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Concentrations & Advising

  • New ENSP students begin as Undeclared ENSP majors in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, where they will be guided through an exploratory process. Please contact Dr. Whittemore (see below) for your initial appointment.
  • Students who want to declare ENSP and have completed 40 or more credits must submit a draft graduation plan in advance. Please review "Becoming an ENSP Major" prior to your first advising meeting.
  • Once ENSP students declare a concentration, they move to the College and department sponsoring the concentration; and are advised by a faculty member in their discipline.
Advising Resources
Areas of Concentration
Undeclared in ENSP

All new ENSP students meet with Dr. Whittemore, who will guide them through an exploratory process and prepare a graduation plan. ENSP students are encouraged to declare their concentration by 40 credits. After that, they are advised by a faculty member in the major and college sponsoring the Concentration. If you would like to explore ENSP as a possible major, please go HERE first, then contact Dr. Whittemore.

    Advisor: Dr. Wendy Whittemore, Assoc. Dir., Environmental Science & Policy
    0220 Symons Hall <--- Note new office location
    (301)405-8571
    Email: wwhitte@umd.edu

    Note --> I have two offices on campus, so it is easier to reach me by e-mail than by phone. Please send me THREE different days/times that would be good for you to meet and I will e-mail back to confirm one of them. Remember to include your UID so I can pull your transcript and prepare for our meeting.

Biodiversity & Conservation Biology

Biodiversity is defined at three levels: Genetic diversity (the variety of genetic information contained in all organisms), Species diversity (the variety of different living species) and Ecosystem diversity (the variety of habitats, the species that live in the habitat, and ecological processes). Biodiversity is invaluable to the process of evolution since it represents the pool of resources from which evolution can select; it is the key to adaptation to changes, since the greater the biodiversity, the more resilient an ecosystem will be to recover from natural disasters or human intrusions. This concentration provides a background in the biological principles that influence the diversity of life, especially those that create and those that reduce diversity.

Earth Surface Processes

The earth's surface does not exist in a static, unchanging "natural" condition interrupted only by the work of humans, but instead it is a dynamic system of which humans are a part. Knowledge about changes to the Earth's surface and the underlying processes that induce them has enormous impact on how society responds to these changes and, ultimately, the cost of responding to change. This concentration helps students achieve a whole-system understanding of the interrelationships among earth surface processes, ecological systems, and human activities. MATH 140 is required in this Concentration.

    Requirements - HERE
    Sample Graduation Plan - HERE

    Advisor: Dr. John Merck, Geology
    1119 Geology Building
    (301)405-2808 or (301)405-4379
    E-mail: jmerck@umd.edu

    To meet with Dr. Merck:

    * Consult my schedule web page: http://www.geol.umd.edu/~jmerck/advising/
    * Pick out your top three half-hour time slots and list them in order in an e-mail to me.
    * I'll schedule you for an appointment and confirm by e-mail

    Caveats:
    * Don't consider the appointment firm until you hear back from me.
    * Don't try to sign up for an appointment less than 24 hrs in advance.
    * I'll try to keep my schedule up to date. I will probably update it daily, but no more than that. See you soon!

Environment & Agriculture

Both locally and internationally, there is increasing concern about how humans manage soils, use water, raise animals, and modify the genetic base of crops. This concentration prepares students to work in agroecology, agricultural land management and conservation, integrated pest management, and plant protection and production science. There is also a sub-concentration appropriate for those wishing to work internationally with organizations like the Peace Corps.

Environmental Economics

Economics is the study of the allocation of scarce resources. Economics is not simply about profits or money. It applies anywhere constraints are faced, so that choices may be made. Economists study how incentives affect people's behavior. Environmental and natural resource economics is the application of the principles of economics to the study of how environmental and natural resources are developed and managed. To enhance career options in economic analysis, MATH 140 is strongly recommended.

Environmental Restoration & Management

The term "environmental restoration" refers to the process of restoring the functional aspects of a given ecosystem to a semblance of its pre-disturbance state. The reasons for the disturbance vary greatly, but are, in almost every case, caused by humans. This concentration provides students with an integrated background in biological and environmental sciences to build a foundation for understanding the principles and philosophies of restoring and managing environmental and ecological systems, such as beaches, wetlands, aquifers and streams. In addition, students will be prepared to work in such areas as watershed management; deforestation and reforestation; flood control; brownfields redevelopment; land disposal of solid wastes; and land use development at the interfaces of urban, suburban, and rural areas.

Global Environmental Change

Global climate change presents complex challenges in many respects. First, the science of climate change involves atmospheric, ocean, land, and social sciences. Second, policy responses involve difficult economic decisions and complicated implementation mechanisms. Third, the implications of climate change, for example, for sea level rise, are uneven throughout the world, raising questions about who should pay to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and who suffers from climate change. Stratospheric ozone and climate change are two examples of global environmental issues. Others, such as loss of biodiversity, are equally complex. This science-oriented concentration prepares students to addresses the scientific underpinnings, societal impacts, and policy responses to global environmental issues. To take full advantage of the physical sciences offered and/or to prepare for a science-oriented career, MATH 140 is strongly recommended.

Land Use

"Land" is where "soil" and "people" meet; and there are often competing demands for land, for example, agriculture, forestry, rangeland, conservation, settlement, and recreation. Demographic and socioeconomic changes and the increasing demand for food and housing are resulting in extensive and intensive land use changes. Further, while much land use change takes place locally, its implications can be regional and global. For these reasons, the study of land use is becoming increasingly important and requires a multidisciplinary approach. The revised concentration provides students with a background in the ecological, cultural, regional, and international dimensions of land use, while developing broad technical skills in Geographic Information Science and remote sensing. As a result, this concentration prepares students for positions in land use planning, sustainable land development, and land conservation.

Marine & Coastal Management

Development of coastal land, some of the most expensive land available, must increasingly account for environmental effects, the likelihood of storm damage, and the increasingly complex evolution of legal concepts in the face of rapidly changing science. From assessing the impact of one-quarter of the world’s population on the coastal ocean to wise stewardship of fishery and other commercial resources, the career potential for undergraduates trained in ocean and coastal science is large. To prepare for this, students will learn the basic principles of oceanography and littoral processes, and their relationship to meteorological conditions and forcing; learn about factors influencing biological productivity in the coastal zone; utilize geospatial analysis and data assimilation to become familiar with computer modeling; and gain a background in environmental policy as it relates to marine and coastal management and land use. In order to take full advantage of coursework required in the physical sciences, Marine and Coastal Management students will complete MATH 140. Explore the "Student's Guide to Marine & Coastal Management" - HERE.

Requirements - HERE
Sample Graduation Plan - HERE

Advisor: Dr. Michael Kearney, Geography
1157 Lefrak Hall
Phone:301.405.4057
E-mail: kearneym@umd.edu

Politics & Policy

This concentration gives students an understanding of the forces shaping political behavior, the nature and workings of political institutions, and the ways in which both domestic and international structures constrain environmental policy responses. Explore the Politics & Policy homepage - HERE.

Society & Environmental Issues

Human societies have greatly transformed the environment from the local to the global and the transformed environments are increasingly affecting human societies. In order to understand these changes this concentration focuses on how societies are organized and operate and how they interact with the environment. It offers a basic understanding of stratification, culture and norms, public opinion, the polity, the economy, population and demography, and social change in order to help interpret the interaction of environment and society. Here is another very good description of the problems studied by those in "society and environmental issues" (click HERE).

Soil, Water, & Land Resources

Soil forms an essential part of the environment, affecting or controlling most living things. Soil science draws from geology, geography and a variety of other natural and life sciences, focuses land use management at the watershed scale and provides an integrated knowledge of soil and water dynamics to control problems like non-point source pollution, wetland delineation, and land classification.

Wildlife Ecology & Management

Wildlife is a term for the diversity of natural populations of plants and animals that exist in the biosphere. Although wildlife usually refers to vertebrate animals and higher plants, in a more general sense the term covers all natural biodiversity. Today, the study of wildlife ecology is a rigorous science that spans biological scales from the genome to the biosphere. Methods include inventory techniques for population size and condition, physiological function, migratory patterns, habitat evaluation and food web studies. Management of wildlife is especially challenging because it requires the very best ecological science as a foundation, in addition to a strong perspective in social science. Thus, the field of wildlife ecology and management requires interdisciplinary training and a broad curriculum. Further, with careful course selection and appropriate postgraduate experience, graduates will be eligible for Certification as Wildlife Biologists.

Wildlife Resources & Conservation

Wildlife biologists perform habitat evaluations; monitor and evaluate species populations; develop species management plans; provide technical assistance to public and private landowners; conduct educational programs; and plan and execute habitat improvement projects. This concentration applies the biological and animal sciences to these problems and others, including: captive propagation of threatened or endangered species, identifying the effects of environmental contaminants on wildlife, and managing the agriculture-wildlife interface in an increasingly urban society.

    Requirements - For students who declared Wildlife BEFORE Fall 2006. Not open to new students.

    Sample Graduation Plan - For students who declared Wildlife BEFORE Fall 2006. Not open to new students.

    Advisor: Dr. Bruce James, Director, Environmental Science & Policy
    0119 Symons Hall
    (301)405-8571
    E-mail: brjames@umd.edu