Environmental Planning and Policy, B.A.

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The Department of Environmental Science and Policy offers a B.A. degree in environmental planning and policy. Capability in these two disciplines is built upon the department’s basic environmental science core courses. The degree is designed to prepare students for graduate school and careers in federal, state, and local government; the private sector; nonprofit organizations; and citizen advocacy groups. Many graduates have immediately entered professions in landscape design, regulatory compliance, land-use or community planning, urban renewal, environmental consulting, education, and as environmental technicians.

The faculty seek to educate individuals who make a difference by contributing to solving environmental problems, making public and private institutions more responsive to social and economic needs of communities, and by moving toward a more sustainable society. The curriculum emphasizes application as well as theory by focusing on problems and projects affecting the region. The opportunity to gain practical planning and policy experience is also provided to students through participation in field-based courses and an internship.

The environmental planning aspect of the degree is intended to introduce students to foundations of community and natural resource planning. Through a series of core courses, students examine spatial and non-spatial aspects of environmental problems. The environmental policy aspect trains students on policy development, formulation, and implementation, through an in-depth examination of policy science, assessment, environmental impact analysis, and environmental economics.

The Department of Environmental Science and Policy offers an accelerated graduate degree pathway for students in the B.A. program. Students can combine their senior year with the first year of graduate work on a Master’s in Policy, Planning, and Management (M.P.P.M.) in USM’s Muskie School of Public Service.

Program Requirements

Minimum number of credits required for the major is 69, plus the University’s Core Curriculum. Some departmental major requirements may overlap with the Core Curriculum, allowing students to double-count and be efficient in course selection. A student must achieve at least a 2.0 grade point average and must earn a C- or higher in each course applied toward completion of the major.

Required courses for all majors in the department: (32 credit hours)

ESP 101 - Environmental Science and Sustainability Credits: 3
ESP 102 - Fundamentals of Environmental Science Laboratory Credits: 1
ESP 125 - Introduction to Environmental Ecology Credits: 3
ESP 126 - Introduction to Environmental Ecology Laboratory Credits: 1
ESP 150 - Environmental Science Field Immersion Session Credits: 3
ESP 197 - Research Skills Lab Credits: 1
ESP 203 - Environmental Communication Credits: 3
ESP 207 - Atmosphere: Science, Climate, and Change Credits: 3
ESP 280 - Research and Analytical Methods Credits: 4
ESP 340 - Environmental Regulations Credits: 3
ESP 400 - Internship Credits: 3 (between junior and senior year)
ESP 401 - Environmental Impact Assessment and Lab Credits: 4 (capstone)

One tools course; suggested courses include: (3-4 credit hours)

ESP 123 - Quantitative Reasoning and the Environment Credits: 3
GEO 108 - Introduction to ArcGIS Credits: 3
GEO 308 - GIS Applications I Credits: 3
Any language course - Spoken, computer programming, or ASL Credits / Units: 3-4

Required courses specific to students in the B.A. in environmental planning and policy: (28 credit hours)

CHY 1XX Chemistry Lecture Credits: 3
ESP 200 - Environmental Planning Credits: 3 (other planning courses may be substituted with permission of faculty advisor)
ESP 220 - Introduction to Environmental Policy Credits: 3
ESP 305 - Community Planning Workshop Credits: 3
ESP 326 /ECO 326 - Environmental Economics Credits: 3

ESP 327 /ECO 327 - Natural Resource Economics Credits: 3
ESP 375 - Environmental Risk Assessment and Management Credits: 3
ESP 417 - Site Planning and Assessment Credits: 3
ESP 421 - Natural Resource Policy Credits: 3
MAT 120 - Introduction to Statistics Credits: 4

Electives: Two environmental science or environmental planning and policy classes 200-level or higher (6-8 credit hours)

USM Core Requirements

The USM Core Curriculum is a coherent, integrative, and rigorous liberal education that enables our graduates to be world-minded, intentional, life-long learners and captures your general education degree requirements.

Please Note: Core requirements may be part of your major and/or minor, and Core may have been fulfilled with transfer credit. Please consult your MaineStreet Degree Progress Report (DPR) and review your degree progress with your Advisor. For additional information, access the USM Core webpage.