Environmental Science Bachelor of Science: Aquatic and Earth Science Track

The information on this page pertains to requirements for students who matriculated in the current academic year. Students who matriculated in a prior year should view historical catalog information here.

Program Overview

This interdisciplinary science degree prepares students in a liberal arts tradition to understand connections between human beings and their effects on the Earth's environment. Drake environmental science students are grounded in the natural sciences disciplines while also acquiring the ability to synthesize information across disciplines. Students develop technical and quantitative skills including laboratory and field methods, statistical analysis and the implementation of geographic information systems (GIS). Courses in the social sciences such as economics, politics, policy and ethics provide an important link to the human element associated with environmental issues. Graduates of the program will be well prepared to undertake graduate study in diverse fields of environmental sciences, as well as to work in governmental and nongovernmental capacities on environmental issues.

Field work is a key component of this degree, featured in biology, geology and environmental classes. Iowa's central location in the nation allows students to experience a diversity of ecosystems and human communities during frequently offered weekend and summer field trips. The program also connects students with ongoing environmental projects (for example an 8,000-acre prairie restoration project including bison and elk at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge, 20 miles east of campus), with offerings at Iowa Lakeside Laboratory in Milford, Iowa (a biological field station), and with semester-long marine science experiences at the University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.

Drake’s environmental science major is distinguished by its strong focus on interdisciplinary study, emphasis on field experiences, opportunities for research and independent study, and service learning approach in the Senior Capstone experience.

B.S. Degree Requirements

The B.S. degree program is designed to provide significant experience in research. Students will become collaborators with faculty and contribute to all aspects of a research project from proposal and hypothesis formation to data analysis, interpretation and presentation. The research typically occurs at Drake University with Drake faculty, but it could also be completed during an off-campus experience with a non-Drake adviser (e.g., study abroad, local workplaces). Off-campus research still requires an ENS faculty adviser (through enrollment in ENSS 197 ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH.

Additional requirements for the B.S. degree:

Collaboration with a faculty advisor in a significant research project (minimum of 2 semesters)
Research proposal submitted to the ENS program and approved before your senior year
BIO 140 BIOLOGY RESEARCH AND STATISTICAL METHODS, or its advisor-approved equivalent
A minimum of 2 credits of ENSS 197 ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
Oral presentation of the research to ENS faculty and students
Research paper and a copy of the presentation submitted to the ENS program

Students planning to complete a B.S. in ENS should obtain a copy of the full description of the B.S. requirements from their advisor or the program director by their sophomore year.

At least 25 credits in this major will include courses not counted towards another major or minor.