Environmental Studies
Phone: (405) 325-0595
Email: environmentalstudies@ou.edu
Website: ou.edu/environmentalstudies
Environmental Studies prepares students to take on today’s most pressing environmental challenges through an interdisciplinary lens. In both our Bachelor of Arts (BA) and minor, students gain knowledge and skills from across the natural and social sciences, humanities, and applied disciplines—learning how to connect ideas and work collaboratively to create real-world solutions.
Because the environment touches every aspect of life, protecting it demands creativity, flexibility, and teamwork across fields. That’s what makes Environmental Studies unique. Our program equips students to think critically, analyze complex systems, and collaborate with others to make meaningful change.
Whether pursued on its own or as a double major or minor, Environmental Studies adds valuable cross-disciplinary breadth that complements and enhances any area of study—preparing graduates for a wide range of careers and opportunities in sustainability, policy, research, and beyond.
Students drawn to Environmental Studies are often curious about how people and the planet connect. They’re passionate about protecting natural systems, exploring sustainable solutions, and creating positive change in their communities and beyond.
A strong high school foundation should be broad-based, with courses in physical and natural sciences, geography, history, and writing—all of which help build the critical thinking and communication skills needed to address complex environmental issues.
Environmental studies is a collaborative teaching and research program with a student-guided curriculum designed to create the leadership and a workforce with the skills needed to help meet global challenges relating to water security and other pressing environmental issues such as pollution, climate change, and deforestation.
Environmental studies provides an undergraduate curriculum that leverages water and other environmentally related strengths with expertise across the University of Oklahoma, and provides for scholarly specialization in water-related and other environmental disciplines, in order to prepare students to participate effectively in socially responsible solutions to some of the greatest environmental problems and threats facing humanity.
Environmental studies prepares students for environmentally related jobs, including those in federal, state, and tribal government agencies, environmental consulting firms, corporate, professional, and industrial enterprises, environmentally related NGOs, journalism, public service, law, advocacy, and legislative lobbying efforts.
The environmental studies major offers an extremely flexible degree plan with a core of five courses, all but one selected from lists of options in physical and natural sciences and skills and methods. In addition to the core students must also select nine courses distributed over three basic categories: environmentally related humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences.
A wide variety of courses from all across the university comprise the lists from which the student chooses. The lists include courses in environmental studies, philosophy, English, anthropology, political science, biology, plant biology, economics, history, and history of science, among others. Students have used the flexibility of this program to focus on such things as wildlife conservation, renewable energy, environmental policy, general environmental studies, water issues, and the like. Majors and minors will be well and broadly prepared for work in nonprofit and for-profit organizations, environmental advocacy, environmental policy, outdoor and environmental education, and natural resources management.
The environmental studies major works well in combination with the nonprofit studies minor. It can also be a good double major with fields such as letters, political science, history, international and area studies, plant biology, biology, and communications. For those students with a strong interest in environmental issues who plan to major in business, journalism, education, geography, meteorology, or health sciences, the environmental studies major would work well as part of a double degree program. The environmental studies major is also a great lead in for graduate school in various areas of ecology, conservation, communications, journalism, law school, environmental education, resource management, and environmental management, among others.
Students in the Environmental Studies program earn a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree.
The B.A. is the ideal choice for students who want to understand the environment through a broad, interdisciplinary lens. It blends insights from the natural and social sciences, humanities, and policy studies, giving you the tools to address environmental challenges from multiple perspectives.
While a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) often emphasizes technical or lab-based work, the B.A. goes beyond the data—it focuses on the people, systems, and solutions that drive meaningful environmental change. You’ll develop strong analytical, communication, and leadership skills that prepare you for careers in sustainability, policy, advocacy, and education, or for advanced studies in environmental fields.
In short, the Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies equips you not only to understand the science behind environmental issues, but to lead conversations and create real-world impact.
Environmental Studies students have multiple ways to gain hands-on experience and connect with their interests beyond the classroom:
Environmental Research Experience for Students (ERES) – Work directly with faculty on real-world environmental research projects.
Environmental Studies Internship – Apply what you learn through professional internships focused on sustainability, policy, and community engagement.
You can also explore a variety of student organizations related to environmental and sustainability topics within the College of Atmospheric and Geographic Sciences (AGS).
The Environmental Studies major consists of 30 credit hours that combine core courses with flexible, interdisciplinary electives. The program is designed to help students build a strong foundation in environmental theory, research, and application across multiple fields.
Core Courses (15 credit hours)
Major Electives (15 credit hours)
Group I – Interdisciplinary (6 hrs): Choose two courses that span two or more disciplines.
Group II – Single Discipline (9 hrs): Choose three courses, one each from three of the following four categories:
Natural Sciences
Social Sciences
Humanities
Applied Disciplines
Elective courses are selected from an approved list posted by the department or in consultation with an academic advisor. Learn more at the Program Overview.
OU has numerous study abroad opportunities for students of all majors. Environmental Studies students may want to consider taking a foreign language when studying abroad. Whether you want to take electives, lower-division courses, or major requirements, be sure to check out what education abroad opportunities are available to you through the Education Abroad office.
Visit the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ website to explore the median pay for jobs you can pursue with this degree.
Environmental Studies
Phone: (405) 325-0595
Email: environmentalstudies@ou.edu
Website: ou.edu/environmentalstudies
