Our Bachelor of Science in Environmental and Sustainability Sciences is designed to provide students comprehensive and transdisciplinary skills needed to tackle the pressing environmental problems we face. Our core curriculum is grounded in a solid foundation in Earth systems, ecology, sustainable development, and required skills courses in data management and geographic information systems. Students then diverge into one of four concentrations. For students interested in the interface of social and ecological systems and who want to view environmental problem solving through a social science lens, we have a concentration in environment and society. For students interested in the nexus of food, water, and energy, our concentration in sustainable development and planning might be most appropriate. Is the conservation of organisms and their ecosystems the area you are most interested in? Our concentration in conservation, restoration, and management may be the best choice. Lastly, for students interested in understanding environmental problem solving from an Earth systems perspective, courses in our Earth, oceans, and environmental change concentration will satisfy your curiosity. In the final semester, our students build teams that bring the skills developed across the varied concentrations back together to learn from each other and to work with our partners to solve specific environmental challenges presented by our stakeholders. Combined, this degree seeks to prepare students to work across a wide array of disciplines to help solve the environmental challenges of the future.
There are a number of interdisciplinary opportunities involving Environmental and Sustainability Sciences. Due to curricular overlap, combinations of any Environmental and Sustainability Sciences major, including combined majors, cannot occur with majors or minors in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology or Environmental Studies, or with the minor in Geoscience.
Complete all courses listed below unless otherwise indicated. Also complete any corequisite labs, recitations, clinicals, or tools courses where specified and complete any additional courses needed beyond specific college and major requirements to satisfy graduation credit requirements.
Universitywide Requirements
All undergraduate students are required to complete the Universitywide Requirements.
NUpath Requirements
All undergraduate students are required to complete the NUpath Requirements.
Environmental and Sustainability Sciences Major Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction to College | ||
| ENVR 1000 | Marine and Environmental Sciences at Northeastern | 1 |
| or INSC 1000 | Science at Northeastern | |
| Core Curriculum | ||
| EEMB 2302 and EEMB 2303 | Ecology and Lab for EEMB 2302 | 5 |
| ENVR 1200 and ENVR 1201 | Dynamic Earth and Lab for ENVR 1200 | 4 |
| or ENVR 2200 | Earth's Changing Cycles | |
| ENVR 1400 and ENVR 1401 | Foundations in Environmental and Sustainability Sciences and Lab for ENVR 1400 | 5 |
| ENVR 1500 and ENVR 1501 | Introduction to Environmental, Social, and Biological Data and Lab for ENVR 1500 | 5 |
| ENVR 2515 | Sustainable Development | 4 |
| ENVR 3300 and ENVR 3301 | Geographic Information Systems and Lab for ENVR 3300 | 5 |
| ENVR 4000 | Science Communication and Professional Development | 4 |
| ENVR 4050 | Solving Emerging Environmental Challenges through Capstone | 4 |
| or ENVR 4971 | Junior/Senior Honors Project 2 | |
| or ENVR 4997 | Senior Thesis | |
| Mathematics Requirements | ||
| ENVR 2500 and ENVR 2501 | Biostatistics and Lab for ENVR 2500 | 4 |
| or ECON 2350 | Statistics | |
| or POLS 2400 | Quantitative Techniques | |
| or SOCL 2321 | Research Methods in Sociology | |
| MATH 1241 | Calculus 1 | 4 |
| or MATH 1251 | Calculus and Differential Equations for Biology 1 | |
| or MATH 1341 | Calculus 1 for Science and Engineering | |
Environmental and Sustainability Sciences Concentrations
Complete one of the following concentrations:
Concentration in Environment and Society
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Environment and Society Courses | ||
| ENVR 5450 | Applied Social-Ecological Systems Modeling | 4 |
| ENVR 5800 | Climate Adaptation and Nature-Based Solutions | 4 |
| PPUA 5260 | Ecological Economics | 4 |
| SOCL 1246 | Environment and Society | 4 |
| SOCL 2485 | Environment, Technology, and Society | 4 |
| or POLS 2395 | Environmental Politics and Policy | |
| Environment and Society Electives | ||
| Complete five of the following: | 20-24 | |
| Life Cycle Assessment of Materials, Products, and Infrastructure | ||
| Conservation Biology | ||
| Applied Conservation Biology and Food Sustainability in the Mediterranean - Abroad | ||
| Food Security and Sustainability | ||
| Coastal Sustainability: Ecology and Coupled Human-Natural Systems in Southeast Asia and Coastal Sustainability: The Blue Economy of the Gulf of Maine | ||
| Ecosystem-Based Management | ||
| Environmental Planning | ||
| Sustainable Energy and Climate Solutions | ||
| Coastal Processes, Adaptation, and Resilience | ||
| Urban Ecology | ||
| Natural Resources and Sustainable Development | ||
| Climate and Development | ||
| Energy Democracy and Climate Resilience: Technology, Policy, and Social Change | ||
| International Environmental Policy | ||
Concentration in Sustainable Planning and Development
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Sustainable Planning and Development Courses | ||
| ENVR 3150 | Food Security and Sustainability | 4 |
| ENVR 3200 | Water Resources | 4 |
| ENVR 5210 | Environmental Planning | 4 |
| ENVR 5350 | Sustainable Energy and Climate Solutions | 4 |
| or ENVR 5800 | Climate Adaptation and Nature-Based Solutions | |
| PPUA 5268 | International Environmental Policy | 4 |
| Sustainable Planning and Development Electives | ||
| Complete five of the following: | 20-28 | |
| Life Cycle Assessment of Materials, Products, and Infrastructure | ||
| Conservation Biology | ||
| Applied Conservation Biology and Food Sustainability in the Mediterranean - Abroad | ||
| Landscape and Restoration Ecology | ||
| Coastal Sustainability: Ecology and Coupled Human-Natural Systems in Southeast Asia and Coastal Sustainability: The Blue Economy of the Gulf of Maine | ||
| Energy in the Desert Ecosystem | ||
| Applied Hydrogeology and Lab for ENVR 4500 | ||
| Wetlands | ||
| Soil Science | ||
| Ecosystem-Based Management | ||
| Sustainable Energy and Climate Solutions | ||
| Applied Social-Ecological Systems Modeling | ||
| Advanced Spatial Analysis | ||
| Climate Adaptation and Nature-Based Solutions | ||
| Natural Resources and Sustainable Development | ||
| Ecological Economics | ||
Concentration in Conservation, Restoration, and Management
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Conservation, Restoration, and Management Courses | ||
| EEMB 2400 | Introduction to Evolution | 4 |
| EEMB 3455 | Ecosystems Ecology | 4 |
| or CIVE 3430 | Engineering Microbiology and Ecology | |
| EEMB 3460 | Conservation Biology | 4 |
| EEMB 4001 | Landscape and Restoration Ecology | 4 |
| ENVR 5220 | Ecosystem-Based Management | 4 |
| Conservation, Restoration, and Management Electives | ||
| Complete five of the following: | 20-25 | |
| Ecological and Conservation Genomics | ||
| Wildlife Ecology | ||
| Disease Ecology | ||
| Desert Ecology | ||
| Applied Conservation Biology and Food Sustainability in the Mediterranean - Abroad | ||
| Food Security and Sustainability | ||
| Water Resources | ||
| Energy in the Desert Ecosystem | ||
| Applied Hydrogeology and Lab for ENVR 4500 | ||
| Wetlands | ||
| Soil Science | ||
| Sustainable Energy and Climate Solutions | ||
| Applied Social-Ecological Systems Modeling | ||
| Advanced Spatial Analysis | ||
| Streams and Watershed Ecology | ||
| Urban Ecology | ||
Concentration in Earth, Oceans, and Environmental Change
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Earth Systems | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4-5 | |
| Dynamic Earth and Lab for ENVR 1200 | ||
| Earth's Changing Cycles | ||
| Earth Materials and Landforms | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 5 | |
| Earth Landforms and Processes and Lab for ENVR 2340 | ||
| Earth Materials and Lab for ENVR 2310 | ||
| Freshwater | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4-5 | |
| Water Resources | ||
| Applied Hydrogeology and Lab for ENVR 4500 | ||
| Wetlands | ||
| Streams and Watershed Ecology | ||
| Oceans | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| Oceanography | ||
| Global Oceanic Change | ||
| Environmental Change | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| Global Oceanic Change | ||
| Climate and Atmospheric Change | ||
| Chemistry | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 5 | |
| General Chemistry for Engineers and Recitation for CHEM 1151 | ||
| General Chemistry for Science Majors and Lab for CHEM 1161 and Recitation for CHEM 1161 | ||
| General Chemistry 1 and Lab for CHEM 1211 and Recitation for CHEM 1211 | ||
| Physics | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 5 | |
| Physics for Life Sciences 1 and Lab for PHYS 1145 | ||
| Physics for Engineering 1 and Lab for PHYS 1151 and Interactive Learning Seminar for PHYS 1151 | ||
| Physics 1 and Lab for PHYS 1161 and Recitation for PHYS 1161 | ||
| Earth, Oceans, and Environmental Change Electives | ||
| Complete three of the following: | 12-15 | |
| Remote Sensing of the Environment | ||
| Earth Materials and Lab for ENVR 2310 | ||
| Earth Landforms and Processes and Lab for ENVR 2340 | ||
| Global Oceanic Change | ||
| Water Resources | ||
| Environmental Pollution: Fate and Transport | ||
| Geophysics | ||
| Oceanography | ||
| Applied Hydrogeology and Lab for ENVR 4500 | ||
| Environmental Pollution | ||
| Wetlands | ||
| Soil Science | ||
| Geologic Field Seminar and Environmental Science Field Seminar Abroad | ||
| Sedimentary Basin Analysis and Lab for ENVR 5240 | ||
| Ancient Marine Life and Lab for ENVR 5242 | ||
| Glacial and Quaternary History and Lab for ENVR 5270 | ||
| Global Biogeochemistry | ||
| Streams and Watershed Ecology | ||
Environmental and Sustainability Sciences Major Credit Requirement
Complete 81 semester hours in the major.
Program Requirement
136 total semester hours required
Four Years, One Co-op in Spring/Summer 1
| Year 1 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| ENGW 1111 | 4 | EEMB 2302 and EEMB 2303 | 5 | Vacation | Elective | 4 | |
| ENVR 1000 | 1 | ENVR 1200 and ENVR 1201 | 5 | Elective | 4 | ||
| ENVR 1400 and ENVR 1401 | 5 | MATH 1241 | 4 | ||||
| ENVR 1500 and ENVR 1501 | 5 | ESS concentration core or elective 1 | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | ||||||
| 19 | 18 | 0 | 8 | ||||
| Year 2 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| EESC 2000 | 1 | Co-op | 0 | Co-op | 0 | Elective | 4 |
| ENVR 2500 and ENVR 2501 | 5 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| ENVR 2515 | 4 | ||||||
| ENVR 3300 and ENVR 3301 | 5 | ||||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 2 | 4 | ||||||
| 19 | 0 | 0 | 8 | ||||
| Year 3 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| ENGW 3307 | 4 | ESS concentration core or elective 6 | 4 | Vacation | Vacation | ||
| ESS concentration core or elective 3 | 4 | ESS concentration core or elective 7 | 4 | ||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 4 | 4 | ESS concentration core or elective 8 | 4 | ||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 5 | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| 16 | 16 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Year 4 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 9 | 4 | ENVR 4000 | 4 | ||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 10 | 4 | ENVR 4050 | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| 16 | 16 | ||||||
| Total Hours: 136 | |||||||
Four Years, One Co-op in Summer 2/Fall
| Year 1 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| ENGW 1111 | 4 | EEMB 2302 and EEMB 2303 | 5 | Vacation | Elective | 4 | |
| ENVR 1000 | 1 | ENVR 1200 and ENVR 1201 | 5 | Elective | 4 | ||
| ENVR 1400 and ENVR 1401 | 5 | MATH 1241 | 4 | ||||
| ENVR 1500 and ENVR 1501 | 5 | ESS concentration core or elective 1 | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | ||||||
| 19 | 18 | 0 | 8 | ||||
| Year 2 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| EESC 2000 | 1 | ESS concentration core or elective 3 | 4 | Elective | 4 | Co-op | 0 |
| ENVR 2500 and ENVR 2501 | 5 | ESS concentration core or elective 4 | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||
| ENVR 2515 | 4 | ESS concentration core or elective 5 | 4 | ||||
| ENVR 3300 and ENVR 3301 | 5 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 2 | 4 | ||||||
| 19 | 16 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| Year 3 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| Co-op | 0 | ENGW 3307 | 4 | Vacation | Vacation | ||
| ESS concentration core or elective 6 | 4 | ||||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 7 | 4 | ||||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 8 | 4 | ||||||
| 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Year 4 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 9 | 4 | ENVR 4000 | 4 | ||||
| ESS concentration core or elective 10 | 4 | ENVR 4050 | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| Elective | 4 | Elective | 4 | ||||
| 16 | 16 | ||||||
| Total Hours: 136 | |||||||