Director   Teofilo Abrajano, Jr.
Assistant Director   John Wimbush
Program Home Page   http://www.rpi.edu/dept/envsci

Environmental issues continue to be prominent in the lives of everyone. Essentially no place on the planet has escaped perturbation resulting from activities of an ever-growing human population. The challenge is to maintain those attributes of the Earth that make it habitable while at the same time providing for human needs. Science will play an absolutely critical role in enabling technological civilizations to move toward sustainable interactions with the natural world.

While effective environmental scientists must be rigorously educated in one area of science, they must have a perspective far broader than any single science discipline affords. In fact, cognizance of considerations beyond just the sciences is also required. Rensselaer’s environmental science degree addresses these challenges with a multifaceted program.

The First Year Environmental Seminar considers topical environmental issues from numerous perspectives. Through it, students receive a broad overview of environmental challenges in preparation both for their major and for leadership roles in environmental science.

A guided selection of courses in the Humanities and Social Sciences broadens perspective and understanding of the human approach to and interactions with the natural world. Two courses, ERTH-4500 and ERTH-4600, taken in the final two years of study, enable the student to grasp the broadly varied, interdisciplinary dimensions of the natural environment and its human dimension. The requirement for an intensive environmental experience is an overt acknowledgement that environmental science is a discipline concerned with the natural world.

The science core of 38 credit hours gives each student a common core of 10 courses that introduces important approaches for understanding the natural world. The student-elected concentration in one of the traditional scientific disciplines gives depth in one area of science. With judicious use of the 28 credit hours of electives, a student can prepare to pursue a number of career options including graduate study in the concentration discipline.

Research Innovations and Initiatives

The School of Science offers numerous opportunities for advanced study. Some examples include the impact of acid rain on the Adirondacks, characterization of subsurface microorganisms with the potential for bioremediation, PCB and other contaminant analysis in the Hudson River, studies of aquatic biota in Lake George, and nitrogen cycling in local ecosystems. Students are encouraged to seek research opportunities in environmental science as described in each of the traditional scientific disciplines.

Faculty Committee
R.F. Bopp, C.W. Boylen, S.J. Breyman, J.M. Gowdy, G.M. Korenowski, P.D. Persans, W.L. Siegmann.

Undergraduate Programs

Environmental Science Curriculum   This curriculum leads to a B.S. in environmental science. A typical four-year program is illustrated below. However, the order in which students take courses within the first two years is flexible.

1. Hum. & Soc. SCI courses should be selected in consultation with the adviser and the Environmental Science Faculty Committee. Examples of environmentally relevant options include:ECON-4230 Environmental Economics, ECON-4250 Ecological Economics, IHSS-2100 Introduction to Environmental Studies, PHIL-4300 Environmental Philosophy, STSS-1110 Introduction to Science and Technology Studies, STSS-2300 Environment and Society, STSS-4540 Environment, Law and Culture and STSS-4320 Environmental Politics and Policy.
2. With permission of the director of Environmental Science, a student may elect another Math course (Course numbers MATH-xxxx,MATP-xxxx, or cross listed courses with these numbers).
3. Each student is required to elect one of the concentrations listed below.
4. Each student is required to engage in an activity that qualifies as an intensive environmental experience as described below.
5. This course is offered every other year in the fall term of odd-numbered years and therefore is a junior year course for some students.

Concentrations   The environmental science degree program requires one concentration. Concentration options and the associated courses are shown below.

Minor Programs

Sustainable stewardship of the environment is the single most important challenge facing the world, and this minor is ideal for students wishing to develop a multidisciplinary background in environmental science. The program of study requires a minimum of four courses of which three are required. These required courses include: BIOL-4850, CHEM-4810, and ERTH-1200. A minimum of one additional course must be selected from the list below. At the discretion of the adviser and the environmental science program director, the student may take an alternative not on the list, or complete a four-credit research project. At least three of the four courses required for the minor must be at the 4000 level.

Students interested in developing a broad, multidisciplinary background in energy to complement their more focused major program may also consider another minor option—the Interschool Minor in Energy. See Science and Technology Studies for details on this program.

Special Opportunities in Environmental Science

Environmental Studies Program

Building on the unusual strength and breadth of Rensselaer’s synthesis of engineering, science, and the humanities and social sciences, the Environmental Studies Program offers students a unique educational opportunity to develop a truly multidisciplinary approach to environmental studies.

Students who enter Rensselaer in the Environmental Studies Program will take a broad range of basic courses in their first two years. They then choose one of five majors: economics (with an ecological economics focus), environmental engineering, environmental science (with a concentration in a specific area of science), hydrogeology, or science, technology, and society (with an environmental focus). Students may also choose the dual major Ecological Economics, Values, and Policy program including economics and science, technology, and society. To complement their major programs, students may earn a wide variety of minors. All the majors in the program offer their own environmental minors, and the Schools of Architecture and Management offer special environmental courses as well. Rather than becoming narrow specialists, students participating in the Environmental Studies Program will receive a multidisciplinary education that prepares them to address a variety of environmental problems.

See Science and Technology Studies for a complete description of this program.

Intensive Environmental Experience

In consultation with their adviser and with the approval of the director of the Environmental Science Program, students may select and engage in an intensive activity related to the environment. They may do so either directly (as in “natural world” experience) or indirectly through temporary employment (e.g., as a co-op or intern) or through participation in an environmental research monitoring or assessment program. The environmental experience, envisioned typically as a summer activity occurring after the sophomore or junior year, must last at least a month and, in some cases, may be associated with earning academic credit. To successfully fulfill this requirement, students must document the experience and obtain approval for it from the Environmental Science Faculty Committee.