Environmental Engineering and Science

Academic Adviser: Mohammad Karamouz

The Department of Civil Engineering offers graduate programs in environmental engineering and environmental science leading to the following degrees:

The department also offers the following graduate programs with a concentration in environmental and water resource engineering:

Programs in environmental engineering and environmental science are described below. Programs in civil engineering with a concentration in environmental and water resource engineering are described in the Civil Engineering Program section of this catalog.

Master of Science programs are practiceoriented with a strong foundation in underlying principles and methods. The PhD is intended for students with a strong research interest and a desire to advance the state of the art with their research.

Environmental science and environmental engineering are multidimensional professions dealing with preserving, protecting and remedying air, water and soil environments. The program prepares graduates to be employed immediately to meet the challenges of this century or to proceed directly to advanced graduate studies.

General Requirements for Environmental Programs

Admission Requirements

Applicants for the Master of Science in Environmental Engineering should hold an undergraduate or graduate degree in environmental or civil engineering or equivalent from an accredited institution. Students may be accepted with other related backgrounds, but should, as a minimum, have one year of chemistry and physics and basic courses in calculus and differential equations. Such students may be asked to take up to 15 credits of undergraduate courses to complete their preparation. Applicants for the Master of Science in Environmental Science typically have undergraduate or graduate degrees in the physical, chemical or biological sciences. The adviser may require or recommend undergraduate courses to make up for academic preparation deficiencies.

Admission to the PhD program requires a suitable MS degree from an acceptable institution. A minimum GPA of 3.5 in master’s level work is generally required for admission. For more information about the PhD in Civil Engineering, consult the Civil Engineering Program section of this catalog.

Grade Requirements

To earn graduate degrees, Polytechnic requires that students have a 3.0 GPA or better in all graduate courses and in all guided studies (readings, projects, theses, dissertations). Averages are computed separately for courses and guided studies. Transfer credits from other institutions are not included in this average.

Analytic Background

All applicants for MS in environmental programs must show evidence of quantitative analytic ability, generally including a minimum of two years of college mathematics and a college-level course in statistics.

PhD applicants are expected to have a superior quantitative analytic background. In addition, they are advised to take at least one course in graduate level statistics, regression analysis or design of experiments as part of their studies.

Advising

Each graduate student is assigned a faculty academic adviser. Students must maintain frequent contact with their advisers throughout their studies. Students must meet with their academic advisers before each registration and at any other time they need advice or consultation.

Students must have a detailed program of study formally approved by their advisers before registration. Advisers also handle requests for waiver of certain degree requirements. Such waivers must be approved in writing and placed in the student’s departmental file.

Where specific courses are waived, instructor permission is also required. When waivers are granted, students may be required to take other specific courses in their place or to select additional electives.

Students who register for any guided studies (readings, projects, theses, dissertation) are supervised by a project adviser for each activity. A project adviser may or may not be the same as a student’s academic adviser, depending upon the selected subject matter. To register for any guided study activity, students must submit written proposals to a project adviser before registration. To register, students must obtain written approval from their project and academic advisers. Doctoral students may not register for dissertation credits until they have passed the PhD qualifying examination.

In addition to academic and project advisers, students studying under research or teaching fellowships are assigned fellowship advisers. Normally, these would be either the principal investigator of the research effort funding the fellowship or the director of the academic area in which the teaching fellowship is awarded.

While academic advisers consult and advise students, the student is responsible for ensuring that all degree requirements are fulfilled and all necessary forms and applications are submitted.

Transfer Credits

Students must take a minimum of 24 credits at Polytechnic in order to be awarded an MS degree. Students may transfer up to 6 credits of acceptable courses toward a MS degree, subject to the academic adviser’s approval. To be transferred, the course(s) must be relevant to the program and from an acceptable institution. A grade of B or better is required for any transfer credit.

Courses graded on a pass/fail basis are not considered for transfer unless accompanied by a detailed written evaluation by the course instructor. All transfer requests must be accompanied by an official transcript from the transferring institution. Application for transfer credits is accepted only after the student has earned 12 credits at Polytechnic.

Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering

Students wishing to pursue a doctoral degree in environmental engineering and environmental science may do so under the PhD in civil engineering and environmental science. For detailed information, please consult the Civil Engineering Program section of this catalog.

Graduate Courses

For the list of graduate courses, please consult the Environmental and Water Resources Engineering section of the Civil Engineering Program in this catalog.

Programs

Master of Science