The Environmental Science and Technology major prepares students for careers and graduate study on environmental problems and solutions that benefit humans and ecosystems. Students in ENST can choose one of four concentrations.
Major Concentrations
The ENST concentration in Ecological Technology Design prepares students for integrating natural systems with the built environment to solve environmental problems while achieving economic, ecological and social sustainability. The science and applications of using natural systems, processes and organisms to address environmental issues has evolved during the last few decades with strong employment opportunities for graduates that are cross-educated in ecology and technology.
The ENST concentration in Ecosystem Health gives students the concepts and skills to work in this broad and increasingly important field with wide ranging applications in the environmental science and public health fields. The field encompasses environmental factors and ecosystem functions that affect human health and the effects of human activities on the ecosystem products and services we depend on.
The concentration in Soil and Watershed Science provides students with one of the top soil science programs in the nation. The concentration enables students to understand the complex ways in which aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems are influenced by soil properties and processes and land management decisions. The soil performs such critical ecological functions as supplying and purifying water, recycling wastes, nurturing plants, providing habitats, and modifying the atmosphere by emitting or sequestering gases and particulates.
The ENST concentration in Natural Resources Management is designed to teach students concepts of the environmentally sound use and management of natural resources. Ecosystems and human societies are linked in complex cycles and relationships between vegetation and wildlife, forests and cities, conservation and development. By learning to participate effectively within these cycles, we will help sustain a harmonious relationship between the environment and human activities.
Minor in Soil Science
The Soil Science minor will provide students with a sophisticated understanding of soil resources, its development, characteristics, and principles for its use and management. Building on a basic introduction to the broad field of soil science, the program is completed by adding four or five upper division soils courses balanced between underlying principles and field applications.
