Available degree programs in Environmental Studies include a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science, and minors in social sciences, natural sciences and environmental planning and development. A Master of Arts degree in environmental studies is also awarded. The Bachelor of Arts program emphasizes studies in the societal aspects of environmental issues, along with a core set of courses in the basic sciences. This option emphasizes studies in the general social sciences, and includes areas of emphasis in business, geography, and public policy and management. The Bachelor of Science program contains areas of emphasis in biology, chemistry or earth sciences, together with a core set of courses in the social sciences.
Students can also pursue a general social sciences track.
The three minor degree programs provide students with primary interests in other majors an opportunity to incorporate an environmental theme into their undergraduate studies. All programs are highly interdisciplinary with faculty and courses drawn from many departments in the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, the Marshall School of Business, the School of Public Administration, School of Engineering and the School of Urban Planing and Development. A special effort is made to provide students with experience in dealing with actual environmental problems and policies through senior seminars, directed research projects with faculty, internships with government agencies and private corporations, the Santa Catalina Island semester and the School for Field Studies programs abroad. The Master of Arts degree program in environmental studies is also interdisciplinary and focuses on public policy and its related facets. Those who graduate with an M.A. in environmental studies are well prepared to pursue careers in policy, planning or management in the public, private or nonprofit sector in either this country or abroad.