Earth & Environmental Sciences

Certificate in Environmental Science

Objectives

Environmental Science Certificate provides professionals who have undergraduate degrees in science (i.e., Biology, Chemistry or Geology) with graduate instruction in Environmental Science as a means of maintaining and promoting their professional development. As Environmental Science is an interdisciplinary subject, the certificate program is designed to provide science graduates with coursework in environmental science in appropriate areas outside of their undergraduate major. The certificate provides students with a post-baccalaureate educational opportunity that is narrower in scope, and shorter in duration than its associated MS graduate degree program in Environmental and Earth Sciences (EVSE).

Admissions

The terms of their admission allow participants to take the specific courses approved for the certificate program. They are not allowed to take courses outside of their program. Under these rules, students are admitted as non-degree or special students. All participants in the program must meet the 3.0/4.0 grade point average (GPA) requirement of the Graduate School, College and Environmental and Earth Sciences Program. They must maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 in their coursework in order to receive the Certificate.

Certificate Requirements

Any student that later seeks a graduate degree in the Environmental and Earth Sciences MS program may apply 12 of their 15 hours of coursework toward that program if done within 6 years of completion of the certificate by petitioning the Graduate School through the College of Science.

The Certificate in Environmental Science requires that students take and successfully complete 15 advanced hours in Environmental Science and related courses with a minimum GPA of 3.0.

The advanced courses available to participants in the certificate program include:

EVSE 5309 Environmental Systems-Biological Aspects [3]
EVSE 5310 Environmental Systems-Chemical Aspects [3]
EVSE 5311 Environmental Systems-Geological Aspects [3]
EVSE 5320 Toxicology
EVSE 5300 Environmental Health
BIOL 5345 Limnology
BIOL 5350 Conservation Biology
BIOL 5355 Aquatic Biology
BIOL 5326 Wetlands Ecology
BIOL 5325 Plant Ecology
CE 5321 Engineering for Environmental Scientists
CIRP 5341 Environmental Regulations, Law and Planning
CIRP 5350 Environmental Planning
GEOL 5301 Environmental Geochemistry
GEOL 5303 Understanding Geographic Information Systems
GEOL 5407 Environmental Geophysics

[3] At least two of these environmental courses are required and both should be in areas outside of the student's undergraduate major (e.g., A student with an undergraduate major in the Biological Sciences would be required to take EVSE 5310 and 5311).
Students may choose appropriate graduate courses other than those listed above with the approval of the Chair of the Environmental and Earth Sciences Graduate Studies Committee.

The above courses have been selected because their subject matters directly relate to the knowledge base required of professionals engaged in Environmental Science. Students should choose to take those courses that best meet their career goals in Environmental Science. Students should consult with the Chair of the Graduate Studies Committee in Environmental and Earth Sciences in developing the most appropriate set of courses for their professional interests. Full course descriptions for the above listed classes are found in The University of Texas at Arlington's Graduate Catalog.