Curriculum (prior to August 2011)

The following Environmental Studies Certificate curriculum is available for declaration until August 28, 2011. Students who are currently declared in the 26 credit certificate may complete it or, have the option to switch to the new major or new 15 credit certificate requirements. The number of credits required for the Environmental Studies Certificate was changed because the Nelson Institute in partnership with the College of Letters & Science is now offering a major in Environmental Studies.

A minimum number of credits is required in each of the following four units, for a final total of 26 credits, including at least one field course. The units are as follows:

  1. Perspective Courses, 6 credits, including both of the following courses:
    • Envir St 112 Environmental Studies: The Social Perspective, 3 credits
    • Envir St 113 Environmental Studies: The Humanistic Perspective, 3 credits
    These two courses, normally taken at the beginning of the curriculum, must be completed with a minimum grade of "B."
  2. Fundamental Science Courses, 8 credits, with at least one course or pair of courses chosen from each of the following categories:
    Principles of Natural Science
    • Biocore/Biology 301 Evolution, Ecology, and Genetics, 3 credits
    • Biocore/Biology 302 Evolution, Ecology, and Genetics Laboratory, 2 credits
    • Botany/Biology 130 General Botany, 5 credits
    • Geog/Envir St 127 Physical Systems of the Environment, 5 credits
    • Soil Sci/Atm Ocn 132 Earth's Water: Natural Science and Human Use, 3 credits and Soil Sci/Geog/Envir St 230 Soil: Ecosystem and Resource, 3 credits
    • Zoology/Biology 101 Animal Biology, 3 credits, and Zoology/Biology 102 Animal Biology Laboratory, 2 credits
    • Zoology/Botany/Biology 151 Introductory Biology, 5 credits
    • Zoology/Botany/Biology 152 Introductory Biology, 5 credits
    Basic Ecology
    • *Botany/F&W Ecol/Zoology 460 General Ecology, 4 credits
    • *Envir St 126 Principles of Environmental Science, 4 credits
    • *F&W Ecol 550 Forest Ecology, if taken at the 4-credit level, which includes lab
    • Zoology/Botany 260 Introductory Ecology, 3 credits
  3. Breadth Courses, 9 credits, with at least one course chosen from each of the following three categories:
    Natural Sciences
    • Atm Ocn/Envir St/Physics 472 Scientific Background to Global Environmental Problems, 3 credits
    • Atm Ocn/Envir St 520 Bioclimatology, 3 credits
    • Atm Ocn/Envir St/Geog 528 Past Climates and Climatic Change, 3 credits
    • *Botany/F&W Ecol 455 The Vegetation of Wisconsin, 3 credits
    • *Botany/F&W Ecol/Zoology 460 General Ecology, 4 credits
    • BSE/Envir St 367, Renewable Energy Systems, 3 credits
    • *Envir St/Land Arc 361 Wetlands Ecology, 3 credits
    • *Envir St 375 Field Ecology Workshop, 3 credits
    • Envir St/Pop Hlth 471 Introduction to Environmental Health, 3 credits
    • Envir St/Pop Hlth 502 Air Pollution and Human Health, 3 credits
    • Envir St/Soil Sci 575 Assessment of Environmental Impact, 3 credits
    • Envir St/Botany/F&W Ecol/Zoology 651, Conservation Biology, 3 credits
    • F&W Ecol 318 Principles of Wildlife Ecology, 3 credits *Available to declared F&W Ecology Majors Only*
    • *Geog/Envir St 325 Analysis of the Physical Environment, 4 credits
    • Geog/Atm Ocn/Envir St 331 Climatic Environments of the Past, 3 credits
    • Geog/Atm Ocn/Envir St 332 The Global Warming Debate, 3 credits
    • Geog 338 Vegetation: Stability and Change, 3 credits
    • Geosci/Envir St 410 Minerals as a Public Problem, 3 credits
    • Geosci/Envir St 411 Energy Resources, 3 credits
    • *Land Arc 666: Restoration Ecology, 3 credits
    • *Land Arc 667 Field Study: Native Plant Communities, 3 credits
    • Soil Sci/Envir St 324 Soils and Environmental Quality, 3 credits
    • Soil Sci/F&W Ecol 451 Environmental Biogeochemistry, 3 credits
    • Soil Sci/Atm Ocn 532 Environmental Biophysics, 3 credits
    • Zoology/Envir St 315 Limnology: Conservation of Aquatic Resources, 2 credits
    • *Zoology 316 Laboratory for Limnology: Conservation of Aquatic Resources, 2 credits
    • Zoology/F&W Ecol/Envir St 360 Extinction of Species, 3 credits
    • Zoology/Anthro/Botany 410 Evolutionary Biology, 3 credits
    • *Zoology 475 Marine Biology and Ecology, 3 credits
    Social Studies
    • AAE/Econ/Envir St 343 Environmental Economics, 3-4 credits
    • AAE/Envir St 344 The Environment and the Global Economy, 3 credits
    • AAE/Nutr Sci/Agronomy/Inter-Ag 350 World Hunger and Malnutrition, 3 credits
    • Anthro 470 Ecological Anthropology, 3 credits
    • Econ/Soc 663 Population and Society, 3 credits
    • Envir St/M&EnvTox/Pl Path 368 Environmental Law, Toxic Substances, and Conservation, 2 credits
    • Envir St/Poli Sci/Urb R Pl/Econ 449 Government and Natural Resources, 3-4 credits
    • Envir St/Urb R Pl 668 Green Politics: Global Experience, American Prospects, 3 credits
    • F&W Ecol/Envir St 515 Renewable Resources Policy, 3 credits
    • Geog 319 Environmental Evaluation and Adaptation, 3 credits
    • Geog/Envir St 339 Environmental Conservation, 3-4 credits
    • Geog/C&E Soc/Envir St 434 People, Wildlife and Landscapes, 3 credits
    • Geog/Envir St 537 Culture and Environment, 4 credits
    • Geog 538 The Humid Tropics: Ecology, Subsistence, and Development, 4 credits
    • History/Envir St/Geog 460 American Environmental History, 4 credits
    • History/Amer Ind 490 American Indian History, 3-4 credits
    • Nutr Sci/Agronomy/Inter-Ag/AAE 350 World Hunger and Malnutrition, 3 credits
    • C&E Soc/Soc 541 Social Behavior and Natural Resources, 3 credits
    • C&E Soc/Soc 573 Community Organization and Change, 3 credits
    Humanities
    • Envir St 307 Literature and the Environment: Speaking for Nature, 3 credits
    • F&W Ecol/History/Envir St 452 World Forest History, 3 credits
    • Hist Sci/Envir St 353 History of Ecology, 3 credits
    • History/Envir St/Geog 460 American Environmental History, 4 credits
    • History/Chc Std 461 The American West to 1850, 4 credits
    • History/Chc Std 462 The American West Since 1850, 4 credits
    • History/Amer Ind 490 American Indian History, 3-4 credits
    • L Sc Com/Amer Ind 444 Native American Environmental Issues and the Media, 3 credits
    • Med Hist/Hist Sci/Envir St 513 Environmental and Health in Global Perspective, 3 credits
    • Philos/Envir St 441 Environmental Ethics, 3-4 credits
    • Philos/Envir St 453 Aesthetics of the Natural Environment, 3 credits
    • Philos/Envir St 523 Philosophical Problems of the Biological Sciences, 3 credits
  4. Integrative Course, a capstone experience, 3 credits, one of the following courses:
    • Botany 468 Patterns in Biological Design: An Introduction to Systems Biology, 3 credits
    • Envir St/Soil Sci 575 Assessment of Environmental Impact, 3 credits
    • Envir St 600 Environmental Studies Certificate Seminar, 3 credits
    • F&W Ecol/AAE/Envir St 652 Decision Methods for Natural Resource Managers, 3-4 credits
  5. Field Course. At least one course choice must be a field course, identified with asterisks (*) in the list above.

Brief descriptions of these courses can be found in the Undergraduate Catalog. Paper copies of some of the syllabi are available for viewing in the Academic Programs Office, 70 Science Hall. Detailed descriptions of the integrative courses and other limited-enrollment courses can be found on our Course Information web page. For questions about course content or prerequisites, contact the course instructor. For enrollment questions contact our Timetable Coordinator.

Double Counting. Courses listed under more than one category in the certificate curriculum may be used to satisfy only one certificate category. For example, a student who selects Envir St/Soil Sci 575 as the integrative course cannot use it also to satisfy the certificate's natural science breadth requirement. Double counting of credits with a student's major and/or degree requirements, however, is completely acceptable.

Grade Requirements. A minimum grade point average of 2.0 within the certificate curriculum is required for successful completion of the certificate. No exceptions are made. A minimum grade of 3.0 ("B") is required in both Envir St 112 and Envir St 113. If a student fails to receive a minimum grade of "B" in these courses, he or she may request a course substitution to use a comparable course from the certificate's breadth categories in place of the perspective course already completed. If such a request is approved, the student must earn a minimum grade of "B" in the substituted course as well as in the additional course that he or she completes to meet the particular breadth category requirement (i.e., social studies breadth or humanities breadth).

Pass/Fail Courses. No more than two courses completed successfully on a pass/fail or credit/no credit basis may be counted toward the certificate requirements, and these two courses are allowed only within the certificate's breadth areas (i.e., natural sciences, social studies, humanities). All other courses must be taken for letter grades.

Course Substitutions. In most cases, substitutions are considered in breadth categories only. Requests should be made before a course has been taken; after-the-fact substitution requests normally are not considered except for transfer course work completed before a student attended UW-Madison. If additional transfer course work or study abroad course work is planned, it should be submitted for review in advance. All substitutions should be requested by submitting a course substitution form. Although the certificate program recognizes the value of precollege Advanced Placement (AP) courses, these courses may not be used to fulfill the requirements of the certificate, either as courses or as substitutions for courses.

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