Environmental Studies

专业详情

Environmental Studies offers the opportunity to examine human relations with their environments from diverse perspectives. The major encourages interdisciplinary study in (1) social sciences, including anthropology, political science, law, economics, and ethics; (2) humanities, to include history, literature, religion, and the arts; and (3) natural sciences, such as biology, ecology, human health, geology, and chemistry. Students work with faculty advisers and the directors of undergraduate studies (DUS) to concentrate on some of the most pressing environmental and sustainability problems of our time: energy and climate change, food and agriculture, urbanism, biodiversity and conservation, human health, sustainable natural resource management, justice, markets, and governance. 

Students may pursue either a B.A. or a B.S. degree within Environmental Studies. The B.A. program is intended for students who wish to concentrate in the social sciences and humanities. The B.S. program encourages students to focus in the natural sciences, especially fields such as environmental health and medicine, ecology, and energy and climate change. Both degree programs culminate in a senior essay project that is commonly preceded by independent summer research.

Students must declare a major in Environmental Studies before the end of the second term of junior year.

Prerequisites 

The B.A. degree program has no prerequisites.

The B.S. degree program has prerequisites in mathematics, chemistry, life sciences, and natural science laboratory or field science. The prerequisites include a term course in mathematics, physics, or statistics selected from MATH 112 or higher (excluding MATH 190), or PHYS 170 or higher, or S&DS 101 or higher; the two-term lecture sequence in chemistry or, for students qualifying for advanced placement in chemistry, one term of CHEM 170 or CHEM 167 or higher; the two-credit BIOL sequence BIOL 101, 102, 103 and 104, or EPS 125; and a natural science laboratory or field course focusing on research and analytic methods.    

Students are advised to take chemistry and biology during the first year before enrolling in the EVST core courses in the natural sciences. It is recommended that students complete the prerequisites by the end of their sophomore year, although this is not required.

Requirements of the Major

B.A. degree program The B.A. degree requires at least fourteen course credits, consisting of the core requirements, the concentration, and the senior requirement.

B.S. degree program In addition to the prerequisites, the B.S. degree requires at least twelve course credits, consisting of the core requirements, the concentration, and the two-term senior requirement.

B.A. core courses One course in statistics or mathematics selected from S&DS 101 or higher, or MATH 112 or higher; two core courses in the social sciences or humanities and three core courses in the natural sciences. Students may select core courses from among the list of approved core courses posted on the environmental studies website or by searching Yale Course Search (YC EVST: Core BA Natural Scie and YC EVST: Core Human/Social Scie). Completing one course in each core area is recommended before the end of the sophomore year.

B.S. core courses Two core courses in the humanities or social sciences and two natural science core courses from among the list of approved core courses posted on the environmental studies website or by searching Yale Course Search (YC EVST: Core BA Natural Scie and YC EVST: Core Human/Social Scie). Completing one course in each area is recommended before the end of the sophomore year.

Areas of concentration Students plan their concentration in consultation with the DUS and the student’s adviser. A concentration is defined as six courses that provide analytical depth in a particular environmental problem or issue of interest, as well as disciplinary expertise. For the B.A. degree, one of these six courses must be an advanced seminar (200 level or higher) that exposes students to primary literature, extensive writing requirements, and experience with research methods. For the B.S. degree, two of the six courses must provide interdisciplinary context to the concentration and three of the six courses must have the science (SC) distributional designation. Of the three SC-designated concentration courses in the B.S. degree program, at least two must have departmental numerical ratings of 125 or higher. Concentrations include biodiversity and conservation, climate change and energy, environmental humanities, environmental justice, environmental policy, food and agriculture, human health and environment, sustainability and natural resources, and urban environments. Students also have the opportunity to design a unique concentration within the major, in consultation with the DUS.

Credit/D/Fail No course taken Credit/D/Fail may be counted toward the major, including prerequisites.

Roadmap See visual roadmap of the requirements.

Senior Requirement

In the junior year, students consult with their advisers on the design of their senior essay project.

B.A. degree program For the B.A. degree, students most often complete one term of EVST 496, a colloquium in which they write their senior essay. Students writing the one-term essay must also complete an additional advanced seminar in the environment. The additional advanced seminar is in addition to the six-course concentration requirement. Two-term senior research projects require the permission of the DUS. 

B.S. degree program For the B.S. degree, students complete two terms of EVST 496.

Advising 

Summer Environmental Fellowship During the spring term, EVST majors may apply for the Summer Environmental Fellowship to gain experience in the field through research or internships in an area pertinent to their academic development or their senior essay project. Sophomores and juniors may arrange internships with nonprofit organizations, government agencies, or corporations. Rising seniors typically focus on research for their senior essay. Although the summer program is optional, many students take advantage of this opportunity with some financial support from the program.