation ENVS 7046 International Environmental Law ENVS 7047 Environmental Economics and Policy |
C: Environmental Assessment and Analysis (People and Technology) |
ENVS 4145 Remote Sensing Fundamentals for Env. Scientists ENVS 4149 Design of Environmental Management Systems ENVS 4900 Watershed Hydrology ENVS 7050 Spatial Modeling of Environmental Data Or EXST 7003; 7004; or 7005 Introduction to Statistical Methods |
Year | MS-Thesis | MS-Professional |
Year 1 |
ENVS 7700 (3 hours) ENVS 7995 (1 hour) Group A (3 hours) Group B (3 hours) Group C (3 hours) Priority Group (3 hours) Electives (ENVS/outside) (3 hours) |
ENVS 7700 (3 hours) ENVS 7995 (1 hour) Group A (3 hours) Group B (3 hours) Group C (3 hours) Priority Group (3 hours) Electives (ENVS/outside) (3 hours) |
Year 2 |
Group A (3 hours) Group B (3 hours) Group C (3 hours) Electives (ENVS/outside) (3 hours) ENVS 8000–Thesis research (6 hours) Thesis Defense |
Group A (3 hours) Group B (3 hours) Group C (3 hours) Electives (ENVS/outside) (6 hours) ENVS 7997*–Team/Intern Project (3 hours) Exit Examination |