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Environmental Science

Environmental Science (B.S.Env.S.)

Environmental Contamination Assessment Academic Certificate

Environmental Water Science Academic Certificate

Environmental Science Graduate Degree Programs

Jan Boll, Director (216 Morrill Hall 83844-3006; phone 208/885-6113; FAX 208/885-4674; envs@uidaho.edu; www.uidaho.edu/envs). Core Faculty: Erik Coats, Maxine Dakins, Jeffrey Hicke, John Lawrence, Robert L. Mahler, Adam Sowards, Lee Vierling, J.D. Wulfhorst. Affiliate Biological Science Option Faculty: Jocelyn L. Aycrigg, Nilsa Bosque-Perez, Aurelio Briones, Stephen C. Bunting, Allan B. Caplan, Mark D. Coleman, Stephen P. Cook, Anthony S. Davis, Sanford D. Eigenbrode, Paul E. Gessler, Thomas F. Hess, Jodi Johnson-Maynard, Alexander Karasev, Kathleen Kavanagh, Brian Kennedy, Guy Knudsen, John D. Marshall, Christine Moffitt, Amber Moore, Matthew J. Morra, George Newcombe, Beth Newingham, Andrzej Paszczynski, Timothy Prather, Kerry P. Reese, Ronald Robberecht, Dennis L. Scarnecchia, Mark Schwarzlaender, Eva Strand, David C. Tank, Kerri Vierling, Lisette P. Waits, Frank Wilhelm. Affiliate Physical Science Option Faculty: Crystal Abatzoglou, John Abatzoglou, Vladimir Aizen, Eric Aston, I. Francis Cheng, Donald Elger, Jerry P. Fairley, Fritz Fiedler, Timothy Frazier, Alexander K. Fremier, Thomas Gorman, Mickey E. Gunter, Karen Harpp, Robert Heinse, Philip Higuera, Karen Humes, Gary S. Johnson, Tim Link, Paul A. McDaniel, Armando McDonald, Gregory Moller, James L. Osiensky, Sofie Pasilis, Batric Pesic, P. Steven Porter, You Qiang, Russell Qualls, Bahman Shafii, Alistair Smith, Daniel G. Strawn, Vivek Utgikar, Ray von Wandruszka, Chien M. Wai, Von P. Walden, Barbara Cooke Williams . Affiliate Social Science Option Faculty: Rula Z. Awaad-Rafferty, Barbara Cosens, Stephen R. Drown, Levan Elbakidze, Jo Ellen Force, Dale D. Goble, James Gregson, Bruce T. Haglund, Charles C. Harris, Lorie Higgins, Steven J. Hollenhorst, Leontina Hormel, Anne Kerns, Douglas Lind, Michael O'Rourke, Sandra Pinel, Abelardo Rodriguez, Gundars Rudzitis, Nick Sanyal, Philip Watson, Patrick Wilson. General Faculty: Katherine G. Aiken, Donald Crowley, Dennis J. Geist, Harley E. Johansen, James B. Johnson, Gary E. Machlis, Robert W. Smith, Scott Wood .

The Environmental Science Program offers B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees that emphasize the importance of an interdisciplinary approach for students committed to studying and solving environmental issues. The multi-disciplinary faculty represents all colleges at the university and includes soil scientists, engineers, geographers, biologists, ecologists, political scientists, sociologists, chemists, and hydrologists.

Career opportunities in the environmental sciences are diverse and numerous. Graduates are employed in the private and public sectors in areas such as natural resource management, pollution prevention, air and water quality monitoring, hazardous waste management, environmental and land use planning, and environmental regulation and compliance.

The curriculum leading to the B.S. degree in environmental science offers students the opportunity to combine studies in several disciplines and professional fields in order to gain an understanding of the complex nature of environmental problems. In addition to understanding relationships among traditional disciplines, the program creates an integrated and coherent approach to environmental problem solving.

The curriculum includes the university core (general education) requirements, a common set of required courses and breadth electives for all environmental science majors, and the student's choice of one of three options. The required courses and electives for all majors are designed to build a strong base of knowledge in biological, physical, and social sciences, supplemented by a set of electives, in consultation with an environmental science advisor, from four areas (ecology, natural resource economics and sociology, management, and social sciences). All students complete a senior project as part of their course of study.

Three option areas are offered: biological science, physical science, and social science.

Professional Certificates: Twelve-credit professional certificates in water science and environmental contamination assessment are also available through the Environmental Science Program. The certificates can be completed on the Moscow campus or through distance education. Procedural details are available in the program office.

Graduate training in the Environmental Science Program provides students with the opportunity to specialize in one of eight emphasis areas: ecology/biological science, waste management, earth science/hydrology, natural resource management, physical science, policy and law, environmental health/toxicology, and water science.

Admission to the graduate program is based on: ability to complete graduate-level work evidenced by undergraduate transcripts; the applicant's statement of research and career objectives; the compatibility of the student's objectives with faculty expertise and program objectives; and availability of graduate faculty to act as major advisor for the applicant. The GRE, applicant's statement of objectives, and three letters of recommendation and resume are required. Students without backgrounds in environmental science may be admitted after certain undergraduate deficiencies are completed.

Questions regarding the B.S.Env.S., M.S., or Ph.D. programs should be directed to the program coordinator (208/885-6113).

Courses

See the course description section for courses in Environmental Science (EnvS).