Let Nature Be Your Classroom as an Environmental Studies Major

Come explore our unique location on the shores of coastal Maine. As an Environmental Studies major, you will explore the ocean, river, woodlands, wetlands, and vernal pools, as well as beach and dune habitats. Your opportunities for environmental program research and field work on campus are nearly limitless in our 540-acre natural wonderland. Off campus opportunities include internships and global experiences. Nature will be your classroom as you earn your Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies and acquire the professional skills needed to make a real difference for the environment.

An environmental studies student uses a radio telemetry while walking through a forest
Three students work on planting chestnut trees outside

Why UNE for Environmental Studies

From the red maples in the swamps of our 363-acre forest to the harbor seals on our privately-owned island, UNE is brimming with flora and fauna whose habitats serve as a living laboratory for your exploration as you pursue your Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies.

  • Hands-on projects, field trips, research, and internships
  • First-year interdisciplinary Green Learning Community
  • Short-term faculty-led study abroad courses
  • Unique campus setting encompassing diverse habitats
  • Deep sense of community and collaboration
Headshot of Kyle Beem

Kyle Beem ’19

Environmental Science, Environmental Studies

Why UNE

A big thing for me coming to UNE is the small class size — all of my classes have less than thirty people — so you get really close with [people in] your major and you have a lot of time with teachers. I think it's really positive that you can meet with your professor, they actually know your name, and they take the time to help you to get better.

Experiential Learning

Last semester, I took Avian Ecology with Noah Perlut, and we got to have hands-on learning experiences with birds that are residents and non-residents within Southern Maine. We got to mis-net the birds, catch them, band them, and see where they end up all across the United States and in different countries. I’m a hands-on learner, so any kind of outside experience or in-the-field experience is beneficial for me personally, but just getting out there and doing the research with someone as dedicated as Noah is incredible. I think getting that experience has really helped me so now if I want to do research after school, I can just do that.

Global Opportunities

I studied abroad on UNE’s Tangier campus for a semester. Tangier was incredible. I mean, you get to live in Africa for four months, and you get many opportunities to travel to many different places. [The experience] opened my eyes up to a lot of different cultures. The school put on trips to Rabat, Chefchaouen, and more. We went to Marrakesh and the Sahara Desert. Apart from those, I also traveled to Madrid and Seville in Spain then later to Amsterdam. 

A big thing for me coming to UNE is the small class size…so you get really close with [people in] your major and you have a lot of time with teachers. I think it's really positive that you can meet with your professor, they actually know your name, and they take the time to help you to get better.

Environmental Science, Environmental Studies

What Will You Study? Environmental Studies Degree Curriculum Overview

Since 1991, the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences has defined environmental awareness as a major theme in the College’s Core Curriculum and asked the Environmental Studies program to deliver the course Introduction to Environmental Issues to all undergraduates regardless of major. The UNE College of Arts and Sciences is one of the few in the nation that requires formal instruction in Environmental Studies as a requirement for graduation.

Examples of Available Courses for the Environmental Studies Degree

The following are just some examples of the exciting courses that the Environmental Studies major offers:

  • Sustainability and Ecological Restoration
  • Environmental Communication: Expert Practices for Ecosystem Management
  • Contemporary Nature Writing
  • Environmental Movements and Social Change
  • Environment, Health, and Community Development in East Africa
  • Climate Change Adaptation: Planning and Policy

Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies with Secondary Teaching Certification

If you are interested in becoming a middle school or high school science teacher, you may select the necessary courses in secondary education as electives and complete the teaching internship required to qualify for State of Maine certification (grades 7–12) upon graduation.

Double Majors for Environmental Studies

As an Environmental Studies major, you may opt to double major in another discipline. This popular way to enhance your career-preparedness allows you to complete both degrees in four years and prepares you for the complexity of real-world environmental challenges.

For more information including current double major requirements and course sequences, email envstudies@xsdvoip.com.

Popular Double Majors for Environmental Studies Students

Green Learning Community

The Green Learning Community (GLC) is an intentional community of professors and first-year students dedicated to studying human relations to the environment. The year-long experience integrates courses in biology, environmental issues, literature, and economics.

In classes, you will find the same topic presented from different perspectives. You learn about the environment in an atmosphere where your opinions are welcomed and valued by supportive professors who foster a sense of community.

Much of the learning you do through the GLC takes place outside the classroom. The community-building experiences begin early in the fall with a retreat to Bryant Pond where you explore your individual goals for learning while collaborating in outdoor activities like hiking, paddling, and working through a ropes course. Additional field trips throughout the year take you to places like the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve, Wildlife Conservation Lands, and the Portland Trail System.

The small class sizes in the GLC allow you to receive individual attention and instruction that help develop your academic, research, and communication skills.

Meet our faculty and professional staff

Restoring the American Chestnut Tree in Maine

University of New England Professor of Environmental Studies Thomas Klak, Ph.D., and his students, have joined the work to restore the iconic American chestnut tree — once one of the most important forest trees throughout North America, until the species was devastated by a blight.

Career Paths for Environmental Studies Degree Grads

With the knowledge you gain from your Environmental Studies degree coursework, the critical thinking skills you develop through research, and the life skills you acquire from internships and close working relationships with faculty and peers, you will be well on your way to an exciting career working in environmental programs.

Our graduates have pursued careers in many fascinating fields, including:

  • Environmental Advocacy
  • Air and Water Resource Management
  • Ecological Restoration
  • Education
  • Habitat Conservation
  • Park Management
  • Environmental Impact Assessment
  • Toxicology
  • Field Research
  • Environmental Law and Regulation

Career Advising for Environmental Studies Majors

Whether you have a specific career goal in mind or a vague idea of the field that interests you, Career Advising is here to help you plan your next step.

Environmental Studies Facilities

Within a short walk or drive from UNE's Biddeford Campus, you may explore a variety of unique habitats, including the University's 363 acres of contiguous forest. The State of Maine Natural Areas Program has labeled the land a "habitat of significant value" due to its high density of pocket swamps and vernal pools. The area contains both uplands and wetlands, and is home to many species, including wild turkeys, deer, coyotes, and moose.

Our Biddeford Campus is also your stepping stone to some of Northern New England’s most intriguing ecosystems.

Local Habitats

Our campus offers the chance to explore the lush coast and rich woodlands of Southern Maine.

  • UNE Nature Trail is a campus trail system runs along the Saco River.
  • UNE's 363-acre forest is explored in many classes and is also great for mountain biking.
  • Basket and Stage Islands are accessible at low tide over the sand flats.
  • East Point Bird Sanctuary is owned by the Audubon Society and has views of Wood Island lighthouse.
  • Biddeford Pool is the largest tidal pool in Maine and is great for observing coastal wildlife.
  • The Saco Heath is a raised peatland (bog), home to the carnivorous pitcher plants (protected by the Maine Chapter of the Nature Conservancy).
  • Clifford Park is a 52-acre woodland preserve owned by the city of Biddeford and is great for mountain biking and cross-country skiing.

Regional Habitats

These protected lands serve as ideal day trips from our campus.

  • Mount Agamenticus Conservation Region is 10,000 acres of bio-diverse undeveloped forest.
  • Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge is a national wildlife refuge that spans 50 miles of coastline between York and Cumberland counties.
  • The Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve expands our knowledge about coasts and estuaries with an emphasis on ensuring healthy salt marsh ecosystems.
  • White Mountain National Forest is 800,000 acres of federally managed forest and mountains in western Maine and New Hampshire. A 75-minute drive from campus.
  • Acadia National Park is comprised of a cluster of islands on the Maine coast. It is positioned within the broad transition zone between eastern deciduous and northern coniferous forests and hosts several species and plant communities at the edge of their geographic range. A 3.5-hour drive from campus.

Experiential Learning in Environmental Studies

Survey and monitor wetlands, teach public school children about recycling, or spend a weekend at an ecovillage. At UNE you don’t just learn environmental studies — you do environmental studies.

Research Opportunities in Environmental Studies

Whether you’re studying the eastern gray squirrel in our own backyard or analyzing soil erosion in Kenya, there are many opportunities to join faculty in their research or to design your own research project. Examine rare species, explore threatened habitats, or investigate best practices in the stewardship of natural resources.

Internships for Environmental Studies Students

Local, national, and global internships enable you to put your classroom learning to work by building life skills, networking in the field, and exploring career options.

For more information email the Academic and Career Advising Center at advising@xsdvoip.com.

Center for Sustainable Communities

The Center for Sustainable Communities is an internship and service-learning program that creates mutually beneficial partnerships between students and environmental organizations in the communities surrounding UNE's Biddeford Campus. Through hands-on involvement with local governments, nonprofit organizations, and community groups, you field-test academic learning in situations that help you "think globally, act locally." For more information email Dr. Christine Feurt

Possible internship sites

Getting Goat Island Off the Grid

Discover UNE’s 363-Acre Forest

Environmental Studies Fieldwork

Field Trips

Many upper-level Environmental courses include a significant field component. Through our classes you might participate in any of the following:

  • Weekend visit at an ecovillage
  • Conferences, such as the International Society of Tropical Foresters/Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies Yearly Conference
  • Overnight camping trips to UNE’s 350+ acre property and to the White Mountains
  • Visits to the offices of land conservation nonprofit organizations
  • Wetland surveying and monitoring at local bogs, freshwater marshes, salt marshes, riparian areas, and red maple swamps
  • Service Learning Trips with Cultivating Community, a nonprofit in Portland, Maine working in urban agriculture, youth leadership training, and sustainability
  • Field trips to local incinerators (Eco Maine in Portland and MERC in Biddeford)
  • Field trips to local Community Supported Agriculture Farms
  • Field trips to the Biddeford Recycling Center
  • Service Learning trip to York County Shelter, Inc. in Alfred, Maine
  • Field Trips to Portland Trails and hiking along the Presumpscot River Trail in Portland
  • Field Trip to Liberty Farms to see a horse-logger operation in Saco, Maine
  • Field trip to the Maine Forest Service office in Alfred, Maine

Field-Based Environmental Humanities

Our Environmental Humanities field trips allow you to step outside the classroom to immerse yourself in natural and human-constructed environments that enhance your understanding through direct experience. 

From your first semester, you explore the local natural landscape through different literary, historical, and philosophical lenses. For example, you might read Henry David Thoreau and then visit the Beaver Pond Trail, a local wildlife commons created and managed by a member of the faculty.

In your study of environmental history, you read characteristic New England landscapes — forests, coastlines, and waterfront cities — to learn how past interactions between humans and nature give significance to the places we inhabit today. You explore how an understanding of the past informs current environmental issues.

During these excursions, you: 

  • Explore the ocean surf and tide pools where the first Europeans wintered in North America.
  • Paddle the Saco River through the foothills of the White Mountains.
  • Bushwhack across a forest to reach Maine’s largest American Beech tree.
  • Canoe a glacial cirque lake closely resembling Walden Pond.
  • Tour by boat the historic canal system and walk the historic textile factory floor of Lowell National Historic Park to examine how 19th century industrialization affected river conditions and laborers’ lives.
  • Read the forested landscape, searching for remnants of historic agriculture and forestry practices, and converse with longtime residents to understand the forest past and inform current conservation.
  • Tour urban parks and green spaces, expanding your appreciation of these places by retracing past visions and debates over their development.
  • Walk the coastline and trails of a historic salt marsh farm to explore the historic importance of past resource management decisions on coastal ecosystems and communities.

Global Education in Environmental Studies

Aside from UNE's opportunities to spend a semester abroad, you find travel courses. To enroll in these courses, you must submit an application to the Global Education Program. You are encouraged to apply for a Global Education scholarship when applying to these courses.

Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies FAQ