Program of Study (CAS Bulletin)

Environmental Studies (2022 - 2024)

Major

The major in environmental studies (ES) requires nine 4-point courses (36 points) as follows. Students should note that courses in other departments may carry prerequisites.

(1) Three 4-point ES core courses (12 points):

  • Environmental Systems Science (ENVST-UA 100)
  • Environment and Society (ENVST-UA 101 or SOCS-SHU 135)
  • Environmental Studies Senior Seminar (ENVST-UA 900)

(2) One "methods of inquiry" course (4 points), chosen from:

  • Introduction to Environmental Modeling (ENVST-UA 305)
  • Environmental Quantitative Methods (ENVST-UA 310)
  • Introduction to Conservation Analysis (ENVST-UA 320)
  • Energy and the Environment (ENVST-UA 350)
  • Fundamental Dynamics of Earth's Atmosphere and Climate (ENVST-UA 360)
  • Geographic Information Systems for Ecology (ENVST-UA 372; identical to BIOL-UA 64)
  • Environmental Qualitative Methods (ENVST-UA 424)
  • Biostatistics (BIOL-UA 42)
  • Quantitative Reasoning: Elementary Statistics (CORE-UA 105)
  • Quantitative Reasoning: Problems, Statistics, and Decision-Making (CORE-UA 107)
  • Quantitative Methods in Political Science (POL-UA 800)
  • Statistical Reasoning for the Behavioral Sciences (PSYCH-UA 10)
  • Research Methods in Sociology (SOC-UA 301)
  • Quantitative Analysis for Public Policy (UPADM-GP 111)

(3) One "governance" course (4 points), chosen from these CAS courses (or from a fuller list including courses in other NYU schools and at NYU study away sites, available from the department):

  • Introduction to Marine Ecology and Conservation (ENVST-UA 323)
  • Climate Politics: When Policy meets Reality (ENVST-UA 407)     
  • Environmental Economics (ENVST-UA 410)
  • Science in Environmental Policy (ENVST-UA 422)
  • History of United States Environmental Policy (ENVST-UA 423)
  • Environmental Governance (ENVST-UA 435)
  • Global Environmental Politics (ENVST-UA 445)
  • Environmental Activism (ENVST-UA 485)
  • Economics of Energy and the Environment (ECON-UA 326)
  • Public Economics (ECON-UA 353)
  • Public Policy (POL-UA 306)
  • Controversies in Public Policy: Logic and Evidence (POL-UA 315)
  • Private Influence in Public Policy (POL-UA 341)
  • Bureaucracy and Public Policy Politics (POL-UA 350)
  • International Politics (POL-UA 700)
  • Diplomacy and Negotiation (POL-UA 720)
  • International Organization (POL-UA 730)
  • Political Engineering: The Design of Institutions (POL-UA 810)

(4) Four 4-point elective courses (16 points), chosen in consultation with a departmental adviser. Internship in Environmental Studies (ENVST-UA 800) may count as one of the four electives.

Please note that elective courses are not necessarily offered every year and may carry prerequisites. Some ENVST-UA courses are cross-listed and originate in other departments. Below is a partial list of acceptable electives in CAS; for a full list that includes courses in the other divisions of NYU (both undergraduate and graduate), contact the department.

The categories below are designed to support concentrations that students may choose within the ES major. Electives do not need to be restricted to any one category or distributed across the three categories.

(4A) Environmental sciences:

  • Evolution of the Earth (ENVST-UA 210)
  • Climate Change (ENVST-UA 226 or 9226)
  • Topics in Environmental Science (ENVST-UA 250)
  • Metapatterns from Quarks to Culture (ENVST-UA 254)
  • Where the City Meets the Sea (ENVST-UA 275)
  • Advanced Topics in Environmental Science (ENVST-UA 300)
  • Environmental and Molecular Analysis of a Disease (ENVST-UA 315)
  • Introduction to Marine Ecology and Conservation (ENVST-UA 323)
  • Fundamentals of Ecology (ENVST-UA 325)
  • New York Underground (ENVST-UA 327)
  • Food Production and Climate Change (ENVST-UA 331)
  • Current Topics in Earth System Science: Mass Extinctions, Geologic Processes, and Evolution (ENVST-UA 332)
  • Limits of the Earth: Issues in Human Ecology (ENVST-UA 333)
  • Earth System Science (ENVST-UA 340)
  • The Global Carbon Cycle (ENVST-UA 345)
  • Energy and the Environment (ENVST-UA 350)
  • Biogeochemistry of Global Change (ENVST-UA 370)
  • Geographic Information Systems for Ecology (ENVST-UA 372)
  • Special Topics: Introduction to Fluid Dynamics (ENVST-UA 380)
  • Climate and Life (ENVST-UA 385)
  • Urban Ecology (ENVST-UA 390)
  • Field Laboratory in Ecology (BIOL-UA 16)
  • Introduction to Ecology (BIOL-UA 63)
  • Physical Science: Energy and the Environment (CORE-UA 203)
  • Life Science: Lessons from the Biosphere (CORE-UA 311)

(4B) Environmental values and society (ethics, history, politics):

  • Ethics and the Environment (ENVST-UA 400)
  • Climate Change and Environmental Justice (ENVST-UA 405)
  • Environmental Economics (ENVST-UA 410)
  • Environmental History of the Early Modern World (ENVST-UA 415)
  • Environmental History of New York City (ENVST-UA 420)
  • Science in Environmental Policy (ENVST-UA 422)
  • History of United States Environmental Policy (ENVST-UA 423)
  • Environmental Governance (ENVST-UA 435)
  • Food, Animals, and the Environment (ENVST-UA 440)
  • Global Environmental Politics (ENVST-UA 445)
  • Topics in Environmental Values and Society (ENVST-UA 450)
  • Business and the Environment (ENVST-UA 465)
  • Climate and Society (ENVST-UA 470)
  • Topics in Environmental Values and Society (ENVST-UA 475)
  • Environmental Justice and Inequality (ENVST-UA 480)
  • Urban Political Ecology (ENVST-UA 490)
  • Journalism and Society: Covering the Earth (ENVST-UA 503)
  • Readings in Contemporary Literary Theory: Eco-Criticism (ENVST-UA 510)
  • Making Art in the Anthropocene: Project on Ecology, Species, and Vibrant Matter (ENVST-UA 593)
  • Animals and Society (ENVST-UA 610)
  • Animals and Public Policy (ENVST-UA 630)
  • Literature and the Environment (ENVST-UA 675)
  • Internship in Environmental Studies (ENVST-UA 800)
  • Economics of Energy (ECON-UA 326)
  • History of European Environmental Sciences (IDSEM-UG 1566)
  • Green Design from Geddes to Gore (IDSEM-UG 1627)
  • Think Big: Global Issues and Ecological Solutions (IDSEM-UG 1628)
  • History of Environmental Sciences (IDSEM-UG 1892)
  • NYC Coastlines: Past, Present, and Future (IDSEM-UG 2004)
  • Environmental Racism and Injustice: Rights, Citizenship, and Activism (IDSEM-UG 2114)
  • Cultures of Energy and the End of Fossil Fuels (IDSEM-UG 2123)

 (4C) Planning, cities, and transportation:

  • Urban Environmentalism (ENVST-UA 431)
  • Urban Greening Lab: New York (ENVST-UA 495)
  • Environmental Design: Issues and Methods (ARTH-UA 672)
  • Cities in a Global Context (SCA-UA 602)

Minor

The minor in environmental studies requires five 4-point courses (20 points):

  • Environmental Systems Science (ENVST-UA 100)
  • Environment and Society (ENVST-UA 101 or SOCS-SHU 135)
  • Three courses from the list of ES major electives

Policies Applying to the Major and Minor

A course cannot satisfy more than one requirement for the environmental studies major or minor. Students must earn a C or better in all courses for the major or minor. Pass/Fail courses cannot count toward the major or minor. Transfer students must complete at least half of the major or minor at NYU.

Completion of the major in environmental studies satisfies the Societies and the Social Sciences component of the College Core Curriculum. However, completion of the minor does not satisfy this requirement. Environmental Quantitative Methods (ENVST-UA 310) fulfills the Quantitative Reasoning requirement in the Foundations of Scientific Inquiry component of the College Core Curriculum. In addition, Where the City Meets the Sea: Studies in Coastal Urban Environments (ENVST-UA 275) fulfills the Life Science requirement in the Foundations of Scientific Inquiry component of the College Core Curriculum.

Many courses approved for the major and minor in ES are outside of the College of Arts and Science. CAS students may take up to 16 points outside the College and apply them to their degree. To request additional non-CAS credits beyond the 16-point limit, students must consult with the College of Arts and Science Advising Center (726 Broadway, 7th floor; 212-998-8130; http://cas.nyu.edu/academic-standards/petitions).

No non-CAS courses can count toward the 64 credits that internal or external transfer students are required to complete in CAS (-UA) courses, even if they are approved for the major or minor in ES.

To declare a major or minor in environmental studies, contact the adviser for environmental studies at environmental.studies.advising@nyu.edu or visit the department.

Honors Program

Students who maintain a GPA over 3.65 (both in the major and overall) and complete the Honors Seminar in Environmental Studies (ENVST-UA 950) are eligible for departmental honors. Consult the department for more information.