Environmental Conservation and Management (ENVC)
Sustainably managing for healthy, functioning ecosystems while improving human-well being requires skilled interdisciplinary leaders.
The Environmental Conservation and Management degree equips students to meet today’s conservation challenges by integrating ecological and social science with practical management skills. Our program prepares students to work across sectors—with communities, non-profits, government agencies, and private companies—to develop and implement conservation strategies that sustain ecosystems and enhance human wellbeing. With a strong emphasis on applied learning, students gain the knowledge and experience to lead in diverse contexts, whether their focus is wetlands, forestry, coastal resilience, biodiversity and protected areas, forest systems and working landscapes, or urban sustainability. Through a comprehensive blend of classroom instruction and field-based coursework, our graduates are prepared to make an impact.
Our Core Learning Objectives include:
- Interdisciplinary Knowledge: A foundation in ecological principles, environmental policy, and the human dimensions of conservation to understand and navigate complex environmental issues.
- Applied Skills: Training with multiple field methods, monitoring and evaluation, stakeholder engagement, and adaptive management—essential for planning and implementing effective conservation strategies.
- Field Experience: Opportunities for immersive, real-world learning through outdoor classrooms, field labs, and applied research projects across diverse landscapes and communities.
- Collaborative Problem-Solving: Exposure to collaborative frameworks and experiential learning that build communication, leadership, and team-based decision-making skills.
- Career Readiness: A strong bridge to careers in environmental consulting, land and water management, sustainability planning, nonprofit work, and public service through professional development and advisor mentorship.
The ENVC Major combines environmental, social science, and management coursework aligned with the program’s core learning objectives. To further tailor their academic training and prepare them for impactful professional careers, students complete a required minor that complements the interdisciplinary nature of the degree. Several minors have been designed specifically to complement the ENVC degree, including:
Social Science Minors:
Ecological Minors
- Coastal Management
- Forest Health
- Natural Resources Ecology
- Restoration Ecology
- Urban Forestry
- Watershed Sciences
Interdisciplinary Minors
Other minors at Auburn may also be paired with the ENVC major such as business, leadership, communications, one-health, fisheries, geography, or sustainability.
| Freshman | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| BIOL 1020 Principles of Biology & BIOL 1021 Principles of Biology Laboratory | 4 | BIOL 1030 Organismal Biology & BIOL 1031 Organismal Biology Laboratory | 4 |
| FOWS 1010 Introduction to Renewable Natural Resources | 1 | ENGL 1120 English Composition II | 3 |
| Fine Arts | 3 | History or Social Science1 | 3 |
| History | 3 | NATR 2020 Natural Resources Field Methods | 3 |
| ENGL 1100 English Composition I | 3 | NATR 2050 People and the Environment: An Introduction to Conservation Social Sciences | 3 |
| NATR 2200 Current Topics in Environmental Conservation and Management | 2 | ||
| 16 | 16 | ||
| Sophomore | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| CHEM 1030 Fundamentals Chemistry I | 3 | Literature or Humanities1 | 3 |
| CHEM 1031 Fundamental Chemistry I Laboratory | 1 | CHEM 1040 Fundamental Chemistry II | 3 |
| PARK 3010 Environmental Interpretation | 3 | CHEM 1041 Fundamental Chemistry II Laboratory | 1 |
| Literature1 | 3 | ECON 2020 Principles of Microeconomics | 3 |
| FORY 5470 GIS Applications in Natural Resources | 2 | MATH 1130 Pre-Calculus Trigonometry | 3 |
| Free Elective | 1 | Humanities | 3 |
| 13 | 16 | ||
| Junior | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| FORY 3100 Dendrology | 3 | Minor | 6 |
| Minor | 3 | Restricted Management Elective2 | 3 |
| NATR 2100 Intro to Landscape Ecology | 4 | STAT 2510 Statistics for Biological and Health Sciences or 2010 Statistics for Social and Behavior Sciences | 3 |
| NATR 5310 Environmental Ethics | 3 | BIOL 3060 Ecology | 4 |
| 13 | 16 | ||
| Senior | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Minor | 3 | Minor | 3 |
| Restricted Management Elective2 | 3 | Restricted Management Elective2 | 3 |
| FOWS 5270 Natural Resource Policy | 3 | NATR 5630 Conservation Planning | 3 |
| BIOL 5090 Conservation Biology | 3 | UNIV 4AA0 Achieve the Creed | 0 |
| FORY 3010 Forest Soils | 3 | NATR 5430 Human Dimensions of Wildlife and Natural Resources | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total Hours: 120 | |||
- 1
Students must complete either a history or literature sequence.
- 2
See College for a current list of Restricted Electives.