Environmental Sustainability and Policy

Degree: B.S., Environmental Science and Geology
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences

The Environmental Science and Geology degree (Bachelor of Science) promotes the study of our environment and the impact that human activities have on natural systems. Environmental Science majors choose either a natural science or a social science perspective according to their interests. Both tracks provide a strong background for advanced study or allow placement directly in a variety of career areas.

The Environmental Sustainability and Policy concentration focuses on the economic, political, and sociological impact of humans on the environment. This program, coupled with an appreciation of the biotic and physical parameters of the environment, prepares students to evaluate government, industry, and environmentalist positions on environmental issues.

The interdisciplinary nature of the Environmental Sustainability and Policy program permits students to select classes from a wide range of course offerings in multiple departments in order to best prepare for personal career goals.

The Department has modern laboratories in the Jepson Science Center equipped with advanced analytical instruments to support classroom instruction and to provide opportunities for research. Equipment for ecological studies in terrestrial, fresh water, and marine environments includes live animal traps, plankton and insect nets, seines, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, and pH meters, and fresh and salt water aquaria. Major laboratory equipment includes petrographic microscopes, a magnetic susceptibility instrument, and dedicated lab facilities for paleontology, sedimentology, and geochemistry. The Jepson Science Center has a variable pressure scanning electron microscope with chemical capabilities that is shared by the science disciplines. For environmental and geological fieldwork, the department has GPS equipment, a small fleet of research boats (including one equipped for trawling, coring, and dredging), coring and surveying equipment, and for classroom study, an extensive collection of rocks, minerals, and fossils. The department also maintains a computer lab/classroom equipped with the latest Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software.

Majors in all of our programs are encouraged to do independent study and/or research during their senior year. Financial support for student research is available. Qualified students may also choose to do an internship with a professional organization during either their junior or senior year. Students with a 3.00 overall grade-point average and a 3.25 grade-point average in the major may pursue Honors in Environmental Science, Geology, or Environmental Geology by completing an independent research project and writing and defending a thesis.

All of our majors are encouraged to fulfill the general education experiential learning requirement by completing URES 197 Undergraduate Research, EESC 481 Readings, EESC 491 Individual Study, EESC 493 Honors Research, or EESC 499 Internship . Alternatively, majors may meet this requirement by participating in an approved supervised on-campus or off-campus summer research experience developed in consultation with the department (such as the UMW Summer Science Research Program or a similar program at another college or university). To complete the Beyond The Classroom requirement through a summer research experience, contact the department chair for more details.

Student Learning Outcomes

1. Students will demonstrate how different components of the Earth System interact.

2. Students will demonstrate the ability to examine a problem and develop a solution.

3. Students will demonstrate the ability to collect field and lab data.

4. Students will demonstrate the ability to process and interpret data sets.

5. Students will demonstrate the ability to effectively communicate in both oral and written formats.

Major Requirements

Up to three (3) credits in applicable Special Topics courses with departmental approval.

Prerequisites

Plan of Study 

This suggested plan of study should serve as a guide to assist students when planning their course selections. The schedule outlined below assumes a student enters UMW planning to major in Environmental Sustainability and Policy. All entering students considering a major in Environmental Sustainability and Policy should take the Chemistry Placement Test. Students who are recommended to take the preparatory CHEM 101 Foundations of Chemistry should do so during Fall of their freshman year. CHEM 111 General Chemistry I can then be taken during the spring of a student’s freshman year and CHEM 112 General Chemistry II during fall of the sophomore year. Alternatively, a student may take the CHEM 111-112 sequence during their sophomore year.

This plan is not a substitute for a student's Degree Evaluation, or the Program Requirements listed for this major in the Academic Catalog. Academic planning is the student's responsibility, and course selections should be finalized only after speaking with an advisor in Earth and Environmental Sciences. Students should familiarize themselves with the catalog in effect at the time they matriculated at the University of Mary Washington. Students should also familiarize themselves with general education requirements which can be fulfilled through general electives as well as major/minor course requirements. Course requirements and sequencing may vary with AP, IB, CLEP, Cambridge or previous coursework, transfer courses, or other conditions. To be considered full-time, an undergraduate student must be enrolled in 12 or more credits for the semester.

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Students that wish to take upper-level ECON, GEOG, PSCI, or SOCG Environmental Policy courses should review the prerequisites to ensure they have been completed prior to registration.

Notes: BIOL 121-132 and CHEM 111 are prerequisites to courses in the major. The Environmental Sustainability and Policy major also requires a 4-credit GIS course; all three options satisfy the Digital Intensive general education requirement (EESC 205 or GISC 200 or GISC 250). EESC 205 is only offered in the fall; GISC 200 and GISC 250 are typically offered in both fall and spring. Students may take the honors BIOL 125-126 in place of BIOL 121-132. 

Fall courses required in the ESP major:

Spring courses required in the AES major:

See Catalog for a complete listing of courses. Consult with other departments for frequency of their offerings, especially for Environmental Policy options.

Earth and Environmental Sciences Faculty

Jodie L. Hayob, Chair
Jodie L. Hayob, Career Advisor (Geology)
Melanie D. Szulczewski, Career Advisor (Environmental Science)/Program Director, (Environmental Sustainability Minor)

Professors

Jodie L. Hayob
Ben O. Kisila
Grant R. Woodwell

Associate Professors

Tyler E. Frankel
Pamela R. Grothe
Melanie D. Szulczewski

Senior Lecturer

Sarah A. Morealli