Environment and Society  

In this foundation, students will obtain foundational knowledge of core theories and methods in the following domains of integrated social and environmental sciences: Coupled natural and human systems, cultural models of the environment, political ecology, participation and governance, ecological economics, and environmental ethics.  Students will develop scholarship and practice in social science aspects of couples natural human systems that includes critical thinking, written and verbal communication, and practice in interdisciplinary fieldwork to hone skills in data collection and analysis, consensus building, and stakeholder analysis. 

Prerequisites: 

  • 2 Introductory science courses

    • Introductory science courses are defined as 100 and 200 level courses, generally taken in students’ freshmen or sophomore years in college.

  • 2 Advanced science courses

    • Advanced science courses are defined as 300 and 400 level courses, generally taken in students’ junior or senior years in college.

  • 2 Quantitative courses

    • Quantitative courses can be Calculus-level math (or higher), computer programming, or statistics courses.

  • 2 Foundation-relevant courses

    • At least one of these must be an advanced science course.

Courses & Other Requirements (M.S. & Ph.D) 

  1. Foundational Course: MEES 620 – Coupled Human & Natural Systems 

  2. A minimum of three Professional Development courses including:

    • MEES 601 (formerly MEES 609A) - Applied Environmental Science (*required)

  3. One Issue Study Group.

  4. Elective courses approved by the student's advisory committee.

Note: Students seeking a M.S. degree must take a minimum of 30 credits with 24 credits of course work and 6 credits of graduate research. Of the 24 course credits, 12 of them must be at the 600 level or higher.

Students seeking a Ph.D. must complete a minimum of 36 credits, with at least 24 credits of course work and 12 credits of dissertation research. At least twelve credits of course work must be at the 600 level or above.

For information regarding faculty members who are associated with Environment and Society, see the link below. 

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