M.S. in Environmental Sciences

University of California, Riverside (Business)

The Environmental Sciences Graduate Program offers the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Environmental Sciences.

Advanced training in Environmental Sciences is becoming increasingly necessary to address complex problems involving natural resources and environmental quality. Although this task frequently requires specialized knowledge in various fields of science, it also requires understanding and integration of a wide variety of interacting physical, chemical, biological, and societal influences. This interaction makes graduate study in environmental sciences distinct from many other scientific fields. We have designed our program to offer graduate training in specialized focus areas of Atmospheric Sciences, Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Environmental Microbiology, Hydrologic Sciences, and Soil and Water Sciences within environmental sciences, operating within a single graduate degree program administered by the Department of Environmental Sciences. Students trained in the Environmental Sciences Graduate Program can fill many areas of expertise needed in the state and nation. Potential career opportunities exist at regulatory agencies, consulting firms, government and academic research institutions, and industrial research facilities.

The Department of Environmental Sciences offers the M.S. degree in Environmental Sciences under the Plan I (Thesis) and Plan II (Comprehensive Examination) options. The general requirements for the M.S. degree are found in the Announcement of the Graduate Division.

Plan I (Thesis): Students must complete a minimum of 36 quarter units of graduate and upper-division undergraduate courses in, or significantly related to, environmental sciences. At least 24 of the 36 units must be in graduate courses. A maximum of 12 of these units may be in graduate research for the thesis. No more than 4 units of ENSC 290 and 2 units of graduate seminar courses may be applied toward the degree. A thesis must be written and accepted by the M.S. thesis committee members, and a final oral defense of the thesis must be passed. Students also will be required to give a presentation annually at the Environmental Sciences Graduate Program Student Symposium.

Plan II (Comprehensive Examination): Students must complete a minimum of 36 quarter units of graduate and upper-division undergraduate courses in, or significantly related to, environmental sciences. At least 18 units must be in graduate courses. Students may count no more than 2 units of graduate seminar courses and 6 units of graduate internship courses toward the required 18 units and no units from graduate research for thesis or dissertation.

Students must take a comprehensive written examination that covers fundamental topics in environmental sciences. The written examination, which is three to four hours long, is prepared and evaluated by a committee appointed by the field director. The examination is taken during the latter part of the final quarter in the M.S. program. Students must wait at least eight weeks before retaking a failed examination. Students failing the examination twice are dismissed from the program.