Environmental Science

Overview

The relevant graduate training will provide advanced Environmental Science courses in four distribution areas:

• Biology - Courses in the biological sciences in which the emphasis is on ecology, especially at the population, community, and ecosystem levels.
• Chemistry - Courses in chemistry as applied to organisms or to the environment, with an emphasis on pollution/environmental toxicology courses.
• Physical Sciences and Technology - University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Courses dealing with the physical world or with the application of physical principles or technology to biological or environmental problems. 
• Management, Economics, and Policy - Courses dealing with the interaction of economic, legal, political, and/or social institutions with the biological, chemical, or physical environment.

Accreditation

UMCES has been committed to graduate education for more than 35 years. Faculty members teach and mentor MS and PhD students. Historically, students have received degrees and diplomas from degree-granting institutions in the University of Maryland System (USM), primarily from the University of Maryland College Park (UMCP).

In 2012-13, the Board of Regents and Maryland General Assembly authorized UMCES to become a degree-granting institution within the USM. To do so, UMCES initiated an accreditation process with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) and submitted its Accreditation Readiness Report (ARR) in August 2013. Acceptance of the ARR by MSCHE advanced UMCES to Candidacy for accreditation, which allows UMCES to award graduate degrees. The first MS and PhD degrees were jointly awarded with UMCP in May 2014. UMCES submitted its Self-Study Design to MSCHE in October 2014. Its approval was followed by initiation of self-study, with completion scheduled by summer 2015. Final evaluation by MSCHE is anticipated in winter 2015-16. If approved, UMCES will then be fully accredited.