Environmental Studies
Bachelor of Arts
About this program
The Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies focuses on the relationship between people and the environment. You’ll explore topics like sustainability, social justice, urban issues, and cultural views of nature. With guidance from an advisor, you can shape your path around your interests. This program helps you build research, communication and civic engagement skills for work in education, advocacy or public service.
Program Curriculum and Requirements
Program Scope
The Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies program provides students with the interdisciplinary knowledge and skills they need to understand contemporary environmental problems and solutions and to take action to address environmental injustices.
Environmental Studies emphasizes interdisciplinary approaches to understanding relationships between humans and the physical world and centers social justice. Students learn what individuals and organizations are doing and can do to protect the environment for themselves, future generations and other living beings and ecosystems. Students participate in an internship and take a senior seminar, gaining experience in community engagement and preparing for future environmental careers.
Program Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate understanding of the relationships between social justice and environmental problems in local, national and global contexts.
- Demonstrate understanding of chemical, biological, and social processes related to environmental problems and the ability to integrate these with the understandings and critical evaluations of descriptive statistics commonly used in environmental literature.
- Communicate clearly and accurately both orally and in writing and be able to conduct research appropriate to area of emphasis.
- Demonstrate basic understanding of civic activities and processes, and of methods of engagement in those processes.
- Demonstrate readiness to enter professional job market by preparing/training students in developing appropriate job market skills (e.g., resume and cover letter writing, interview preparation, writing well and engagingly, acquiring professional experience via internship).
- Demonstrate understanding of the interconnections of economy, politics, culture and society, and of potential points of intervention to enhance sustainability and social justice.