ESF Academic Catalog
Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health

Environmental health focuses on the study of how people interact with their environment—the air and water around us, the plants and animals we encounter, and the workplaces and homes where we spend much of our lives. The field is broad, encompassing the direct effects of the environment on human health, and the factors that adversely affect the ecological balances essential to human health and environmental quality.

Core Courses

NOTE: PHY 101 and PHY 102 both include a lab.

General Education Electives

 

Course	Codes*	Credits
General Education Course in two of the following categories: US History & Civic Engagement, The Arts, Social Sciences, World History and Global Awareness, World Languages	G	6
General Education Course in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Social Justice	G	3

Focus Area Electives

21 credits required for breadth and depth of knowledge.

Breadth: 3 credits from each of 3 focus areas (total of nine credits)

Depth: 12 credits from a fourth focus area.

NOTE: Some Focus Area Elective courses may have prerequisites, effectively exceeding the 126 minimum credit requirement for the B.S.

NOTE: Only three credits total from the 21 can be from a 200-level course or lower without prior approval of the curriculum coordinator.

A. Built Environment

Courses

B. Geospatial Technology

Courses

C. Soils

Courses

D. Water and Wastewater

Students interested in this focus area are encouraged to take APM205 and APM206 in place of APM105 and APM106, as the higher level calculus is required for many of the courses; also students interested in this focus area are encouraged to take PHY211/221 and PHY212/222 in place of PHY101 and PHY102, as the higher level physics is required for many of the courses.

Courses

E. Solid/Hazardous Materials and Waste Management

Courses

F. Hydrogeology

Courses

G. Food Protection

Courses

H. Public Health

Courses

I. Pre Medical Track

Students taking this track as their depth area must also select courses from 4 other focus areas, rather than three other focus areas for their breadth. This focus area does not count as one of the three breadth areas, but courses can count as Open Electives.

Courses

Open Electives

Six (6) Credit hours. Students can take more than the 4 hours of open electives, but need to be aware that those extra credits will not substitute for required courses. Students are encouraged but not required to use some of their open electives to do research projects either on or off campus within the EHS framework. Below are listed some courses that might be of interest to EHS students.

EST 203 Introduction to Sociology
EST 220 Urban Ecology
EST 245 Foundations of Environmental Communication
EST 321 Government and the Environment
EST 361 History of the American Environmental Movement
EST 390 Social Processes and the Environment
EST 395 Public Communication of Science and Technology 
EST 426 Community Planning and Sustainability

EFB 217 Peoples, Plagues, and Pests 
EFB 352 Entomology
EFB 453 Parasitology

LSA 190 Clashing Perspectives in the Built Environment 

FOR 202 Introduction to Sociology
FOR 204 Natural Resources in American History
FOR 489 Natural Resources Law and Policy

Total Minimum Credits For Degree: 126

NOTE: For students considering a career in Environmental Risk Assessment or Environmental Remediation, it is strongly recommended that they that take:

ENV 165 Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (2 Credits) at Onondaga Community College over Winter Break. This course culminates with the awarding of the 40 hour HAZWOPER Certification, which is required by OSHA and many potential internship sponsors or employers.