Undergraduate programs

The systems that shape the Earth’s environment are dynamic and highly interactive. In the Environmental Studies Program, we work to understand these systems and how they influence the planet's diverse ecosystems, our natural resources, the communities we live in, and local and global political systems. Washington University is a leader in research on global climate change and energy, sustainable food production, the environment and human health, and biodiversity conservation. We offer a major and two minors, internships, research, community-engaged partnerships, and study abroad. Our majors and minors capture the strengths of both the traditional academic departments and the interdisciplinary innovation necessary to fully explore the multiple issues and questions posed in the study of the environment. Many of our courses are experiential, project-based, collaborative, and/or community-engaged. We also offer a variety of courses that are integral to environmentally oriented majors in other departments and programs. Many of our students jointly pursue interests in business, sustainability, law, engineering, humanities, ecology & conservation, One Health, and pre-health.

Major, Minor & Ampersand Program

We offer a range of programs of study

Major in Environmental Analysis

Our Environmental Analysis Major is a flexible, 49-credit major that focuses on developing critical skills and competencies in interdisciplinary environmental problem-solving. It is designed to prepare students to real world environmental problem solving by providing breadth and depth across environmental humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, as well as deep and interdisciplinary training in analysis, problem solving, communication, and community engagement. It is ideal for students seeking interdisciplinary training focused on the environment and sustainability and is designed to stand alone or complement another primary major.

Learn more about Majors & Minor

Minor in Environmental Studies

Our Environmental Studies Minor is a flexible, 18-credit option that includes introductory and upper level courses, allowing students to explore environmental courses across a range of disciplines that complement your major and personal areas of interest. This minor pairs well with any other major and can be used as a way to round out one's training with additional interdisciplinary perspectives and experiential training.


Learn more about Majors & Minor

Ampersand Program: Pathfinder Fellows in Environmental Leadership

The Pathfinder Fellows Program is a multi-year cohort-based undergraduate program with a focus on Environmental Leadership. Integrated around themes of environmental science and sustainability, the program is intended to draw in students from all four undergraduate schools with a yearly cohort of 12-16 students. The program trains students to gain a sense of place, cultivate environmental leadership skills, and develop critical thinking and problem solving skills across scales, from individual sites to neighborhoods to landscapes to nations and across the globe. Through shared coursework, community-engaged internships and research, service opportunities, and experiences in urban and rural environments, students are trained to emerge as global leaders in their respective fields.

Learn more about the Pathfinder Program

Ampersand Program: People, Planet, Health

The People, Planet, Health Program is a first-year undergraduate program with a focus on the intersection of human and environmental health. From air quality to infectious diseases, climate events to environmental exposures, the connections between our planet and human health are becoming increasingly clear. Around the world, communities are facing challenges like extreme weather events, food and housing insecurity, and air pollution—affecting both individuals and public health. Addressing these urgent issues requires a deep understanding of the complex relationships between environmental change and human well-being. By studying these connections, we can work toward solutions that promote healthier communities and a more sustainable future. This Ampersand program applies an interdisciplinary lens to the local and global environmental challenges that have impacted human health in St. Louis and beyond. We will explore the different methods used by public health officials, research biologists, environmental scientists, veterinarians, and doctors to address these grand challenges. You will learn from local experts, examine patient case studies, build relationships with community partners, visit research labs and field sites where groundbreaking science happens, and work towards proposing your own project.

Learn more about the People, Planet, Health Program

Capstones

Environmental Studies offers multiple capstone options including several courses that enroll students from across the university and a research option for our majors. Our capstone courses are a special feature of our offerings that offer collaborative, experiential, and applied learning experiences for upper level students. These courses provide an opportunity to apply foundational knowledge to real-world projects, ensuring that students graduate with the practical skills and holistic understanding needed to make meaningful contributions to environmental and sustainability efforts.

Learn more about ENST capstones

Internships

Environmental Studies has a number of Internship opportunities for students to apply what they are learning in the classroom. Impact Internships are available throughout the year, and are both on and off campus. Our internships are paid, and open to all Wash U students.

Learn more about ENST internships

Student Research and Honors

We encourage any and all students to pursue some form of research during their time with Environmental Studies! Our students conduct research with disciplinary emphasis in humanities, social science, or natural sciences. Our students pursue independent study research during academic semesters or summers, summer research internships, and senior honors thesis research. Experiences range from guided work on a research mentor’s project for one to several semesters, to mentored independent research that results in a substantial scholarly product. Because we are an interdisciplinary program, scholarly products produced by our students take on a wide range of forms, from a thesis to policy brief to narrative to journal-style manuscript for publication. 

In the Environmental Studies Program, any student may conduct mentored research or senior thesis research regardless of GPA, and Departmental Honors and awards do not require completion of a senior thesis. Latin Honors for majors requires completion of a senior thesis in addition to meeting GPA requirements set by the university.

We invite students who are potentially interested in working on senior thesis research or pursuing Latin honors to connect with their major advisor and class professors early on to express interest and ask questions. We offer suggestions on how to prepare for potential senior thesis research, a guideline for the process on our information page. We offer a senior thesis research course, ENST 4998, to students pursuing senior thesis to provide scaffolding and training in transferrable research and scholarly writing skills. This course provides a supportive cohort environment in which students can learn together and workshop their research progress with peers.

Learn more about how to engage in student research with the Environmental Studies Program.

 

Study abroad

Through the Office of Overseas Programs in the College of Arts and Sciences, students can choose a program that best suits their interests and requirements for their major or minor. Students can learn more from the Overseas Programs, Study Aroad Office about the steps to study abroad including the process, programs, application, financial aid, connecting with former participants to hear their experiences, completing paperwork, and activities for before, during, and after your experience. You can contact particular Overseas Program Advisors if you have questions about particular programs.  If you want to count courses from a study abroad program toward your Environmental Studies major or minor, you will work with our Study Abroad Advisor (Jeff Catalano) to approve and sign your study plan. Participating in an approved Washington University program allows financial assistance and students may earn full academic credit for study abroad if they participate in Washington University programs. You can go on any program! Some programs our students have enjoyed include programs on sustainability, climate change, ecology & conservation, natural resource management through OTS in Costa Rica and South Africa, SFS in Cambodia and Peru, SITin Australia, Ecuador, Iceland, and Tanzania, and DIS in Copenhagen.

Learn more about study abroad