Environmental Science Major
Learn from – and do research with – professors who are experts in their fields and who invest their time in you, so that you can understand the complex, real-world issues related to environmental science. Studying the environment inevitably means studying the ways we interact with it. At EMU we focus on how to improve our interactions toward conservation and sustainability.
At EMU, environmental science majors learn by doing. They build resumes that include environmental research and that boast coursework in a variety of disciplines. Biology, sociology and peacebuilding professors work together on environmental science courses that weave forward-thinking sustainability practices with issues of international and community development and conservation.
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Distinctives
- Study at a university that practices sustainability as a core value
- We study modern concerns like global warming from both scientific and social perspectives, and take an interdisciplinary approach to understanding contemporary issues such as local hydrofracking and wilderness preservation.
- Job-related, practical experiences in a wide variety of organizations through practicums or internships in private businesses, farms and government agencies are an important step in developing a career in environmental sustainability.
- Research opportunities and student-faculty collaborations have included projects such as a grant-funded steam restoration in a local mountain community.
- EMU cross-cultural study abroad trips focus on sustainability issues, as did recent trips to New Zealand, Bolivia and the Galapagos, and Kenya.
- The Oregon Extension offers a unique opportunity to spend a semester in the mountains of southern Oregon exploring sustainability.
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Student Internships and Opportunities
Internships in environmental science and social sustainability
Washington D.C. internships through WCSC:
Local internships in Harrisonburg, Virginia:
Student clubs and opportunities focused on sustainability
- Earthkeepers club
- Creation Care Council
- Sustainability Food Initiative
- Campus Gardens and Composting
Research and Capstone projects
The capstone course centers around activities that help students reflect on their knowledge about sustainability and bring together threads from diverse disciplines to create an integrated understanding of contemporary sustainability issues.
In addition to their capstone experience, students often collaborate with faculty on long-standing research projects, sometimes presenting research at the Virginia Academy of Sciences.
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Outcomes
Careers
- Campus sustainability coordinator
- Communication and policy coordinator
- Conservation program coordinator
- Assistant professor
- Quality control manager
- Director of community development
- Farm manager
- Data entry
- Feeding manager
- Garden manager
- Land use coordinator
- Environmental health specialist
- Horticulture research technician
- Native plant corp project leader
- Research scientist
- Park ranger
- Teacher assistant
- Transportation/GIS planner
- Waste water engineer
- Watershed specialist
- Wildlife technician
Organizations
- Brown County Planning Commission
- Bluffton University
- James Madison University
- California State University
- Stamford Museum and Nature Center
- Kish View Farm
- Imboden Environmental Services, Inc.
- Mountain Breeze Farm
- North Carolina State University
- Project GROWS
- PA Soil and Water Conservation District
- Secure Futures, LLC
- Student Conservation Agency
- Watershed Management Group
- Wisconson Dept of Natural Resources
Graduate Programs
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
- The Evergreen State College
- Ohio State University College of Public Health
- University of Idaho
- University of British Columbia
- University of New Hampshire
- Virginia Commonwealth University
- Florida State University
- Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
- University of the Witwatersrand
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Affordability
- Nearly 100% of undergrads receive financial aid
- The average assistance package is over $36,000
- Over $16 million in aid was awarded by EMU in 2019-20
Financial aid packages often include:
Learn more by contacting EMU's Financial Assistance Office or checking out our net price calculator.
Our graduate program in peacebuilding is also an asset to any undergrad in the fields of development and sustainability. Dozens of grad-level international scholars flock to EMU each year to study at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, and many professors around campus have decades of experience working and living overseas advocating for those in the margins.
