Major Overview

This is the perfect major for you if you’ve ever envisioned an environmentally-oriented career, where competence requires quantitative understanding. You’ll gain a working knowledge of at least three specific environmental disciplines, understand what constitutes a quantitative versus qualitative approach to environmental issues, and develop the skills necessary to evaluate and manage environmental risks. By the end of your degree, you will have the required foundation to apply to, and be successful at, any graduate environmental program.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The educational goals for this major are as follows:

  • You will develop a strong background in quantitative sciences.
  • You will gain a working knowledge of at least 3 environmental disciplines.
  • You will be able to communicate your ideas and support your opinions with appropriate vocabulary and quantitative reasoning.
  • You will be proficient in using quantitative and computational techniques and methods to address environmental problems. 

Learning Environment

With our emphasis on interdisciplinary education and research, as well as our contextualized and active learning approach, we’ve created a program that is meant to combine and transcend established disciplines in the most treasured liberal arts tradition, while relying heavily on a plurality of national and cultural life experiences among students. 

Major Components
Build Your Degree

With every single one of our majors, you’ll find a carefully curated medley of core courses and electives, which will provide you with the tools you need to establish an unshakeable foundation in the principles and concepts fundamental to your growth within your disciplines of choice. Many majors also enable you to specialize further within the broader area of study.

Core Courses

Core Courses

We aim to help you develop a range of skills, capacities, and modes of inquiry that will be crucial for your future since employers and graduate schools are looking for the critical thinking and innovative problem-solving skills that are associated with a liberal arts education, including sophisticated writing abilities, willingness to pose difficult questions, and an understanding of the historical and cultural contexts surrounding a topic or decision. 

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Electives

Electives

Each elective provides you with entry to a variety of subject areas which you can choose among to further focus your studies. With the help of your academic advisor, you’ll be able to tailor your major so that it most effectively prepares you for the next step in your academic and professional journey.

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Specialization

Specialization

Your Quantitative Environmental Science major will be focused in one of the following three specializations:   

  • Dynamical Systems 
  • Environmental Decision Support System 
  • Data Analysis 

View all Specialization Requirements

Core Courses

We aim to help you develop a range of skills, capacities, and modes of inquiry that will be crucial for your future since employers and graduate schools are looking for the critical thinking and innovative problem-solving skills that are associated with a liberal arts education, including sophisticated writing abilities, willingness to pose difficult questions, and an understanding of the historical and cultural contexts surrounding a topic or decision. 

SC1020 Environmental Science

This course is intended to introduce non-scientists to key concepts and approaches in the study of the environment. With a focus on the scientific method, we learn about natural systems using case studies of disruptions caused by human activity. Topics include global warming, deforestation, waste production and recycling, water pollution, environmental toxins and sustainable development. The relationships between science and policy, the media, and citizen action are also addressed. *Lab required. Please note that an additional fee will be charged for this course.

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MA1020 Applied Statistics I

Introduces the tools of statistical analysis. Combines theory with extensive data collection and computer-assisted laboratory work. Develops an attitude of mind accepting uncertainty and variability as part of problem analysis and decision-making. Topics include: exploratory data analysis and data transformation, hypothesis-testing and the analysis of variance, simple and multiple regression with residual and influence analyses.

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MA1030 Calculus I

Introduces differential and integral calculus. Develops the concepts of calculus as applied to polynomials, logarithmic, and exponential functions. Topics include: limits, derivatives, techniques of differentiation, applications to extrema and graphing; the definite integral; the fundamental theorem of calculus, applications; logarithmic and exponential functions, growth and decay; partial derivatives. Appropriate for students in the biological, management, computer and social sciences.

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CS1040 Intro To Computer Programming I

Introduces the field of computer science and the fundamental concepts of programming from an object-oriented perspective using the programming language Java. Starts with practical problem-solving and leads to the study and analysis of simple algorithms, data types, control structures, and use of simple data structures such as arrays and strings.

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SC2010 Contemporary Environmental Issues

This course will focus on anthropogenic environmental emergencies, such as global warming, habitat destruction, and the introduction of invasive species. Students will investigate specific cases discussed in recent peer-reviewed scientific articles, and will evaluate possible solutions to these crises from multiple perspectives.

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MA2041 Linear Algebra

Treats applications in economics and computer science, limited to Euclidean n-space. Topics include: the linear structure of space, vectors, norms and angles, transformations of space, systems of linear equations and their applications, the Gauss-Jordan method, matrices, determinants, eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Uses Mathematica for graphics and algorithms.

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SC4095 Senior Project

A Senior Project is an independent study representing a Major Capstone Project that needs to be registered using the Senior Project registration form. (Download: https://aupforms.formstack.com/workflows/senior_project)

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OR
SC4098 Capstone Internship

Internships may be taken for 1 or 4 credits. Students may do more than one internship, but internship credit cannot cumulatively total more than 4 credits.

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