Environmental Policy+Planning | Graduatea Academic Programs

SEAS delegation to COP22 Marrakech Climate Change Conference | Climate & Clean Air

Changing the world requires new public policies, visionary plans, and innovative decision-making structures.

How do we shift our energy mix from fossil fuels to renewable sources? How much protection should we provide to public lands, rare species, and valuable natural areas? How do we ensure the safety of water supplies? Answers to questions like these can change the course of our future. In the Environmental Policy and Planning specialization, you will acquire the tools, frameworks, and scientific knowledge to promote environmental stewardship and advance sustainable societies.

This environmental master's program specialization focuses on building the professional skills to design and implement effective policies and plans while considering the human and institutional behaviors that underlie environmental problems.

WHY ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND PLANNING?

Join a community of scholars whose depth and breadth in social science is unparalleled in any comparable program.
Develop expertise in natural sciences and deep knowledge of specific environmental problems.
Take advantage of opportunities to enhance your professional marketability, like dual-degree and certificate programs.
Apply what you learn in the classroom to fix real-world problems by completing a capstone experience (master's project or master's thesis).
Join the world’s largest and strongest community of alumni practitioners in environmental policy and planning.

CURRICULUM

Working with an adviser, you will tailor your Environmental Policy and Planning coursework to your specific career goals. A typical curriculum includes classes in institutions, politics, law, policy analysis, and planning. You will also learn negotiation and dispute resolution, and develop expertise in a specific issue you choose, such as water, climate change and energy, public lands, biodiversity and ecosystem management, environmental justice, and sustainable land use.

The Environmental Policy and Planning curriculum provides a solid foundation for dual-degree programs in public policy, urban planning, law, or business.

Requirements & Courses

DUAL DEGREE WITH SEAS AND PUBLIC POLICY

This dual-degree program (three years, 75 credits) provides students with the opportunity to study environment and sustainability issues through the lens of public policy analysis. It is administered jointly with the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, and is designed to provide a model for preparing a new generation of graduates skilled in addressing important topics like renewable energy and climate change using policy analysis techniques. Students graduate with a master of science (MS) in natural resources and environment and a master of science in public policy (MPP).

CAREERS AND SELECT EMPLOYERS

Environmental Policy and Planning graduates work as policy analysts, advocates, planners, program managers, and leaders in nonprofit environmental organizations, land trusts, all levels of government, consulting firms, and corporations. The collaboration and dispute resolution training integral to this field of study opens job opportunities at environmental mediation firms and regional partnerships. Some graduates decide to pursue research careers at academic institutions and with nonprofit organizations.

Other career options span the range of geographic scales, including community-based conservation, state-level environmental management, federal policy-making, and work at international institutions, such as the United Nations Development Programme and World Wildlife Fund.

For more information on the Environmental Policy and Planning field of study, visit the Environmental Policy and Planning track careers page or contact seas-admissions@umich.edu.

My professional and personal life is driven by climate change. It seems like a generational challenge to fight that. There are lots of ways to do it, and I think one of them is solar advocacy. "

Tyler Fitch (MS ’18)

Regulatory Manager, Vote Solar, Washington, D.C.

Featured Course

Negotiating Skills In Environmental Dispute Resolution

This course is a half-term module that develops skills in bargaining and negotiation as they can be applied to the resolution of environmental disputes. It will help a student prepare for and carry out a negotiation, become a more effective communicator, and understand the psychological dimensions inherent in negotiation processes.

Other Popular Courses

Environmental Policy, Politics and Organizations

Energy Markets and Energy Politics

Modeling for Landscape Planning

Action-based learning + impact

To improve the quality of life for Michigan residents, we must invest in people and places. Our challenges are many, but they are far outweighed by the opportunities ahead.”

—Joe Tate

(MS/MBA '17) State of Michigan 2nd House District State Representative

I’m particularly proud of our efforts to expand our award-winning climate action and sustainability programs to enable home and business owners to install energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements."

—Elise Jones

(MS '93) County Commissioner, Boulder County, Colorado

Our mission at the World Bank is to end poverty, and we can't end poverty without addressing climate change.”

—Nate Engle

(MS/MPP ’07, PhD ’10) Senior Climate Change Specialist Climate Change Group, Water Global Practice World Bank

Sample Employers + Professional Skills

I learned about how federal agencies make decisions, how different groups (NGOs, the private sector) engage in that and how they advocate for their issues and engage in the decision-making process.

Allegra Wrockledge '16

Program Coordinator, Conservation Finance Network

Internships

Career Coaching

Environmental Policy and Planning Careers

SEAS Career Services offers career advising, internship opportunities, and professional services for students. We help students make professional connections with alumni and develop career paths that are both fulfilling and impactful.

Please visit our Careers page for additional career resources

Dual Degree Programs

The hallmark of the SEAS master’s program is its interdisciplinary focus. This focus can be extended even further through the pursuit of a dual degree. Because the school is part of one of the greatest research universities in the world, there are many options. Each environment and sustainability specialization provides an excellent foundation for earning a dual degree.

Faculty

Rosina Bierbaum

Professor

Sara Hughes

Assistant Professor

Michael R. Moore

Professor of Environmental Economics

Thomas Princen

Associate Professor

Samuel Stolper

Assistant Professor

Julia M. Wondolleck

Associate Professor

Steven L. Yaffee

Professor

News

Featured

July 26, 2021

Addressing links between poverty, housing, water access and affordability in Detroit

June 23, 2021

Addressing the Links Between Poverty, Housing, and Water Access and Affordability in Detroit

By Sara Hughes, Kathryn Maloney, Anna Kaczmarek, Heather Newberry, and Elizabeth Wallace Introduction Ensuring water access and affordability for Detroit residents is...

March 18, 2021

U-M Carbon Neutrality Commission Releases Final Report; SEAS Plays Key Role in Recommendations

Humanity is facing a climate crisis. Drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are required in the coming decade to avoid irreversible damage to the planet’s life...

Dual Degree Programs

The hallmark of the SEAS master’s program is its interdisciplinary focus. This focus can be extended even further through the pursuit of a dual degree. Because the school is part of one of the greatest research universities in the world, there are many options. Each natural resources and environment field of study provides an excellent foundation for earning a dual degree.