Environmental Studies Major, Bachelor of Arts

Department of Biology

Caring for the environment

Coordinator: Dr. Jason Doll

The Environmental Science program seeks to educate and train the next generation of environmental professionals. By using critical thinking skills and understanding environmental issues from an interdisciplinary perspective, students learn how to understand and solve current and future environmental challenges. The Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Studies is for students wishing to pursue careers in business, environmental economics, environmental justice, environmental law and policy, sustainability and related fields. The Environmental Studies major requires the completion of 120 total credit hours, including the General Education courses, core Environmental Science classes, and interdisciplinary courses related to Environmental Science.

General Education Requirements

Communications (21 hours)

  • ENGL 101: Analysis & Argument (3)
  • ENGL 102: Rhetoric Genre Research (3)
  • SPCO 101: Basics of Oral Communication (3)
  • Foreign Language (12)
    • An environmental studies major must take at least four semesters of Spanish or French.

Social Sciences (9 hours)

Humanities (12 hours)

  • Literature (ENGL) (3)
  • History (HIST) (3)
  • Fine Art Appreciation (ART 101, MUSI 101, or THEA 101) (3)
  • One elective course in Art (ART), Literature (ENGL), History (HIST), Music (MUSI), Theater (THEA), or Philosophy & Religious Studies (PRS) or AAAS 200: Introduction to African American Studies or GNDR 200: Gender Studies (3)
    • Honors (HNRS) courses 260-269 will also fulfill this requirement.

Mathematics (6 hours)

  • A minimum of 6 hours of mathematics courses MATH 111 or higher.
    • Most environmental studies majors take:

Natural Sciences (12 hours)

  • A minimum of 12 hours of science courses with laboratories.
    • Biology (BIOL) or Environmental Science (ENVR) (4)
    • Chemistry (CHEM), Physics (PHYS), or Physical Science (PSCI) (4)
      • This is the only requirement that environmental studies majors do not fulfill automatically.
    • Astronomy (ASTR), Biology (BIOL), Chemistry (CHEM), Environmental Science (ENVR), Physics (PHYS), Physical Science (PSCI), Psychology (PSYC 206/216) (4)
      • Honors (HNRS) courses 280-289 will also fulfill this requirement.

Major Requirements

Environmental Studies Core (11 hours)

  • ENVR 101: Introduction to Environmental Science (4)
  • ENVR 102: Introduction to Sustainability (3)
  • ENVR 250: Introduction to Environmental Law (3)
  • ENVR 499: Environmental Science and Studies Capstone Seminar (1)

Environmental Studies Electives (9 hours)

  • ENVR 201: Water Quality and Water Resource Management (3)
  • ENVR 316: Environmental Ethics (3)
  • ENVR 351: U.S. Environmental Policy and Politics (3)
  • ENVR 355: Global Environmental Policy and Politics (3)

Interdisciplinary Courses (33 hours)

  • BUSI 150: Fundamentals of Business (3)
  • ENGL 318: Technical Communication (3)
  • ECON 204: Macroeconomics (3)
  • ECON 340: Environmental and Natural Resource Economics (3)
  • GEOG 105: Physical Geography (3)
  • GEOG 215: Introduction to Mapping and GIS (3)
  • MGT 351: Management of Organizations (3)
  • Choose two from the following:
    • SOCI 331: Environment, Power, and Opportunity (3)
    • SOCI 351: Crimes Against the Environment (3)
    • SOCI 388: Disasters and Extreme Events (3)
  • Choose two from the following:
    • POLI 202: State and Local Government (3)
    • POLI 203: International Relations (3)
    • POLI 205: Comparative Government (3)
    • POLI 206: Introduction to the Law (3)
    • POLI 215: Introduction to Public Administration (3)

Minor/Collateral Requirements

FMU students are required to complete either a minor or two collaterals in addition to their major for graduation.

  • A minor in another discipline requires at least 18 hours of coursework in that discipline.
    • Some restrictions may apply, please check minor requirements for other disciplines.
  • Collaterals in other disciplines require 12 hours of coursework in those disciplines.
    • Some restrictions may apply, please check collateral requirements in other disciplines.

Additional Information

  • Additional elective courses in any discipline may be needed to reach the total 120 hours required for graduation.
    • When choosing electives, students should remember that certain career paths may seek knowledge that are not strictly required for the environmental studies major.
  • To advance to a higher environmental science and studies (ENVR) course, a student must earn a grade of C or higher in each prerequisite course.