The Degree Requirements

The Masters in Environmental Studies degree requires a minimum of 41 credit hours.

Each student is required to complete a sequence of core courses. Students select electives from a range of approved courses, according to their area of interest. All students are required to complete either a thesis or a research internship in order to fulfill the degree requirements.

Core Courses

Students are required to take 18 credit hours of core courses as outlined below. The core courses fall into five categories: Seminars, Statistics, Policy, Science, and Case-Based. In addition to the Core Courses, students will complete 6 credit hours of either Thesis or Internship work

SEMINARS

EVSS 646	1 hour	Graduate Core Seminar (Fall or Spring)

STATISTICS *

EVSS 659	3 hours	Environmental Statistics

POLICY

EVSS 602	3 hours	Public Policy
and EVSS 601	3 hours	Economic Theory for Policy Analysis

SCIENCE **

EVSS 610	3 hours	Environmental Biology
or EVSS 640	3 hours	Earth Systems Science
or EVSS 641	4 hours	Aqueous Geochemistry (with Lab)
or EVSS 650	3 hours	Energy Production and Resource Management

CASE-BASED

EVSS 680	4 hours	Case Studies in Environmental Issues

* As a prerequisite to the core course EVSS 659: Environmental Statistics (offered in the Spring), each student must either take MATH 250: Statistical Methods I (an undergraduate course offered by the College of Charleston) or an equivalent college level statistics course OR pass the MES entrance exam in Statistics.

** Students focusing on Environmental Science will want to take a science core course outside of their specific area of concentration.

Student Progress and Evaluation

Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA during their course of study. Should a student's GPA fall below a 3.0, he or she will be placed on academic probation and given one semester in which to raise the average to the minimum.

MES students must achieve a minimum grade of "B" or better in five of the six core courses.Students may, with the approval of the Steering Committee, retake core courses in which they receive grades lower than "B." Failure to achieve the required grade upon retaking the course will usually result in dismissal from the program, as will a grade of less than a "C" in any course. Extenuating circumstances will be considered by the Steering Committee.

At the end of each semester, the student's record will be reviewed to determine whether he or she is making adequate progress toward the degree. Should a student fail to make adequate progress toward the degree, the Steering Committee may recommend termination from the program.

Requirements for the MES degree must be completed within five years from the matriculation date.

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