The major in Environmental Studies prepares students to become leaders with expertise in sustaining and conserving our environment and natural resources while balancing the needs of a changing economy. Students prepare to take on service and leadership roles in an area of increasing global and local importance. Seton Hall’s location in northern New Jersey, at the borders of old industrial cities and new and old suburban communities places students at the growing edge of many environmental problems and their solutions: pollution, toxic wastes, land use, Brownfield remediation, development pressures on open space, and habitat loss. New Jersey is home to a number of unique and fragile ecosystems, e.g. the Palisades, the Great Swamp, extensive salt marsh estuaries, and the Pine Barrens and these places provide venues for research and fieldwork. As the Catholic university in the state, Seton Hall brings issues of environmental justice, sustainability and new understandings of stewardship to regional conversations on the environment.

The major in Environmental Studies offers a systematic, interdisciplinary approach to education, insuring the rigorous and integrated use of the natural and social sciences and humanities to understand the profound impacts of human activity upon the interrelations of all components of the natural environment and the critical importance of restoring and maintaining environmental quality. The Environmental Studies major builds upon a foundational interdisciplinary team-taught course in Environmental Studies and culminates in a capstone course that involves the writing of a Senior Thesis under the guidance of a faculty mentor. Global and local in focus, the major involves students in experiential learning through community outreach activities and internships. The major prepares students to be servant leaders who build an environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable society, one that balances the needs of people today with those of future generations.
View the College of Arts & Sciences Core Curriculum requirements »

Required Courses for all tracks

Environmental Education Track

For students interested in enhancing public awareness of environmental issues through schools, non-profit organizations and community-based organizations

For students interested in developing skills for work in the public sector: local, regional, national and international levels.