Co-requisites for the A.B. Degree in Environmental Sciences and Policy

major requirements worksheet (.pdf) >
focus study worksheet(.pdf) >
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The following courses or their equivalents (Advanced Placement or transfer credit) are required for the A.B. degree. Approval of substitute courses taken at other universities must be obtained from the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the department offering the course. Please note that some of these courses are prerequisite to some upper-level courses in this major.

Major Requirements for the A.B. Degree in Environmental Sciences and Policy

1. ENVIRON 101 (Integrating Environmental Sciences and Policy), deals with the application of basic principles of natural science, environmental economics and policy, quantitative methods and ethics to local, regional and global environmental issues.
              
2. Environmental Policy: One course from the following list of approved environmental policy courses:
   POLSCI/PUBPOL 107, Environmental Politics and Policies in the Industrial World
   POLSCI 147/PUBPOL 147, Environmental Policy of the Developing World
   POLSCI 148/PUBPOL 143, Environmental Politics beyond Borders
   ENVIRON 149/PUBPOL 149, U.S. Environmental Policy
   ENVIRON 273, Marine Fisheries Policy
   ENVIRON 276/PUBPOL 197, Marine Policy
          
3. Probability and statistics: One course from the following approved list of courses dealing with statistical inference and probability theory:
   ECON 139, Introduction to Econometrics
   POLSCI 138, Quantitative Political Analysis
   PSY 117, Statistical Methods
   SOCIOL 133, Statistical Methods
   STA 101, Data Analysis and Statistical Inference
   STA 102, Introductory Biostatistics
   STA 103, Probability and Statistical Inference
   STA 112, Introduction to Applied Statistics
          
4. Focused Study: Five upper-level courses proposed by the student in consultation with his or her advisor to fit a particular theme or career objective. The courses generally are selected from a list of approved courses available from the Nicholas School’s Undergraduate Program Office. At least two of these courses must be selected from the Social Sciences/Humanities list, and at least two must be selected from the Natural Sciences/Engineering list. One course must be an upper-level seminar, a 200-level course, or a senior capstone course. Students may use up to two approved courses from study abroad toward the focused study. Other courses may be substituted by petition to the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
        
   By the fall registration of the junior year, each student must submit a draft essay describing a plan for Focused Study. The essay describes the general theme of the Focused Study, explains how the five proposed upper-level courses weave together to create a unified theme and shows how the Focused Study relates to career and/or graduate school interests. The final Focused Study essay must be approved by the advisor and filed in the Undergraduate Program Office by spring registration of the junior year.
        
5. Independent study, internship or field experience: Students in the major must satisfactorily complete an independent study, internship or field experience, which may or may not include course credit toward upper-level requirements. The Duke Career Development Center maintains a database of environmental internships. The Undergraduate Program Office in the Nicholas School also distributes information on internships and career placement via E-mail. Many students fulfill this requirement by spending a semester or summer term at the Duke University Marine Laboratory in Beaufort, NC.