Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 55.58
Liaison Stephen Ellis
Submission Date April 26, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Boston University
AC-1: Academic Courses

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.87 / 14.00 Dennis Carlberg
Associate Vice President for Sustainability
BU Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Figures required to calculate the percentage of courses with sustainability content::
Undergraduate Graduate
Total number of courses offered by the institution 2,568 1,917
Number of sustainability courses offered 74 40
Number of courses offered that include sustainability 63 66

Number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer at least one sustainability course and/or course that includes sustainability (at any level):
58

Total number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer courses (at any level):
227

Number of years covered by the data:
One

A copy of the institution’s inventory of its course offerings with sustainability content (and course descriptions):
An inventory of the institution's course offerings with sustainability content (and course descriptions):
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The website URL where the inventory of course offerings with sustainability content is publicly available:
A brief description of the methodology the institution followed to complete the course inventory:

All sustainability courses and courses that include sustainability were compiled from a list provided by Institutional Research. A sustainability@BU intern then excludes course types indicated in this section, then identifies sustainability courses and courses that include sustainability. A list of courses that lack clarity is vetted with the Sustainability Director and the faculty teaching these courses. Courses that are not verified are removed from the list of those meeting the criteria for courses including sustainability.

Courses offered to both undergraduate and graduate students are counted in the undergraduate category. Courses offered by multiple schools and colleges within the University are specially formatted to avoid double counting. Courses are also filtered by type to ensure the most accurate reporting possible. Directed Study, Independent Study, Thesis, Physical Development Program, and Music Application course types are excluded from the inventory, due to the highly individualized course content of these offerings.


How did the institution count courses with multiple offerings or sections in the inventory?:
Each course was counted as a single course regardless of the number of offerings or sections

A brief description of how courses with multiple offerings or sections were counted (if different from the options outlined above):
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Which of the following course types were included in the inventory?:
Yes or No
Internships Yes
Practicums Yes
Independent study No
Special topics Yes
Thesis/dissertation No
Clinical No
Physical education No
Performance arts No

Does the institution designate sustainability courses in its catalog of course offerings?:
No

Does the institution designate sustainability courses on student transcripts?:
No

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

All highlighted courses were included in accordance with the definition of sustainability/sustainable development outlined within the Earth Charter at http://www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/mods/theme_a/img/02_earthcharter.pdf.


All highlighted courses were included in accordance with the definition of sustainability/sustainable development outlined within the Earth Charter at http://www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/mods/theme_a/img/02_earthcharter.pdf.

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.