Information and Policies
Introduction
This course of study provides students with the basic tools of biological science and sufficient understanding of resource conservation, conservation biology, and concerns about environmental sustainability to apply these tools to environmental problems.
Students interested in the available concentrations should choose to pursue the environmental studies B.A. degree. This does not apply to students who declared a combined major and concentration in agroecology and sustainable food systems prior to 2019.
Program Learning Outcomes
Students graduating with a B.A. degree in environmental studies/biology combined will be able to:
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Identify the societal (social, political, economic and ethical) agents and structures that contribute to environmental change. (social science competency)
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Describe the structure and functioning of major physical and ecological components of the earth’s systems. (natural science competency)
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Access and analyze a complex literature addressing specific topics in environmental studies, and evaluate the usefulness and limitations of individual sources of information. (analytic thinking)
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Demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills. (communication skills).
Academic Advising for the Program
Advising is one way to make the most of your university experience. The advising system at the University of California, Santa Cruz, is amazing, and we encourage you to use it often. Ask questions, seek advice, and make decisions that work best for you.
To receive advising for this major, contact envsadvi@ucsc.edu. Additional information for prospective transfer students can be found in the Transfer Information and Policy section.
Getting Started in the Major: Frosh
This is a course-intensive and/or sequential program, and students who intend to pursue this major must begin taking classes for the major in their first year at UC Santa Cruz. Math placement is required for one or more of the foundational courses for this major. For more information, please review the Math Placement website. Language placement is not required for the major.
Transfer Information and Policy
Transfer Admission Screening Policy
Students who apply for transfer admission to the major are required to have taken the equivalents of the following courses with a C grade (2.0) or better by the end of the spring term for students planning to enter in the fall:
All of the following
Plus one of the following
| AM 3 | Precalculus for the Social Sciences | 5 |
| AM 11A
/ECON 11A
| Mathematical Methods for Economists I | 5 |
| AM 11B
/ECON 11B
| Mathematical Methods for Economists II | 5 |
| MATH 11A | Calculus with Applications | 5 |
| MATH 11B | Calculus with Applications | 5 |
| MATH 19A | Calculus for Science, Engineering, and Mathematics | 5 |
| MATH 19B | Calculus for Science, Engineering, and Mathematics | 5 |
| MATH 22 | Introduction to Calculus of Several Variables | 5 |
| MATH 23A | Vector Calculus | 5 |
Plus one of the following options
ENVS 25; or ECON 1 and a course in national or international politics ; or ECON 2 and a course in national or international politics
Recommended Courses
In addition, one of the following courses is recommended prior to transfer to ensure timely graduation.
| SOCY 1 | Introduction to Sociology | 5 |
| SOCY 10 | Issues and Problems in American Society | 5 |
| SOCY 15 | World Society | 5 |
| ANTH 2 | Introduction to Cultural Anthropology | 5 |
| PHIL 22 | Introduction to Ethical Theory | 5 |
| PHIL 24 | Introduction to Ethics: Contemporary Moral Issues | 5 |
| PHIL 28 | Environmental Ethics | 5 |
| BME 80G
/PHIL 80G
| Bioethics in the 21st Century: Science, Business, and Society | 5 |
And the following course
GPA Requirement
To be considered for admission in the environmental studies majors, transfer students must pass the preceding courses or their equivalents of the preceding courses with a C (2.0) or better in the required courses.
General Education Courses
Prospective students are encouraged to prioritize required and recommended major preparation, and may additionally complete courses that articulate to UC Santa Cruz general education requirements as time allows.
Getting Started in the Major: Transfer Students
Transfer students pursuing environmental studies majors are encouraged to transfer in the fall quarter. Transfer students should enroll in STAT 7 and STAT 7L during the summer or fall quarter in order to take ENVS 100 and ENVS 100L in winter or spring quarter of their first year. Transfer students can formally declare their major once qualification courses are successfully completed, following the steps in How to Declare a Major given above.
ENVS 25 and CHEM 1A are usually offered during Summer Session at UC Santa Cruz, and transfer students are encouraged to take them if they have not completed a substitute requirement or want a better understanding of the relevant material. If you are transferring, compare catalog descriptions, consult your current institution's advisor, and refer to the ASSIST website to determine equivalency. Prospective transfer students should review the transfer information.
Students who are proposed in a different major and have advanced standing when they come to UC Santa Cruz require permission from the department to change into the major. Contact envsadvi@ucsc.edu to request permission.
Major Qualification Policy and Declaration Process
Major Qualification
To qualify for the environmental studies/biology combined major, students must complete the specific courses listed below, or their approved equivalents. For transfer requirements see Transfer Admission Screening Requirements. Transfer students must have ENVS major listed on their application in order to pursue the major, unless approved by appeal. If a student has questions about the appeals process, they should contact envsadvi@ucsc.edu.
| ENVS 25 | Environmental Policy and Economics | 5 |
| BIOE 20C | Ecology and Evolution | 5 |
| BIOL 20A | Cell and Molecular Biology | 5 |
| CHEM 1A | General Chemistry | 5 |
| STAT 7 | Statistical Methods for the Biological, Environmental, and Health Sciences | 5 |
| STAT 7L | Statistical Methods for the Biological, Environmental, and Health Sciences Laboratory | 2 |
Students must take all of these courses for a letter grade.
Determining qualification
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Students who complete all the qualification courses with a letter grade of C or better are eligible to declare a major.
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Students who have received one grade of C-, D+, D, D-, or F in one of the qualification courses taken at UC Santa Cruz will only be eligible to declare after successfully completing the same or an equivalent course with a letter grade of C or better.
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Students with two or more grades of C-, D+, D, D-, or F in the qualification courses taken at UC Santa Cruz are not eligible to declare.
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Students with non-letter grades in any of the qualification courses for the environmental studies/biology combined B.A. major will not be eligible to declare until a grade of C or better has been assigned.
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Students must attend an Environmental Studies Department declaration workshop when requesting to declare the major.
Appeal Process
Students who are not qualified to declare the major may appeal this decision by submitting an appeal to qualify for the major within 15 days of the denial of the declaration. Within 15 days of receipt of the appeal, the department will notify the student and college of the decision. If a student has questions about the appeals process, they should contact envsadvi@ucsc.edu.
How to Declare a Major
All students are required to attend one declaration workshop offered during the first three weeks of the quarter they are eligible to declare. Before students attend declaration workshops, they should check to see if they are eligible to declare using the major qualification page. Students wishing to declare within the Environmental Studies Department should visit the Environmental Studies Department website and follow the steps listed in the "how to declare" tab. Degree requirement sheets may be downloaded from the Environmental Studies Undergraduate Program Requirements page.
Letter Grade Policy
All requirements for the environmental studies/biology combined major must be taken for a letter grade.
Course Substitution Policy
Students pursuing the Environmental Studies/Biology Combined Major cannot substitute courses to count toward their upper division electives.
Study Abroad
Students in environmental studies are encouraged to participate in Study Abroad programs and other off-campus programs. Students who are interested in these programs shall note the following policies:
- Students planning to study abroad must be declared in their major prior to
studying abroad.
- Students must have their courses they plan to take abroad reviewed and
approved by Environmental Studies Advising.
- Environmental studies/biology combined majors cannot petition their courses
taken abroad for upper division course substitution.
- For more information on EAP, please visit the UC Education Abroad Program
website.
Honors
Departmental Honors. Students must have a 3.5 grade point average (GPA) in all courses used to satisfy the environmental studies upper-division requirements.
Senior Comprehensive Honors. Only applicable to a senior thesis, senior internship, or individual work in a senior seminar. Honors must be awarded by the student’s faculty sponsor, and a second faculty member (chosen by the student’s faculty advisor) must concur.
Highest Departmental Honors. Students must have a 3.75 grade point average (GPA) in in all courses used to satisfy the environmental studies upper-division requirements and must also receive senior comprehensive honors (see above). Students must fulfill all requirements for honors from environmental studies/biology combined.
Requirements and Planners
Course Requirements
Lower-Division Courses
Biology and mathematics courses may require placement examinations. See the course descriptions for prerequisite information.
All of the following courses
Plus one of the following
| ANTH 2 | Introduction to Cultural Anthropology | 5 |
| PHIL 22 | Introduction to Ethical Theory | 5 |
| PHIL 24 | Introduction to Ethics: Contemporary Moral Issues | 5 |
| PHIL 28 | Environmental Ethics | 5 |
| BME 80G
/PHIL 80G
| Bioethics in the 21st Century: Science, Business, and Society | 5 |
| SOCY 1 | Introduction to Sociology | 5 |
| SOCY 10 | Issues and Problems in American Society | 5 |
| SOCY 15 | World Society | 5 |
Plus one of the following
One of the following:
| AM 3 | Precalculus for the Social Sciences | 5 |
| AM 6 | Precalculus for Statistics | 5 |
| MATH 3 | Precalculus | 5 |
| AM 11A
/ECON 11A
| Mathematical Methods for Economists I | 5 |
| AM 11B
/ECON 11B
| Mathematical Methods for Economists II | 5 |
| MATH 11A | Calculus with Applications | 5 |
| MATH 11B | Calculus with Applications | 5 |
| MATH 19A | Calculus for Science, Engineering, and Mathematics | 5 |
| MATH 19B | Calculus for Science, Engineering, and Mathematics | 5 |
| MATH 22 | Introduction to Calculus of Several Variables | 5 |
| MATH 23A | Vector Calculus | 5 |
Or take a placement exam:
Take the Math Placement Exam (MPE) with a score of 300 or higher or take the AP Calculus exam with a score of 3 or higher.
Plus all of the following
| STAT 7 | Statistical Methods for the Biological, Environmental, and Health Sciences | 5 |
| STAT 7L | Statistical Methods for the Biological, Environmental, and Health Sciences Laboratory | 2 |
Plus all of the following
Plus one of the following options in physics
Upper-Division Courses
Students are required to complete nine upper-division courses and the senior comprehensive requirement. Three of the nine upper-division courses must be the following courses (ENVS 100 and ENVS 100L is considered a single course).
Electives
The remaining six upper-division elective courses include three in ecology and evolutionary biology (ecology and evolutionary biology courses numbered BIOE 107-BIOE 188) and three in environmental studies (environmental studies courses numbered ENVS 101-ENVS 179).
One of the six electives must be a laboratory course; laboratory courses are upper-division courses in BIOE or ENVS that carry 5 credits and have a “L” in their course number.
Additionally, one of the three environmental studies courses electives must be based in the social sciences selected from the following upper-division courses:
| ENVS 110 | Institutions, the Environment, and Economic Systems | 5 |
| ENVS 130B | Justice and Sustainability in Agriculture | 5 |
| ENVS 140 | National Environmental Policy | 5 |
| ENVS 141 | Ecological Economics | 5 |
| ENVS 143 | Sustainable Development: Economy, Policy, and Environment | 5 |
| ENVS 145 | Green Cities | 5 |
| ENVS 146 | Water Quality: Policy, Regulation, and Management | 5 |
| ENVS 147 | Global Environmental Justice | 5 |
| ENVS 149
/LGST 149
| Environmental Law and Policy | 5 |
| ENVS 150 | Coastal and Marine Policy | 5 |
| ENVS 151 | Environmental Assessment | 5 |
| ENVS 154 | Amazonian Cultures and Conservation | 5 |
| ENVS 158 | Political Ecology and Social Change | 5 |
| ENVS 165 | Sustainable Water Systems | 5 |
| ENVS 172 | Environmental Risks and Public Policy | 5 |
| ENVS 173 | An Introduction to World Environmental History | 5 |
| ENVS 176 | Vulnerability, Complex Systems, and Disasters | 5 |
One lab-based course
One of the six electives must be a laboratory course; laboratory courses are upper-division courses in BIOE or ENVS that carry 5 credits and have a “L” in their course number. In order to fulfill the lab-based requirement students must take the lecture and lab. Students must take the concurrent lecture and lab of one of the following:
| BIOE 112L | Ornithology Field Studies | 2 |
| BIOE 117L | Systematic Botany of Flowering Plants Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 120L | Marine Botany Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 122L | Invertebrate Zoology Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 124L | Mammalogy Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 127L | Ichthyology Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 128L | Large Marine Vertebrates Field Course | 5 |
| BIOE 129L | Biology of Marine Mammals Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 131L | Animal Physiology Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 133L | Exercise Physiology Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 134L | Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 135L | Plant Physiology Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 137L | Molecular Ecology Laboratory | 2 |
| BIOE 141L | Behavioral Ecology Field Course | 5 |
| BIOE 145L | Field Methods in Plant Ecology | 5 |
| BIOE 150L | Ecological Field Methods Laboratory | 5 |
| BIOE 151B
/ENVS 109B
| Ecology and Conservation in Practice Supercourse: Ecological Field Methods Laboratory | 5 |
| BIOE 159D | Marine Ecology Field Quarter: Methods in Field Ecology Laboratory | 5 |
| BIOE 161L | Kelp Forest Ecology Laboratory | 5 |
| BIOE 163L | Ecology of Reefs, Mangroves, and Seagrasses Laboratory | 2 |
| ENVS 104L | Field Methods Laboratory | 2 |
| ENVS 108L | General Entomology Laboratory | 3 |
| ENVS 115L | Exercises in Geographic Information Systems | 2 |
| ENVS 129L | Integrated Pest Management Laboratory | 2 |
| ENVS 130L | Agroecology and Sustainable Agriculture Laboratory | 2 |
| ENVS 162L | Plant Physiological Ecology Laboratory | 2 |
| ENVS 163L | Plant Disease Ecology Lab | 2 |
| ENVS 167L | Freshwater and Wetland Ecology Lab | 2 |
A list of all courses offered by the Environmental Studies Department is available in the courses section of the catalog. A list of which upper-division courses offered in the current year by the Environmental Studies Department are based in the natural sciences and in the social sciences is available on the department website.
Students wishing to pursue an advanced degree in the pure or applied sciences are strongly encouraged to complete the organic chemistry series as well.
These upper-division elective courses should be selected in pursuit of a coherent plan of study, chosen in consultation with faculty sponsors from both the Biological Sciences and Environmental Studies Departments. None of the three environmental studies upper-division courses can be an environmental studies internship, individual study, or substitution course.
Disciplinary Communication (DC) Requirement
Students of every major must satisfy that major's upper-division Disciplinary Communication (DC) requirement. The DC requirement for the environmental studies/biology combined major is satisfied by completing:
The DC requirement in environmental studies/biology combined is satisfied by completing
Plus one of the following
Where two-credit lab courses have to be taken concurrently with a 5-credit lecture course, the combination counts as one course.
Comprehensive Requirement
The senior comprehensive may be satisfied by completing one of the options listed below. All courses used to satisfy the senior comprehensive requirement must be taken for a letter grade.
Before enrolling in the senior thesis or senior internship option, students must formally apply to work with a particular faculty mentor very early in their thesis or project preparation. The senior thesis and senior internship option require careful planning, additional independent research, and at least a two-quarter commitment.
Students with advanced skills in one of the graduate focal areas may also take a graduate seminar by invitation from the instructor.
Planners
The tables below are for informational purposes and do not reflect all university, general education, and credit requirements. See Undergraduate Graduation Requirements for more information.
The following are two sample academic plans for students pursuing the environmental studies/biology combined B.A. major. Plan One is for incoming frosh and Plan Two is for incoming transfer students.
Plan One for Incoming Frosh
*This course is also offered in the spring term.
This plan does not explicitly show the required lab course among the ENVS or BIOE electives.
Students completing this major will have satisfied the SI, IN, PE-E, IS, and PR-E general education requirements. In addition, they will need to fulfill all remaining university, college, and general education requirements.
Students interested in taking the senior thesis or senior internship as their comprehensive requirement must take ENVS 195A (thesis) or ENVS 183A (internship) in the quarter before completing ENVS 195B (thesis) or ENVS 183B (internship). Both the senior thesis and senior internship are two consecutive quarter commitments.
Plan Two for Incoming Transfer Students
| |
Fall |
Winter |
Spring |
| 3rd (junior) |
STAT 7 & STAT 7L |
ENVS 100 & ENVS 100L* |
Upper-division ENVS |
| |
BIOL 105 |
BIOE 109 |
| |
|
|
| 4th (senior) |
Upper-division ENVS
(social sciences) |
Upper-division ENVS |
Upper-division BIOE |
| Upper-division BIOE |
Upper-division BIOE |
Comprehensive
requirement |
| |
PHYS 1 |
|
*This course is also offered in the spring term.
This plan does not include the required lab based course. Students must complete the lab-based requirement with the courses listed in the course requirements.
This planner assumes that a student has completed all required lower-division courses—including UCSC or community college general education requirements—with the exception of STAT 7 and STAT 7L, which is only offered at UC Santa Cruz.
Students interested in taking the senior thesis or senior internship as their comprehensive requirement must take ENVS 195A (thesis) or ENVS 183A (internship) in the quarter before completing ENVS 195B (thesis) or ENVS 183B (internship). Both the senior thesis and senior internship are two consecutive quarter commitments.
A transfer student who has completed the requirements for the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) before matriculating at UC Santa Cruz, with at most two course requirements left to complete, is allowed to satisfy IGETC in lieu of the UCSC general education requirements.