DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Specialization in Environmental and Biological Conservation

The Department of Environmental Sciences, in conjunction with the Department of Biology, offers an opportunity for students to obtain the Bachelor of Arts or Science in Environmental Sciences with a Specialization in Environmental and Biological Conservation. Candidates for the Specialization must fulfill all the requirements for the Environmental Sciences major with additional Specialization requirements.

REQUIREMENTS

The requirements for the Specialization are as follows:

1 Four core EBC courses: one in environmental/ecological conservation (EVSC 222), one in evolutionary/biological conservation (BIOL 345), population ecology (EVSC 413) and a 2-credit seminar in conservation (EVSC 493/494)

2 An additional twelve upper-level credits in Environmental Sciences or Biology (these may overlap with your Envi Sci major requirements).

3 The four core environmental science courses (EVSC 280, 320, 340, 350) with their labs.

4. Related math and science courses required are calculus (MATH 121 or 131), organismal biology (BIOL 202 or BIOL 301) with lab (BIOL 204), and either chemistry with lab (CHEM 141/141L) or physics with lab (PHYS 151/201L).

The Conservation Specialization requires at the 12 upper-level (>200) courses must include at least one course in each of the following areas:

• Biological Diversity - a course focused on a particular group of organisms (e.g. plants, birds, mammals);

• Environmental Diversity - a course focused on a particular habitat (e.g. wetlands, oceans, forests, grasslands, tundra);

• Techniques in Conservation - a course focused on policy, related chemical or physical sciences, statistics, modeling, geo-spatial analysis or field methods;

• Field Experience - this can be fulfilled with an independent study or field course at a University of Virginia biological or ecological field station (Mountain Lakes Biological Station, Blandy Experimental Farm, Anheuser Busch Coastal Research Center), involvement with faculty research in the Environmental Sciences or Biology department, or an internship with a conservation agency.

The Conservation Specialization can be completed as part of the B.S. degree in Environmental Sciences provided that all of the B.S. requirements are met.

Students who are interested in this Specialization should consult with an advisor who is a faculty of the Environmental and Biological Conservation Program, preferably when declaring their major. See also the “EBC curriculum planning” guide on our webpage, or visit http://www.vcrlter.virginia.edu/~evscdb/index.shtml for more info.

Maintained by kml5h@virginia.edu and hee2b@virginia.edu.