Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 69.22
Liaison Leslie Raucher
Submission Date Dec. 11, 2023

STARS v2.2

Barnard College
AC-3: Undergraduate Program

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 3.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Majors, degrees and certificate programs

Does the institution offer at least one ​sustainability-focused​ major, degree, or certificate program for undergraduate students?:
Yes

Name of the sustainability-focused undergraduate degree program:
Environmental Science

A brief description of the undergraduate degree program:
The Environmental Science curriculum recognizes the need for well-trained scientists to cope with balancing human requirements and environmental conservation. Majors acquire an understanding of earth systems by taking courses in the natural sciences, as well as courses investigating environmental stress. Students learn to critically evaluate the diverse information necessary for sound environmental analysis. Courses foster an interdisciplinary approach to environmental problem-solving.

Website URL for the undergraduate degree program:

Additional degree programs (optional) 

Name of the sustainability-focused, undergraduate degree program (2nd program):
Environment and Sustainability

None
A brief description of the undergraduate degree program (2nd program):
The Environment and Sustainability major was approved by the Barnard Faculty in the Fall of 2017, growing out of a revised and renamed version of the Environmental Policy major. Sustainability is a growing field focusing on finding solutions in an ever-changing environment. Majors develop an understanding of the processes and stresses of earth's systems, handle environmental data and make reasoned assessments, and engage in collaborative and interdisciplinary work required for developing approaches to maintain a sustainable environment. Careers in Sustainability are growing to meet the needs of our changing planet.

Website URL for the undergraduate degree program (2nd program):
Name of the sustainability-focused, undergraduate degree program (3rd program):
Environmental Biology

None
A brief description of the undergraduate degree program (3rd program):
Environmental Biology Majors take courses in both the Environmental Science and Biology departments. Majors will have advisers from both departments and will elect whether they will complete senior research thesis coursework in either the Environmental Science or Biology Departments. Career opportunities are possible in: research, natural history museums and parks, environmental education, environmental advocacy, and government agencies.

Website URL for the undergraduate degree program (3rd program):
None
The name and website URLs of all other sustainability-focused, undergraduate degree program(s):
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Minors and concentrations

Does the institution offer one or more sustainability-focused minors or concentrations for undergraduate students?:
Yes

Name of the sustainability-focused undergraduate minor or concentration:
Urban Studies, Environmental Science Specialization

A brief description of the undergraduate minor or concentration:
Majors build an intellectual foundation that combines interdisciplinary coursework and a concentration of study within a single field. The program enables students to explore and understand the urban experience in all of its richness and complexity. It recognizes the city as an amalgam of diverse peoples and their social, political, economic, and cultural interactions within a distinctive built environment. Students study the evolution and variety of urban forms and governance structures, which create opportunities for, as well as constrain, the exercise of human agency, individual and collective. They explore the place of the city in different historical and comparative contexts, as well as in the human imagination. Environmental Science specialization requires 5 courses in either the Environmental Science or Sustainable Development departments.

Website URL for the undergraduate minor or concentration:

Additional minors and concentrations (optional) 

Name of the sustainability-focused undergraduate minor or concentration (2nd program):
History, Concentration in Science, Technology, and the Environment

A brief description of the undergraduate minor or concentration (2nd program):
Studies people’s dynamic interaction with nature, climate, and geography and explores the cultural, economic, political, and social contexts of science and technology. Students investigate how the natural world has deeply informed the development of human societies and in turn how societies have endeavored to change nature, climate, and the environment to suit their historically specific interests.

Website URL for the undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (2nd program):
Name of the sustainability-focused undergraduate minor or concentration (3rd program):
Architecture

A brief description of the undergraduate minor or concentration (3rd program):
No specific concentration or specialization, but sustainability and building efficiency have become central topics within the department.

The studio major in architecture provides students with the opportunity to explore the discipline of architecture within the context of the College’s commitment to liberal arts. The major is introduced through a series of studio and academic courses that explore the multiple relationships between architectural design, history, theory, and criticism. Students are expected to develop technical skills, design excellence, and a critical understanding of architecture as part of our visual, social, and political history and culture. The major is designed to prepare students to work in architecture and related disciplines or pursue graduate study. Most students take advantage of the resources of New York City and the teaching faculty by working in internships in the city while majoring in the field.

Website URL for the undergraduate minor or concentration (3rd program):
The name and website URLs of all other sustainability-focused undergraduate minors and concentrations:
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Optional Fields  

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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