PROGRAMS OF STUDY

The Center's Graduate Program offers an intensive course of study and practical training in preparation for environmental careers in nonprofit organizations, government, and the private sector. The program emphasizes methods of critical inquiry, and provides the practical knowledge necessary to apply environmental science to decisions affecting society and to understand the legal, political, socioeconomic, cultural, and ethical forces that influence the decision-making process. Graduates of the program are ready to bring these assets, underpinned by a sense of social responsibility and commitment, to their future work.

Applicants accepted into the program have several degree options:

• Programs of Study
  • Master of Science in Environmental Policy Professional Certificate in Environmental Policy
  • Dual Degree Programs:
    • Bard 3+2 Program
    • Master of Science and Master of Arts in Teaching
    • Master of Science and Juris Doctorate with Pace University School of Law
    • Master's International with the Peace Corps
  • Accreditation
• Curriculum
  • First Year: Workshops, Themes and Courses
  • Second Year: Internship, Courses, and Master's Thesis
• Degree Requirements
• Academic Calendar
• Academic Policies

Graduates are prepared for a wide variety of professional careers—as policy analysts, project managers, and environmental specialists for government, research committees, public interest groups, conservation councils, law firms, health care providers, industry, the media, and green marketing. Others may accept positions as program officers in foundations and corporations; as environmental educators or researchers in schools, libraries, and museums; as public advocates; and as consultants.

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Master of Science in Environmental Policy
Professional Certificate in Environmental Policy

The program leading to the master of science degree in environmental policy offers two options. Most students follow the two-year program, which includes a four- to six-month internship and a Master's Thesis. Active professionals who have at least three years of post-baccalaureate experience in an environmentally related field may apply for a waiver of the internship, which takes place during the fall semester of the second year.

Active professionals with more than five years' work experience who have demonstrable skills duplicating those that would be acquired in the second-year internship and courses may apply for a waiver of the entire second year. Professionals whose experience is not directly related to the environmental field are encouraged to complete an internship to facilitate entry into a new career. If a waiver is granted, these mid-career students will be required to register for the two-credit Master's Thesis Proposal and enroll in either a Master's Thesis tutorial or the spring semester Master's Thesis Seminar. Students who remain in the geographical area are strongly encouraged to enroll in the Master's Thesis Seminar, as the regular peer and faculty review facilitates students' progress toward timely completion of the Master's Thesis Report.

A professional certificate is earned after successful completion of the first year of courses. Should the certificate recipient decide to continue toward the master's degree, either immediately or at a later time, second-year course work and all other requirements must be completed within five years after entrance into the program. Individuals interested in a flexible course of study should consult with the director of the Center prior to application.

The General Concepts Workshops, which initiate the program, are required of all candidates for both the master of science degree and the professional certificate in environmental policy.

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DUaL DEGREE PROGRAMS

Bard 3+2 Program

Dane Klinger ('06) is the first Bard student to complete the accelerated 3+2 program. Dane graduated Bard College after five years of study with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Studies and a Master of Science degree in Environmental Policy. Dane completed his internship at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and currently holds a position as a research associate at the Blue Ocean Institute in Cold Spring Harbor, NY.

Qualified Bard undergraduates may apply to begin graduate studies at BCEP during the fourth year of study at Bard College. 3+2 students work with an undergraduate and graduate advisor to ensure completion of all requirements for both the Bachelor's and Master's degrees. 3+2 students graduate with both degrees after five years of full-time study at Bard College. The Program is open to a range of undergraduate majors. Interested students should contact BCEP.

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Master of Science and Master of Arts in Teaching

In June 2004, the first class of students entered the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) Program at Bard College, a one-year intensive program leading to an M.A.T. degree and New York State certification to teach English, math, or history. In June 2006, the program expanded to include certification in biology. Students accepted into both programs enroll in the first year of the BCEP curriculum and then complete the MAT program requirements and a joint research project.

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Master of Science and Juris Doctorate
with Pace University School of Law

Created in 2003, this joint degree program offers students the opportunity to complete, in an accelerated period, a master of science degree in environmental policy at Bard College and a doctorate in jurisprudence with a certificate in environmental law at Pace University. The program consists of four years in residence—two and a half years at Pace and one and a half years at Bard. The program, combining Bard's innovative graduate curriculum with one of the nation's leading environmental law programs, is open to new students, to those in their first or second year at Pace University School of Law, and to those in their first year in the BCEP program. Upon completion of the first-year BCEP curriculum, students enroll at Pace University School of Law for five semesters. A student's summer internship/externship experiences for credit in the Pace law program satisfy the BCEP internship requirement. The final semester of the joint degree program is spent at Bard in the Master's Thesis Seminar, and in final courses required for graduation.

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Master's International with the Peace Corps

Choosing between graduate school and the Peace Corps can be difficult. The Master's International (MI) Program offers qualified applicants the opportunity to incorporate the internationally focused, hands-on experience of Peace Corps service into the BCEP master's degree program. MI students complete the first year of graduate studies before starting Peace Corps training and an assignment. Peace Corps volunteers in the MI Program complete their BCEP internship requirement through their service overseas, while also working toward completion of their Master's Thesis. MI students are granted a 10-credit tuition fellowship for the internship. Students must pay an administrative fee and tuition for the remainder of final-year course work. After completing Peace Corps service and the final semester of the BCEP program, MI participants graduate and enter the job market with the unique combination of an advanced degree and two years of substantive professional experience in an international setting.

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Accreditation

The Bard program of study leading to the master of science degree is registered by the New York State Education Department, Office of Higher Education and the Professions, 89 Washington Avenue, 2 Mezzanine West, Education Building, Albany, NY 12234; tel. 518-474-3862; website www.highered.nysed.gov. Bard College is accredited by the Commission of Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the Association of American Colleges, College Entrance Examination Board, American Council on Education, Associated Colleges of the Mid-Hudson Area, and Education Records Bureau.

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CURRICULUM

The overriding goal of the Center's graduate training is to provide the methods of inquiry, knowledge, and tools necessary for the creation of realistic and effective policies concerning the environment. Toward this end, the curriculum is designed to integrate:

• Scientific foundations of environmental policy making
• Ecosystem functions
• Environmental systems analysis
• Environmental economics
• Natural resource economics
• Law and regulations, enforcement and compliance mechanisms
• Political processes and institutional arrangements
• Human and ecosystem health
• Ethical and moral dimensions of policy and environmental stewardship
• Tools for analysis: statistics and research methods and geographic information systems
• Multimedia communication strategies

First Year: Workshops, Themes, and Courses

Workshops

Students, faculty, and staff after completing the 2005 workshops.

The Workshops constitute a "walk in their shoes" introduction to the methods, tools, and daily concerns of environmental professionals, with an emphasis on the range of factors that influence the policy-making process. The historic Hudson Valley is used as a laboratory to introduce students to critical policy issues as well as illustrative features of the natural and built environments. During field trips to sites of major environmental interest and controversy, students meet with professional staff in key government, corporate, and nonprofit institutions. Policy issues and topics raised during the Workshops relate to watershed protection, land-use practices and economic development, green design and construction, wetlands ecology, waste treatment, energy options and demand, parks management, environmental education, legislative frameworks, and rule making. Summer readings prepare students for lectures and discussions held during the field trips.

Themes

Floating classroom in Tivoli Bays Marsh. Chuck Neider, Research Coordinator at the Hudson River National Estuarine Research Reserve Station (located on Bard's campus) leads a discussion on wetland conservation. The HRNERR is operated by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

The courses described below move progressively through several topics—all concurrently addressing the same environmental theme. The curriculum's organization provides the context for the courses and enables students to examine in an integrated, comprehensive, and realistic manner one particular environmental area at a time. During Biological Diversity, for example, students examine ecosystem health, population ecology, and effects of habitat fragmentation on biological diversity in the Scientific Foundations course; valuation of various species and amenities such as public parks, analysis of irreversible actions, and instruments such as tradable development rights and easements, in Economic Foundations and Applications; related issues of land-use planning, federal and state legal regimes for protection and restoration of habitats and property rights, ethical considerations, and international agreements, in Political and Legal Foundations; and methods for monitoring systems of ecosystem health and species loss, in Tools for Analysis.

The broad range of themes discussed throughout the first year curriculum include:

• air and atmosphere
• water and fisheries
• land, forest, and soil
• biological diversity
• energy
• agriculture
• urban systems
• industrial ecology
• risks to human health

Courses

John Cronin, Executive Director of the Beacon Institute, Director of the Pace Academy for the Environment, and the first Hudson River Riverkeeper, speaks with students at a reception following his presentation during the 2005 workshops.

The first-year courses link natural ecosystems and their functioning to the impact of socioeconomic activities, and to the political, institutional, and legislative responses that address environmental problems. Emphasizing analytical frameworks and basic principles through examples and case studies, the courses are designed to focus on the topic specified in each of the subject themes. Joint class sessions, field trips, and attendance at conferences further expose students to the critical issues and contemporary practices of environmental policy.

Environmental policy professionals need to be able to communicate their knowledge clearly and effectively through the spoken and written word, as well as with images, data, and figures. The program emphasizes various modes of communication and persuasion through written exercises and both individual and group presentations on environmental policy. Students have the opportunity to develop these skills further during their internships and in the Communication Strategies and Project Management course during the second semester of the second year.

Scientific Foundations of Environmental Policy (8 credits)

Students examine natural resource and environmental issues, with particular reference to mass and energy transfer, systems analysis, and sustainability. Regional and international implications of "local" environmental problems are explored. Special emphasis is given to the problem of translating scientific knowledge into workable policies. Students learn how scientific knowledge applies to environmental issues, and explore the difficulty of policy making under conditions of risk, scientific uncertainty, and incomplete information.

Students learn the concepts, principles, and debates surrounding biogeochemical cycles, systems analysis, the role of simulation models in policy formulation, air-water-land linkages, wetlands and other surface waters, point and nonpoint pollution, eutrophication, acid deposition, land-use and land-cover change, sustainable forestry, soils and soil quality, carbon sources and sinks, land-surface processes, energy production and use, climate change and variability, planetary energy balance, greenhouse gases, ozone depletion, the role of oceans in climate stability, endangered species and loss of genetic diversity, habitat fragmentation and restoration, food-producing systems, confined animal–feeding operations, genetically modified organisms, green design, urban heat-island effect, waste disposal, ecotoxicity, pollution prevention, life-cycle analysis, vector-borne diseases, natural hazards, uncertainty, risk assessment and management, and integrated assessment.

The following courses—Economic Foundations and Applications and Political and Legal Foundations—provide the basis for exploring how society has responded to changing environmental conditions. The policy tools that are used to address these conditions, including laws, regulations, market-based instruments, and voluntary agreements, are shaped by a variety of political, cultural, and ethical factors. Students learn how these factors come together to influence the policy-making process. They learn how policy tools can be applied locally, regionally, and globally to influence behavior, achieve or go beyond compliance, and manage change for the preservation of natural resources and protection of the environment.

Economic Foundations and Applications (8 credits)

This course provides an overview of the principles, policy instruments, and practice of using economics to analyze various environmental and natural resource problems. Students focus on, but are not limited to, the study of environmental protection, resource conservation, evaluation of environmental costs and benefits, and optimal management of natural resources. Much of the course material is applied, including material from Statistics and Research Methods (described below).

Political and Legal Foundations (8 credits)

This course brings out the dynamic and complex relationship among various factors—legal, political, cultural, and ethical—that influence the environmental policy-making process. Students examine responses to environmental changes that rely on legal and regulatory instruments, the courts, public hearings, and voluntary agreements. They also take into account the nature of state-federal relationships in developing and applying the law, as well as the role of techno- logical options, the tension between private and public interests, and equity considerations. Transboundary environmental concerns that touch on the global commons are explored with a view toward responses by the international community and the effectiveness of international agreements.

Statistics and Research Methods (2 credits)

In the fall semester of the first year, students gain a basic understanding of statistical methods used to design or conduct environmental monitoring and sampling programs, develop and interpret quantitative data, and conduct environmental research activities. Topics include research design, statistical distributions, sampling, hypothesis testing, correlation, and regression analysis. The instructor uses environmental examples and problems, with emphasis on real-world applications.

Geographic Information Systems (2 credits)

In the spring semester of the first year, students explore the various methods used by economic geographers and scientists and experiment with the fundamentals of modeling, data analysis, mapping, and impact assessment. Practical exercises relate to themes studied throughout the year.

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Second Year First Semester: Internship and Master's Thesis

In the second year, students specialize by concentrating on career interests through a four- to six-month internship, the Master's Thesis, and courses emphasizing leadership training, financial management, and communication skills. The Master's Thesis and Master's Thesis Presentation are the final requirements for graduation.

First Semester

Internship (10 credits)

The internship provides hands-on experience working with professionals in the field and facilitates entry into the job market. Internship arrangements with public, private, and nonprofit institutions offer a wide range of choices, providing real benefits to the student and to the collaborating organization.

Tamara Mitrofanenko ('07) (standing), pictured with colleagues from her internship at the Geneva office of the United Nations Environment Programme, while attending a conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, that discussed natural resource protection as a measure to maintain peace and security in the Caucusus.

During the first year, students begin to explore opportunities for internships and to define the nature of their Master's Project in consultation with their advisers and collaborating organizations. The internship is planned for the first semester of the second year, although many students elect to begin during the summer between the two years. Students in the Master's International Program complete the internship through their Peace Corps service. Students in the joint degree program with Pace University School of Law must complete two internship/ externship courses through the School of Law to satisfy the BCEP internship requirement. Students in the dual M.S./M.A.T. program satisfy the requirement through student teaching.

A letter of agreement between the student, the collaborating institution, and the BCEP formalizes the arrangement and specifies responsibilities of all parties. A reporting system provides regular contact among the student, adviser, and supervisor. This process enables all concerned to follow and evaluate progress on the agreed internship assignment, Master's Thesis Proposal, and interim accomplishments.

• Click here to see a list of Internship Opportunities

The broad range of opportunities for internships allows students to follow their preferred areas of specialization locally, elsewhere in the United States, and abroad.

Master's Thesis Proposal (2 credits)

The Master's Thesis must be original research with practical application to a specific environmental problem. Normally linked to some aspect of the student's internship, the thesis should reflect the multifaceted nature of an actual environmental issue by investigating aspects of the natural and social sciences and the humanities.

Jon Sarno ('06) presenting his Master's Thesis, "Our Energy Future: A Financial and Technical Viability Analysis of Renewable Energy Technologies for the Adaptive Reuse of the Columbia Boxboard Mill." Jon is currently the Director of Research at Solaqua Power and Art, an arts and education center entirely powered by renewable energy.

Students utilize knowledge and experience from their first-year course work and internship to develop a thorough analysis and then recommend policies or action on their chosen problem. With prior approval, students may complete a nontraditional Master's Thesis, which may take other than a written form, including multimedia educational materials, a conference or workshop, an exhibition, or a prototype technology.

The student begins to formalize project ideas during the first year in consultation with a faculty thesis adviser. The internship allows the student to explore policy issues, and usually serves as the springboard for the student's project. During the internship period, a formal proposal is presented to the student's adviser, who chairs the individual's Master's Thesis Committee. The committee is composed of three members, two of whom are faculty; the third committee member should be an outside expert who provides specialized advice on the project. Initial project work is then begun under the guidance of both the adviser and the outside expert.

• Click here to see a list of Recent Master's Thesis Topics

Second Year Second Semester: Courses and Master's Thesis

Courses

Communication Strategies and Project Management (2 credits)

Students learn how to communicate clearly and accurately about environmental problems, and how to target information for different purposes and to audiences in different sectors. Students become familiar with various approaches to conveying a message, including public service announcements, radio interviews, research papers, scholarly articles, press releases, and legislative briefs. Classes with voice and speech coaches help students hone their presentation and public speaking skills, while lectures from veteran environmental journalists offer insight into working with the press. The project management component examines project development and evaluation, effective meeting structure, and the different cultures that prevail in corporations, government, and nonprofit organizations. Students learn about fundraising, foundations, and grant writing.

Topical Seminar (2 credits)

Taught by an outside expert, this capstone experience gives students a chance to scrutinize a particular case study or analyze some facet of environmental policy. Each year students choose a seminar from two offerings. Topics may include environmental journalism, U.S. environmental advocacy since the 1970s, international management of e-waste, a legal examination of the Exxon Valdez disaster, Hudson River chemistry and toxicology, globalization and sustainability, or socially responsible investing.

Master's Thesis

Master's Thesis and Seminar (10 credits)

Diana Nezamutinova ('06) of Tyumen, Russia, fields questions after presenting her Master's thesis entitled "Financing Energy Efficiency Projects in Russia: Is There a Need for Carbon Credits?" Diana is currently working as an Energy Auditor for Power Concepts, an energy efficiency consulting firm in Manhattan.

The seminar offers a platform for students to present progress reports on their Master's Thesis and systematically analyze substantive issues stemming from their project research. Students discuss typical policy issues and problems addressed in their theses or experienced during the internships, along with different ways of dealing with them. Special attention is given to how statistics, data, and graphs are used in conveying project results. The seminar provides the opportunity for students to explore together the applied interaction among science, political forces, values, and particular economic interests in producing policy outcomes. The seminar also offers students the chance to receive critiques of their work from not only their peers, but also a team of professors from different disciplines who lead the class together.

The project report must be approved by the student's Master's Thesis Committee as the final requirement for graduation. Following completion of the thesis, the student gives a public presentation.

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SUMMARY OF DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

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ACADEMIC CALENDAR

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ACADEMIC POLICIES

Grading and Academic Standing

The Center's Graduate Program uses the 4.0 grading system: A, 4.0, excellent; B, 3.0, good; C, 2.0, minimally acceptable; D, 1.0; and F, failing. An A, B, or C grade plus or minus indicates that the grade is raised or lowered by about 0.3.

Students must maintain a B-minus average and receive a grade of C or better in all required courses to remain in good academic standing. A student whose grade point average falls below B-minus in the first semester is placed on academic probation. The student must demonstrate substantial progress in the second semester, achieving at least a B-minus average to remain in the program.

Educational Rights and Privacy Act

The Center complies with the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. This act assures students attending a postsecondary institution of their right to inspect and review certain of their educational records and, by following the guidelines provided by the College, to correct inaccurate or misleading data through informal or formal hearings. It protects students' rights to privacy by limiting transfer of these records without their consent, except in specific circumstances. Students have the right to file complaints with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Office, U.S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C. College policy relating to the maintenance of student records is available on request from the Office of the Registrar, Bard College, PO Box 5000, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000.

Notice of Nondiscrimination

The Bard Center for Environmental Policy does not discriminate in education, employment, admission, or services on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, race, color, age, religion, ethnic or national origin, or handicapping conditions. This policy is consistent with New York State mandates and with governmental statutes and regulations, including those pursuant to Title IX of the Federal Educational Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Questions regarding compliance with the above requirements and requests for assistance should be directed to the Vice President for Administration, Bard College, PO Box 5000, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000.

Medical Records and Health Insurance

All students are required to complete a health packet, prior to arrival at Bard, that includes documentation of a recent physical examination and thorough immunization records. New York State law requires that all students born after January 1, 1957, provide proof of immunization against measles, mumps, and rubella. Additionally, students must be provided information about meningococcal meningitis and must either document having received the vaccine or sign a waiver declining it. For information about immunization requirements and health insurance, call the Student Health Service at 845-758-7433.

The College requires that students either purchase the College's basic health insurance plan or provide proof of alternate coverage. Details about the College's insurance package will be provided to all accepted students.

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Bard College, PO Box 5000, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000 | Tel: 845-758-7073 | E-mail: cep@bard.edu