This major will take you into the wild.

The environmental professions are a diverse assemblage of multidisciplinary fields, each of which provides an important role in protecting human health and the environment. Those individuals working as environmental professionals or academicians have a broad range of educational specializations but all share a fundamental background in the environmental sciences. The Environmental Studies/Science program provides students a strong foundation in the environmental sciences, as wells as experiential learning in the field and laboratory setting, and through the Senior Research capstone requirement, all of which will prepare them for careers as environmental professionals and for graduate studies in both technical and non-technical fields. The program offers the degrees of Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Science and Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies. The Environmental Science degree is recommended for those students desiring to pursue a technical environmental career or graduate study in the natural sciences. The Environmental Studies degree is recommended for those students desiring to pursue a non-technical environmental career or graduate study in the humanities or social sciences. Both degrees offer core and cognate programs that build strong backgrounds in environmental science and the natural sciences, which are fundamental to all the environmental professions. Recognizing that environmental careers require skills developed in other academic areas, students pursuing either the Environmental Science or Environmental Studies degree are required to complete a second major in another academic field. Related internships are strongly recommended.

The Environmental Science program encompasses strong field and laboratory components that enhance classroom-learning experiences.  Students will spend time learning at locations such as Walden West, Adrian College’s 119-acre natural reserve as well as the 49 acres at Dawson Arboretum and local parks and reserves that provide access to a wide variety of environmental settings.

Students that have completed the Environmental Science program have gone on to careers in forestry and land management, resource management with the Department of Natural Resources and the state and national park systems, and with environmental remediation firms.

Environmental Science majors take science-oriented coursework to prepare them for exciting environmental jobs around the world, including naturalists, conservationists, or environmental scientists for industry or government.

Environmental Studies majors take courses oriented in the art, humanities, and natural sciences  to prepare for such careers as environmental journalism, environmental politics, environmental accountancy, and environmental compliance.