Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science
The B.S. in Environmental Science (BSES) is designed to provide a scientific background with both breadth and depth to prepare students for professional science-related employment and for advanced study at the graduate level. Students must complete a set of Foundations, Intensive Writing, Breadth of Inquiry, and Public Oral Communication requirements, a core curriculum, and a field experience requirement.

Required Courses

Common Ground (~24-30 cr.)

See https://gened.indiana.edu/approved-courses/index.html for updated requirements and a complete list of course options.

I. BSES Foundation Courses

Mathematics, Statistics, and Computation (9-13 cr. depending on course selections)

One of the following courses:

• MATH-M 119 Brief Survey of Calculus I (3 cr.) and MATH-M 120 Brief Survey of Calculus II (3 cr.) (P: MATH-M 119)
• MATH-M 211 Calculus I (4 cr.)

One of the following courses:

• SPEA-K 300 Statistical Techniques (3 cr.) (P: MATH-M 014 or equivalent; R: MATH-M 118)
• STAT-K 310 Statistical Techniques (3 cr.) (P: MATH-M 119 or equivalent)
• MATH-K 310 Statistical Techniques (3 cr.) (P: MATH-M 119 or equivalent)
• GEOG-G 488 Applied Spatial Statistics (3 cr.) (P: 6 cr. of Geography or consent of instructor)

One of the following courses:

• SPEA-E 325 Computing for Environmental Scientists (2 cr.)
• SPEA-V 261 Technology in Public Affairs (3 cr.)
• BUS-K 201 The Computers in Business (2-3 cr.)
• CSCI-A 110 Introduction to Computers and Computing (3 cr.)
• CSCI-A 321 Computing tools for Scientific Reseach (4 cr.)
• GEOG-G 250 Computing in the Geospatial Sciences (3 cr.) (P: One of MATH-M 118, M 119, M 211, or equivalent, or consent of instructor)

Chemistry (10-11 cr.)

The following three courses:

• CHEM-C 117 Fundamentals of Chemistry and Biochemistry (3 cr.) (P: CHEM-C 101 & C 121 or CHEM-C 103, or placement test and consent of dept.)
• CHEM-C 127 Fundamentals of Chemistry and Biochemistry Laboratory (2 cr.) (P or C: CHEM-C 117)
• CHEM-C 341 Organic Chemistry I Lectures (3 cr.) or CHEM-R 340 Survey of Organic Chemistry (Note: Students considering a minor in chemistry should take CHEM-C 341) (P: CHEM-C 117, S 117, C 106, or C 243)

Select one of the following courses:

• SPEA-E 464 Organic Pollutants: Environmental Chemistry and Fate (3 cr.) (R: CHEM-C 341 or R 340)
• CHEM-A 314 Biological and Environmental Chemical Analysis (2 cr.) (P:CHEM-C 341, S 341, or R 340 and MATH-M 119 or M 211)
• CHEM-C 342 Organic Chemistry II Lectures (3 cr.) (P: CHEM-C 341 or S 341)
• EAS-E 444 Methods in Analytical Geochemistry (2 cr.)

Biology (8 cr.)

• BIOL-L 111 Foundations of Biology: Diversity, Evolution, and Ecology (4 cr.)
• BIOL-L 112 Foundations of Biology: Biological Mechanisms (4 cr.) (P: High school or college chemistry)

Physics (5 cr.)

One of the following courses:

• PHYS-P 201 General Physics I (5 cr.)
• PHYS-P 221 Physics I (5 cr.)

Communication (9 cr.)

One of the following courses:

• ENG-W 231 Professional Writing Skills (3 cr.)
• ENG-W 240 Community Service Writing (3 cr.)
• ENG-W 270 Argumentative Writing (3 cr.)

• SPEA-V 436 Communication for Government and Nonprofit Organizations
• COLL-P 155 Public Oral Communication (3 cr.)

• An additional course to satisfy the College of Arts and Sciences Intensive Writing Requirement. This requirement applies to all BSES students. For a current list of Intensive Writing courses, use the CASE Designations search tool.

II. Environmental Science Courses (30 cr.)

1.  One of the following courses:

• EAS-E 118 Sustainability: Water Resources (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 107 Physical Systems of the Environment (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 208 Environment and Society (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 272 Introduction to Environmental Science (3 cr.) (R: SPEA-E 183)

2.  Additional courses from the following list that total at least 27 credit hours. Students are strongly encouraged to select courses in consultation with an academic advisor or environmental science faculty member.

• BIOL-B 300 Vascular Plants (4 cr.)
• BIOL-B 351 Fungi (3 cr.)
• BIOL-B 352 Fungi: Laboratory (2 cr.)
• BIOL-B 371 Ecological Plant Physiology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-B 364 Summer Flowering Plants (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 211 Molecular Biology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 307 Biodiversity (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 311 Genetics (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 318 Evolution (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 319 Genetics Laboratory (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 376 Biology of Birds (4 cr.)
• BIOL-L 377 Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 433 Tropical Biology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 465 Advanced Field Biology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 472 Microbial Ecology (3 cr.
• BIOL-L 473 Ecology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-L 474 Field and Laboratory Ecology (2 cr.)
• BIOL-L 479 Evolution and Ecology (4 cr.)
• BIOL-M 250 Microbiology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-M 315 Microbiology Laboratory (2 cr.)
• BIOL-M 465 Environmental Microbiology Laboratory (3 cr.)
• BIOL-Z 373 Entomology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-Z 374 Invertebrate Zoology (3 cr.)
• BIOL-Z 375 Invertebrate Zoology Laboratory (2 cr.)
• BIOL-Z 406 Vertebrate Zoology (5 cr.)
• BIOL-Z 476 Biology of Fishes (3 cr.)
• CHEM-A 314 Biological and Environmental Chemical Analysis (2 cr.)
• CHEM-A 315 Chemical Measurements Laboratory (2 cr.)
• CHEM-A 316 Bioanalytical Chemistry Laboratory (2 cr.)
• CHEM-C 317 Equilibria and Electrochemistry (2 cr.)
• CHEM-C 318 Spectrochemistry and Separations (2 cr.)
• EAS-E 225 Earth Materials (4 cr.)
• EAS-E 351 Elements of Hydrology (3 cr.)
• EAS-E 444 Methods in Analytical Geochemistry (1-2 cr.)
• GEOG-G 304 Physical Climatology (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 305 Environmental Change – Nature and Impact (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 307 Biogeography: The Distribution of Life (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 336 Environmental Remote Sensing (3 cr.) or SPEA-E 419 Applied Remote Sensing of the Environment (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 338 Geographic Information Science (3 cr.) or SPEA-E 418 Vector-based GIS (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 341 Ecological Restoration: Science and Politics (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 350 Field Methods in Physical Geography (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 405 Ecological Climatology (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 407 Climate Dynamics (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 436 Advanced Remote Sensing: Digital Image Processing (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 438 Advanced Geographic Information Science (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 444 Climate Change Impacts (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 451 Water Resources (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 452 Tree Ring Science (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 477 Topics in Climatology (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 488 Applied Spatial Statistics (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 489 Advanced Geospatial Data Analysis (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 316 Mineral Fuels and Materials (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 328 Energy, Resources, and the Environment (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 334 Principles of Sedimentology and Stratigraphy (4 cr.)
• GEOL-G 339 Weather Analysis and Forecasting (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 341 Natural History of Coral Reefs (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 347 Instrumentation for Atmospheric Science (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 364 Dynamic Meteorology: Boundary-Layer Meteorology (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 406 Introduction to Geochemistry (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 413 Introduction to Geophysics (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 415 Principles of Geomorphology (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 423 Methods in Applied Geophysics (4 cr.)
• GEOL-G 435 Glacial and Quaternary Geology (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 437 Advanced Synoptic Meteorology and Climatology (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 438 Air Pollution Meteorology (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 451 Principles of Hydrogeology (3 cr.)
• GEOL-G 476 Climate Change Science (3 cr.)
• PHYS-P 310 Environmental Physics (3 cr.)
• PHYS-P 317 Signals and Information Processing in Living Systems (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 332 Introduction to Applied Ecology (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 375 Techniques in Environmental Science (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 400 Topics in Environmental Studies (1-3 cr.) (approved topics only; consult a SPEA advisor; repeatable for credit)
• SPEA-E 401 Human Behavior and Energy Consumption (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 410 Introduction to Environmental Toxicology (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 411 Introduction to Groundwater Hydrology (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 426 Applied Math for Environmental Science (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 431 Water Supply and Wastewater Treatment (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 440 Wetlands Ecology and Management (4 cr.) (P: SPEA-E 272)
• SPEA-E 442 Habitat Analysis—Terrestrial (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 443 Habitat Analysis—Aquatic (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 451 Air Pollution and Control (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 455 Limnology (4 cr.)
• SPEA-E 456 Lake and Watershed Management (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 457 Introduction to Conservation Biology (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 460 Fisheries and Wildlife Management (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 461 Fisheries and Wildlife Management Laboratory (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 464 Organic Pollutants: Environmental Chemistry and Fate (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 490 Directed Research in Environmental Science (1-4 cr.) or BIOL-L 490 Individual Study (1-4 cr.) or GEOG-G 450 Undergraduate Research in Geography (1-3 cr.), or GEOL-G 410 Undergraduate Research in Geology (1-6 cr.). BSES students are encouraged to pursue independent research, however no more than 6 credits total of SPEA-E490, BIOL-L490, GEOG-G450, or GEOL-G410 may be used to satisfy the 27 credit hours of environmental science course work
• Or other courses in environmental science approved by the BSES Program Directors.

III. Field Experience Requirement (5-6 cr.)

A “field experience” course includes student-conducted environmental data collection in the field, as well as analysis of that data and a presentation of it (paper, oral or poster). Courses with these characteristics but not listed here may be approved by the BSES Program Director.

Select one of the following options:

1. GEOL-X 329 Introductory Field Experience in Environmental Science (5-6 cr.), or GEOL-X 479 Geology, Hydrology, and Geochemistry (6 cr.), or comparable course work at an approved biological field station

Note that GEOL-X 329 and GEOL-X 479 are held at the Geologic Field Station in Montana and are typically taken after the sophomore or junior year. Students interested in attending a biological field station should consult the BSES Program Director prior to attending the field station.

2. Two of the following courses:

• BIOL-L 465 Advanced Field Biology (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 350 Field Methods in Physical Geography (3 cr.)
• GEOG-G 452 Tree Ring Science (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 375 Techniques in Environmental Science (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 400 Topics in Environmental Studies (1-3 cr.) (with approval of specific topic by BSES Program Director)
• SPEA-E 442 Habitat Analysis-Terrestrial (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 443 Habitat Analysis-Aquatic (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 440 Wetlands Ecology and Management (4 cr.) (P: SPEA-E 272)
• SPEA-E 422 Urban Forest Management (3 cr.)
• SPEA-E 455 Limnology (4 cr.) (P: college chemistry and biology or permission of instructor)
• SPEA-E 482 Overseas Topics in Environmental Science (0-15 cr.) (with approval of specific topic by BSES Program Director) (3 cr.)

Courses used to satisfy the Field Experience Requirement cannot be used to satisfy any other degree requirement.

IV. Electives

Sufficient additional courses to reach a total of 120 credit hours. Students are encouraged to pursue a minor, certificate, or second major in a biological, physical, or social science field that complements the interdisciplinary training provided by the B.S. in Environmental Science.