Environmental Studies

Description

Advisory Committee: Professor Gosselin (chair); Professors Amedeo, Borner, Carr, Dahab, Hage, Hayden, Louda, Riordan, Supalla, Williams; Associate Professors Blum, Harvey, Humes, Ledder, Skopp, Wandsnider, Yuen, Zellmer

Program Overview.
The Environmental Studies specialization provides an exciting opportunity to integrate multiple kinds of information, tools, and methods from a variety of disciplines to analyze and construct arguments about complex environmental challenges. Because of the interdisciplinary nature of environmental challenges, this specialization is designed to give students the opportunity to integrate the knowledge and understanding of the earth and ecological sciences (SD), the built and engineered environment (BE), or the human dimension (HD) disciplines into their graduate work.

Departments Participating (Masters): Agricultural Economics (HD); Agricultural Leadership , Education and Communication (HD); Agronomy and Horticulture (SD); Anthropology (HD), Architecture (BE); Chemistry (SD); Civil Engineering (BE); Community and Regional Planning (BE); Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (SD); Entomology (SD); Geography (SD, HD); Law (MLS Program) (HD); Mathematics (SD); Physics and Astronomy (SD); Plant Pathology (SD); Political Science (HD); School of Biological Sciences (SD); School of Natural Resources (SD, HD); and Sociology (SD, HD)

Departments Participating (Doctoral): Agricultural Economics (HD); Agronomy and Horticulture (SD); Chemistry (SD); Civil Engineering (BE); Entomology (SD); Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (SD); Geography (SD, HD); Mathematics (SD); Physics and Astronomy (SD); Plant Pathology (SD); Political Science (HD); School of Biological Sciences (SD); School of Natural Resources (SD, HD); and Sociology (SD)

(BE) = building and engineering discipline
(HD) = human dimension discipline
(SD) = scientific discipline

Policies and Procedure. The Director of Environmental Studies in collaboration with the Environmental Studies Coordinating Committee coordinates the specialization. One member of the student’s examining or supervisory committee must be from a discipline in the option area, defined below. This member will be approved by the Director of Environmental Studies who will consult with the Environmental Studies Coordinating Committee, where appropriate. Approval of the thesis or dissertation topic must have the concurrence of the student’s major department or program and the Environmental Studies Program.

Masters-level Specialization Requirements.
A masters-level specialization in environmental studies is available to any student who pursues a masters degree within any of the participating departments and programs. Successful completion of the requirements will be indicated on the student’s final transcript following the name of the student’s academic discipline, for example, Sociology, with a specialization in Environmental Studies.

Each student will be required to complete:

1. A masters degree in one of the participating departments or programs

2. Nine (9)-credit hours of environmentally-related courses from departments or programs outside the student’s major department. The purpose of this emphasis area is to provide the student the ability to improve their abilities to work across disciplinary boundaries and to integrate the knowledge and understanding of the earth and ecological systems, the built and engineered environment, or human dimension disciplines (socioeconomic, legal, and/or political) into their graduate work.

To facilitate this, the nine-credit hours must be taken using the following approach:

If your major is in a human dimension discipline, you can choose an option area that expands your understanding of earth systems; ecological systems; or the built and engineered environment; or

If you major is a scientific discipline, you can choose an option area that expands your understanding of the built and engineered environment or the human dimension aspects of environmental issues - socioeconomic, legal, and/or political

If your major involves the built and engineered environment, you can choose an option area that expands your understanding of earth systems or ecological systems; or the human dimension aspects of environmental issues - socioeconomic, legal, and/or political

3. When Option I (thesis) is available in the student’s program, a thesis that deals with an environmentally-relevant issue and integrates disciplinary-knowledge with the knowledge gained from their selected option area. The masters degree will be granted in one to the basic disciplines and students must be formally admitted to a degree objective in one of the participating departments.

Doctoral-level Specialization Requirements. A doctoral-level specialization in environmental studies is available to any student who pursues a PhD degree within any of the participating departments and programs. Successful completion of the requirements will be indicated on the student’s final transcript in parentheses following the name of the student’s academic discipline, for example, Biological Sciences (Environmental Studies).

Each student will be required to complete:

1. A doctoral degree in one of the participating departments or programs;

2. Fifteen (15)-credit hours of environmentally-related courses from departments or programs outside the student’s major department. The purpose of this emphasis area is to provide the student the ability to improve their abilities to work across disciplinary boundaries and to integrate the knowledge and understanding of the earth and ecological systems, the built and engineered environment, or human dimension disciplines (socioeconomic, legal, and/or political) into their graduate work.

To facilitate this, the fifteen-credit hours must be taken using the following approach:

If your major is in a human dimension discipline, you can choose an option area that expands your understanding of earth systems; ecological systems; or the built and engineered environment; or

If your major is a scientific discipline, you can choose an option area that expands your understanding of the built and engineered environment or the human dimension aspects of environmental issues - socioeconomic, legal, and/or political

If your major involves the built and engineered environment, you can choose an option area that expands your understanding of earth systems or ecological systems; or the human dimension aspects of environmental issues - socioeconomic, legal, and/or political

3. A dissertation that deals with an environmentally-relevant issue that integrates disciplinary-knowledge with the knowledge gained from their selected option area. Environmentally-related courses completed by a student for an Environmental Studies Specialization at the masters level may be counted toward meeting the requirements for an Environmental Studies Specialization at the PhD level.

The PhD degree will be granted in one of the basic disciplines and students must be formally registered in one of the participating departments.

Course Lists

Earth Systems Option
Offered in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (GEOL)
816. Isotope Geochemistry
817. Organic Geochemistry
824. Biogeochemical Cycles
825. Geostatistics
834. Marine Ecology and Paleoecology
850. Surficial Processes & Landscape Evolution
872. Water in Geosciences
888. Groundwater Geology
889. Hydrogeology
898. Special Problems in Geology
953. Glacial Geology
986. Containment Hydrogeology
988. Introduction to Groundwater Modeling

Offered in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (METR)
987. Seminar in Climatic Change

Offered in the School of Natural Resources (NRES)
808. Microclimate: The Biological Environment819. Chemistry of Natural Waters
851. Soil Environmental Chemistry
853. Climate and Society
853. Hydrology
855. Soil Chemistry and Mineralogy
857. Soil Chemical Measurements
859. Limnology
865. Soil Geomorphology and Paleopedology
868. Wetlands
869. Bioatmospheric Instrumentation
870. Lake and Reservoir Restoration
873. Ecological Anthropology
877. Great Plains Field Pedology
878. Regional Climatology
879. Hydroclimatology
917. Environmental Isotope Hydrology
977. Soil Genesis and Classification

Offered in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture (AGRO)
860. Soil Microbiology
861. Soil Physics
875. Water Quality Strategy
877. Great Plains Field Pedology
884. Water Resources Seminar
955. Solute Movement in Soils

Offered in the Department of Geography (GEOG)
812. Introduction to Geographic Information Systems
814. Quantitative Methods in Geography
815. Introduction to Computer Mapping
817. Cartography II: Electronic Atlas Design & Production
818. Introduction to Remote Sensing I
819. Applications for Remote Sensing in Agriculture and Natural Resources
820. Remote Sensing III–Digital Image Analysis
821. Field Techniques in Remote Sensing
822. Advanced Techniques in Geographic Information Systems
898. Advanced Special Problems
915. Seminar in Cartography
922. Seminar in Geographic Information Systems

Ecological Systems Option
Offered in the School of Natural Resources (NRES)
803. Ecological Statistics
806. Plant Ecophysiology: Theory and Practice
807. Plant-Water Relations
808. Microclimate: The Biological Environment
810. Landscape Ecology
823. Integrated Resources Management
824. Forest Ecology
826. Invasive Plants
833. Wildlife Management Techniques
835. Agroecology
846. Pollen Analysis for Behavioral, Biological, and Forensic Science
848. Advanced Topics in Wildlife Damage Management
850. Biology of Wildlife Populations
859. Limnology
862. Conservation Biology
863. Fisheries Science
864. Fisheries Biology
866. Advanced Limnology
868. Wetlands
965. Management of Aquatic Systems

Offered in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture (AGRO)
835. Agroecology
840. Great Plains Ecosystems
842. Wildland Plants
844. Vegetation Analysis

Offered in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture (HORT)
818. Agroforestry Systems in Sustainable Agriculture
824. Plant Nutrition and Nutrient Management
825. Turf Grass Science and Culture
849. Woody Plant Growth and Development
907. Agricultural Climatology

Offered in the School of Biological Sciences (BIOS)
806. Insect Ecology
836. Quaternary Paleoclimatology and Paleoecology
838. Biogeochemical Cycles
847. Soil Microbiology
850. Biology of Wildlife Population
854. Ecological Interactions
855. Great Plains Flora
857. Ecosystem Ecology
859. Limnology
862. Animal Behavior
863. Experimental Methods in Animal Behavior
864A. Principles of Plant Pathology I
864B. Principles of Plant Pathology II
867. Plant Pathogenic Bacteria
869. Phytopathogenic Fungi
870. Prairie Ecology
871. Plant Taxonomy
873. Freshwater Algae
874. Ichthyology
875. Herpetology
876. Mammalogy
882. Field Entomology
887. Field Parasitology
889. Natural History of Invertebrates
894. Ornithology
953. Advanced Population Ecology
955. Behavioral Ecology
956. Biochemical Adaptations
957. Zoogeography
958. Genetic Ecology
959. Advanced Community Ecology
960. Biosystematics & Nomenclature

Offered in the Department of Entomology (ENTO)
800. Biology & Classification of Insects
802. Aquatic Insects
806. Insect Ecology
809. Insect Control by Host Plant Resistance
817. Pest Management Systems
820. Insect Toxicology

Built and Engineered Environment Option
Offered in the Department of Architecture (ARCH)
830. Advanced Elements of Building Construction
836. Daylighting and Energy
856. Behavior & Social Factors in Environmental Design
860. Environmental Survey & Analysis
861. Studies in Environmental Design
866. Community Design Center
864. Urban Design I

Offered in the Department of Community and Regional Planning (CRPL)
800. Introduction to Planning
860. Planning & Design in the Built Environment
870. Environmental Planning & Policy
872. Environmental Survey & Analysis
877. Recreation & Park Planning

Offered in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture (HORT)
898. Topics in Landscape Architecture

Offered in the Department of Civil Engineering (CIVE)
821. Hazardous Waste Management and Treatment
822. Pollution Prevention Principles and Practices
823. Physical/Chemical Treatment Processes
824. Solid Waste Management Engineering
826. Design of Water Treatment Facilities
827. Design of Wastewater Treatment & Disposal Facilities
828. Quantitative Methods in Environmental Engineering
829. Biological Waste Treatment
830. Fundamentals of Water Quality Modeling
852. Water Resources Development
853. Hydrology
854. Hydraulic Engineering
855. Nonpoint Source Pollution Control Engineering (BSEN 855)
856. Surface Water Hydrology
858. Groundwater Engineering
875. Water Quality Strategy (AGRO/CRPL/GEOL/MSYM/POLS 875)
915. Water Resources Engineering
921. Advanced Topics in Hazardous Waste Treatment & Remediation
926. Advanced Topics in Water Treatment
927. Advanced Topics in Wastewater Treatment
929. Industrial Waste Lab
930. Advanced & Industrial Wastewater Treatment
952. Water Resources Planning
954. Advanced Hydraulics
958. Groundwater Mechanics
959. Groundwater Modeling

Socioeconomic Option
Offered in the Department of Agricultural Economics (AECN)
865. Resource & Environmental Economics II

Offered in the Department of Economics (ECON)
872. Efficiency in Government

Offered in the Department of Geography (GEOG)
806. Spatial & Environmental Influences in Social Systems
850. Climate & Society
983. Seminar on Behavioral Processes in Person/Environment Relations

Offered in the Department of Sociology (SOCI)
807. Strategies of Social Research: Qualitative Methods
815. Social Change
841. Social Psychology
844. Social Demography
845. Sociology of Urban Areas
846. Environmental Sociology
853. Sociology of Health and Health Professions
862. Advanced Social Research Methods
863. Quantitative Methods of Social Research
868. Policy and Program Evaluation Research
875. Water Quality Strategy
880. Social Inequality: Stratification and Life Changes
881. Minority Groups
897. Fieldwork in Sociology
898 and 998. Special Topics (approved topics are Environmental Sociology, Social Demography, Social Movements, Social Inequality, & the Sociology of Health)
902. Seminar in Research Methods
905. Seminar in Stratification, Class, and Inequality

Offered in the Department of Anthropology (ANTH)
835. Introduction to Heritage Management Archaeology
851. Contemporary Issues of Indigenous Peoples in North America
873. Ecological Anthropology
874. Applied & Developmental Anthropology
877. Hunters-Gatherers 883.Advanced Field Methods
994. Seminar in Anthropology & Geography Courses

Legal Option
Offered in the Department of Agricultural Economics (AECN)
841. Environmental Law
857. Water Law

Offered in the Department of Community and Regional Planning (CRPL)
804. Legal Aspects of Planning

Offered in the Department of Legal Studies (LAW)
609G. Constitutional Law I
633G. Administrative Law
666G. International Environmental Law
677G. Toxic Substances and Hazardous Waste Law
693G. Law & Economics
698G. Public Lands & Natural Resources Law
699G. Land Use Planning
774G. Environmental Law and Water Resource Management Seminar
776G. Water Law, Planning & Policy
796G. Native American Law

Offered in the Department of Political Science (POLS)
869. International Law

Public Policy Option
Offered in the Department of Political Science (POLS)
826. Topics in American Public Policy
836. Introduction to Public Policy Analysis
866. Pro-seminar in International Relations I
984. Seminar in Methods

Offered in the Department of Economics (ECON)
872. Efficiency in Government

Offered in the School of Natural Resources (NRES)
828. Leadership in Public Organizations