Lehigh University
AC-4: Graduate Program

The interdisciplinary graduate program in Environmental Engineering in the department of Civil and Environmental Engineering maintains and encourages strong interactions with faculty members in other departments, including earth and environmental science, chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science and engineering, and economics. Graduate students are admitted from diverse undergraduate backgrounds, thus enriching the cross-disciplinary spirit of the program.

The graduate program is flexible, accommodating full- and part-time students from a variety of fields, and offers a master's degree with or without a thesis, in addition to a Ph.D.

Graduate students conduct research with professors — and with industry collaborators — from many disciplines and across universities and national labs. The research thrusts of the Environmental Engineering program are directed toward creating new knowledge and finding new technologies to address environmental problems facing society.

The EP degree has three separate tracks through the master’s program. These are the traditional thesis track, the Community Fellows track (coursework only), and the internship track (coursework only). The new internship track was developed to better prepare our graduates for careers in environmental policy, and takes advantage of our relationship with a number of government and non-government organizations, including the United Nations Division for Sustainable Development where we have recently placed a number of EP students.

The main focus of the Professional Master’s Degree Program in Energy Systems Engineering is to prepare new engineering graduates for energy-oriented careers -- a new generation of technical leaders for the energy and power industries. As such, the program is designed for students with B.S. degrees in Engineering or related disciplines. It is a 10-month intensive program that focuses on skills directly relevant to the energy and power industries, and offers significant support mechanisms for students to identify post-graduation employment opportunities. Graduates of the program acquire a level of specialized knowledge and experience that allows them to tackle the challenges of the U.S. utility infrastructure, its operations, and its environmental impact.

The program consists of four CORE COURSES: Energy Generation, Transmission and Distribution: Smart Grid, Energy and the Environment, and Energy Systems Project Management. Additionally, each student in the program completes a 3-6 credit project. These projects are devised to solve real-world problems, and are conceived to respond to the needs of the ESEI's industry partners.

This certificate offers a credential in environmental law and policy for individuals with backgrounds in various science, engineering, social science and humanities fields who wish to understand the theory and practice of environmental and natural resource law at the national, comparative or international level. It's especially valuable for those in environmental fields who came in contact with the law in the course of their work, to policy makers at all levels of government who routinely handle legal affairs to lawyers without specific training in environmental law, and to business people who want to know what the law says about the legality of their business' impact on the natural environment. The certificate also can be preparation for further studies in law, policy, or politics or for professional positions.

Certificate courses can be counted toward the M.A. Degree in Environmental Policy Design, as appropriate.

This certificate offers a credential in environmental policy and planning for individuals with backgrounds in various science, engineering, social science and humanities fields who wish to understand the theory and practice city and regional planning and the interplay between the built and natural environment. Required and elective courses look at the policies and programs designed to best integrate our cities and nature, and to create places where people can live, work, and visit in sustainable ways and that provide residents with both a good quality of life and access to opportunity. The certificate can be preparation for further studies in planning, policy, or politics, or for professional positions.

This certificate offers a credential in sustainable development for individuals with backgrounds in various science, business, engineering, social science and humanities fields who wish to understand the theory and practice sustainable development. Required and elective courses consider the feasibility of and best practices for rationalizing urbanization, ensuring people’s economic well-being, addressing environmental quality and reliance on non-renewable resources, and encouraging social inclusion and equitable growth. The certificate can be preparation for further studies in sustainable development or for professional positions.

See https://environmentalpolicy.cas.lehigh.edu/content/ep-graduate-certificates for more information, also, on the Graduate Certificate in Environmental Health and the Graduate Certificate in Environmental Justice.

Offered graduate programs were not impacted by COVID-19 and therefore are representative of a normal year.