The ENSP curriculum provides a framework through which students develop a multi-disciplinary perspective while they gain substantive background in their chosen academic discipline. As a result, the majority of the ENSP curriculum is comprised of courses from multiple departments and programs on campus, spanning across the natural and behavioral sciences. No matter the concentration, all students in ENSP will have to take the following ENSP courses:
ENSP "Core" courses introduce students to the disciplines most closely related to the areas of concentration; and help them begin developing the perspective needed for critical thinking about environmental issues. They include courses in Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science, Geography, Economics, Calculus, and Statistics. Most of these courses double-count as university General Education requirements. Refer to concentration requirements to gauge the variety of courses students take in the ENSP Core.
Lower-level ENSP courses lay the foundation for the major and introduce students to the context and content of environmental problem-solving. These courses are open to all students, and students need not take ENSP101 before taking ENSP102.
Special topics courses provide opportunities for upper-level ENSP students to engage in an intense reading and discussion experience. They are limited to ENSP majors.
- ENSP305 - Quantitative Methods in Environmental Science and Policy
- ENSP306 - Fundamentals of Qualitative Research Methods for Environmental Studies
- ENSP330 - Environmental Law
- ENSP340 - Science, Ethics, and Law of Water
- ENSP342 - Environmental Threats to Oceans and Coasts: Towards an Integrated Policy Response
- ENSP350 - Energy Policy in the 21st Century
- ENSP370 - Principles of Environmental Justice: Theory and Practice
Most of our concentrations require internships; and all ENSP students are urged to complete as many internships as possible. Internships help students make formal connections to concepts in their concentration, clarify their professional interests, and deepen preparation for employment and/or graduate school.
The Capstone in Environmental Science and Policy brings the ENSP major to a close. Teams of senior ENSP students will investigate a current environmental challenge, bringing their disciplinary expertise to bear in exploring and developing solutions for real-life environmental issues.
Sample Projects:
- NOx Emissions in the Bay Watershed
- Visualizing patterns of deep-sea marine debris in the North Atlantic
