4+1 and 3+2 Programs

The Center offers qualified undergraduate students accelerated masters degree options that allows them to receive an M.S. in environmental policy or climate science and policy, or an M.Ed. in environmental education in an accelerated period of time, in combination with their undergraduate degree. Bard CEP offers a 4+1 option for Bard College undergraduates and a 3+2 option for qualified sophomores nationwide. 

Program Overview

Bard CEP's accelerated masters programs are designed to give driven college students, motivated by a jumpstart a high-impact environmental career, an option to combine their pursuit of undergraduate and graduate degrees and gain value professional internship—all in 5 years. Undergraduate students may integrate Bard CEP graduate-level classes, internships, and Capstone Projects into their undergraduate coursework to earn the following degrees in combination with their bachelors degree:
  • M.S. in Environmental Policy
  • M.S. in Climate Science and Policy
  • M.Ed. in Environmental Education
Bard 4+1 Option
Bard undergraduates enrolling from 2017 on are eligible to complete Bard CEP's 4+1 degree option. Students pursuing this path integrate CEP coursework into their junior and senior-year classes, have a CEP professor on their Senior Project committee, and after graduating from Bard with a B.A., immediately enroll in CEP. They complete a high-level professional internship the summer after graduation and then complete a year of interdisciplinary masters-level coursework working toward either a MS degree (in environmental policy or climate science and policy) or an M.Ed. in environmental education degree.

See below for the Bard CEP 4+1 Curriculum Structure.

Download the Advising Guide below.
Junior Year at Bard
The Bard Center for Environmental Policy invites highly qualified sophomores from institutions across the nation to apply for admission to the 3+2 Program. Students spend their junior year at Bard taking interdisciplinary master’s coursework from one of the degree programs outlined below. Students then return to their home institution, and complete their B.A. or B.S. degree. In the fifth year, students embark on the extended professional internship and return in the spring to finish their master's at Bard. Applicants must consult with their home institution to determine transfer credits for Bard graduate classes, both for counting towards graduation and towards a major or minor.

+ Bard CEP 4+1 Curriculum Structure