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Environmental Science and Studies Majors, Minor

Undergraduate Program On Campus

What You'll Learn

Gain a deep understanding of environmental issues. Apply your knowledge and skills to solve real-world problems in fields like environmental consulting, conservation science, and land management.

Choose from two tracks that will prepare you for your unique career goals. Interested in an environmental career, tackling issues like soil erosion and water pollution? Consider the Natural Resources track. Drawn to a career as a park ranger or field technician? The Naturalist track will prepare you to thrive as an environmental interpreter.

And your studies won't take place only in the classroom. As an environmental science student, you'll be part of a program where you’ll get outside and put your learning to work. You might work to restore local waterways, study the ecology of the Great Lakes dunes firsthand, or take an intensive course on field techniques in land management.

What Makes This Program Great

  • Professional-grade facilities: You'll have access to a huge collection of minerals, rocks, and fossils, as well as a vast collection of maps, a dedicated geo-spatial analysis lab, drones, an on-campus research sand dune, a seismograph, a weather station, and more.
  • Real-world research opportunities: As a GEO student, you'll have the chance to do research with your professors during the academic year and summer. Calvin GEO students have done research into Lake Michigan coastal dunes, a Pleistocene mastadon, the Plaster Creek watershed, and more.
  • Practical job experience: The GEO department hires more students than any other department. Students are hired yearly for a wide variety of positions, from managing a map library to maintaining the university weather station.
  • Study off-campus: Calvin GEO students study off-campus in places as diverse as Montana, Hawaii, Kenya, Scotland, the Netherlands, Ethiopia, and Yosemite National Park.
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Why choose environmental science and studies?

  • Active, fulfilling lifestyle

    Environmental Science gives the opportunity to do much more than sit behind a desk or work in a lab, hands-on fieldwork and sampling are included in many positions

  • High demand, and well paying jobs

    The job market for environmental scientists is growing quickly, and offers very good pay.

  • Purpose

    You can be a part of the solution for many of the critical problems that our world is facing. Contribute to the global effort to restore, and preserve our planet.

     

Careers In Enivironmental Science

  • Educate the public about important environmental topics and ways of responding to issues, and help communicate the scientific discussions to a wider audience.
    • Teaching in informal settings
    • Written, oral, and electronic communications
    • Government agencies, nature centers, parks, nongovernmental organizations, and similar institutions.

  • Provide legal council to clients on a broad range of environmental issues.
    • Advocating contested matters before regulatory agencies
    • Environmental civil actions
    • Energy related issues
    • Permits, agreements, reports and other documents to ensure environmental compliance
    • Cities, colleges, corporations, development groups, farms, gas stations, and private land owners

  • Facilitating decision making to carry out land development with consideration given to the natural environment, social, political, economic and governance factors to achieve sustainable outcomes.
    • Social and economic development
    • Urban, and regional development
    • Natural resource management
    • Infrastructure systems

  • Institute effective solutions to complex systems at local and national levels.
    • High demand field, with good pay
    • Fish and ecosystems
    • Teaching, research, management

  • As our human population continues to increase, forests and other natural resources are valued more for the serenity they provide, the organisms they support, and the products they produce.
    • Creating, managing, conserving, and repairing forest resources
    • Applying ecology, GIS, and environmental sciences
    • Managing demand for timber, fuel, water quality, habitat, recreation, employment, and environmental wholeness

  • Conserve irreplaceable lands and waterways, and improve outdoor recreation opportunities across the nation.
    • State and local efforts
    • Preserve natural areas, historical sites, and wildlife habitat
    • Quality outdoor recreation for all

  • Promoting a healthy lifestyle and environment, contributing to the livability of communities, and informing policy, economic development, and stewardship at local, national, and international levels.
    • Implement community recreation and sport programs
    • Manage natural and cultural resources

Faculty

James Skillen

Professor, Director, Calvin Ecosystem Preserve & Native Gardens
2006–2008 Lily Fellows Program Postdoctoral Fellow at Valparaiso University, Indiana2008 joined Calvin University GEO department2013-2015 Professor of Environmental Studies, The Oregon Extension

Mark D Bjelland

Professor, Department Chair
Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies, Gustavus Adolphus CollegeChair, City Planning Commission, Saint Peter, MNEngineering Project Manager, Golder Associates, Burnaby, B.C.Environmental

Deanna van Dijk

Professor
Post-doc, Sackville, New Brunswick in a salt marsh on the Bay of Fundy, 1998 (short but memorable)Joined the GEO department at Calvin College, 1999

Jason E. VanHorn

Professor, Director of Master of Science in GIScience Program
Professor VanHorn joined the GEO department at Calvin College in 2007 and has been recognized for his contributions to the field of geography through publication, research with undergraduate students,