Environmental Sciences
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Program Type
Overview
The Environmental Sciences (ES) major is designed for students interested in studying environmental problems from a scientific perspective. The ES major prepares students to deal with issues arising from the impact of human interaction on natural systems. To address these problems, all ES students acquire strong backgrounds in math, biological sciences, and physical sciences. Students may choose to specialize further in a biological or physical science field such as ecology, conservation biology, toxicology, geology, hydrology, meteorology, engineering, or a social science field such as planning, policy analysis, economics, environmental justice, or education. Each ES student completes a year-long senior research project with the support of a mentor in a biological, physical, or interdisciplinary research area.
Graduates are well-prepared for careers in fields such as environmental consulting, education, health, or law as well as community, urban, or regional planning and other related areas of environmentalism in public agencies, non-profit conservation organizations, and private companies. Graduates are well-qualified for a variety of graduate programs, including environmental policy and management, law school, medical school (and other pre-health programs), and environmental engineering.
For more information, visit the Environmental Sciences webpage.
Admission to the Major
Advice on admission for freshmen and transfer students can be found on the Rausser College of Natural Resources Admissions page or the Prospective Students page. Freshman students may apply directly to the major, or they may select the college's undeclared option and declare the major by the end of their fourth semester. Transfer students may apply directly to the major through the UC application and must meet the the minimum requirements outlined in the Transfer Admission Guidelines.
Information for current Berkeley students who would like to declare the major after admission, including information on a change of major or change of college, please see our change of major or college webpage.
Honors Program
Students with a GPA of 3.6 or higher are eligible to earn honors in the Environmental Sciences major. For additional details, please visit the Honors Program website. To fulfill the program requirements, students design, conduct, and report on an individual research project working with a faculty sponsor. Qualified ES students enroll in ESPM H175A and ESPM H175L fall of their senior year, and ESPM H175B and ESPM H175L spring of their senior year. In this course series, students design, conduct, and report on an individual research project working with a faculty sponsor.