UNH Graduate School - Environmental Education

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Application Deadlines

Summer (Primary):
April 1st

NOTE: Applications are primarily accepted for Summer admissions only, except under special circumstances.

Should you wish to apply for Spring or Fall please check with the department first to make sure you qualify and to find out deadline dates.

Application Requirements

Test Scores: No

Special Instructions: Applications are reviewed during fall and spring terms. However, all students entering the program begin with the Summer Institute and are therefore admitted for summer term only.

New England Regional:
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont

Environmental Education

Morrill Hall
Durham, NH 03824
(603) 862 - 2310
Email:
Web Address: http://www.unh.edu/education/programs/environment/

Degree Offered (MA):

The part- or full-time program offers a master of arts degree with a major in environmental education. An innovative and collaborative effort of the Department of Education and the Department of Natural Resources, the program is dedicated to preparing educators who can effectively promote awareness, knowledge, and constructive participation in deliberation over the important environmental questions that we face. The program has flexible requirements and gives students the opportunity to work closely with an adviser to create an individualized course of study that meets their interests, reflects their prior experiences, and focuses on their professional goals. Students apply during the fall or spring terms and begin the program with an intensive four-week Summer Institute. The program also includes a field-based Practicum where students are given the opportunity to implement their educational ideas through a mentoring program at one of a variety of local environmental and educational organizations.

Admission Requirements

Applicants to the M.A. program in environmental education must possess a baccalaureate degree from an approved institution with a GPA of 2.7 or higher and have successfully completed a minimum of five life science or physical science courses at the undergraduate or graduate level. Applicants are required to submit the following materials for consideration: official transcripts from all relevant educational institutions; an essay outlining relevant interests, prior experience, and educational goals; and three letters of recommendation from individuals who possess detailed knowledge of the applicant’s ability to engage in graduate study. Documentation of other experiences or abilities as an educator is also welcome. Admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis by the executive committee of the program. The Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is optional. Promising students who fail to meet one or more of the preceding criteria may be admitted provisionally, with a plan appropriate to their specific needs.

Degree Requirements

The M.A. program in environmental education helps prepare educators who are able to integrate and put into practice the three focus areas that constitute the program’s academic core:

Curriculum and Pedagogy: an understanding of teaching as a critical, self-reflective, and inquiry-based activity, collaboratively undertaken in diverse communities
Environmental Science: an understanding of the physical and biological processes and relationships that constitute ecosystems

Environmental Values, Policy, and Planning: an understanding of the social (e.g., economic, political, and institutional) and ethical dimensions of environmental policy. The program requires 32 credits for graduation and is organized in three parts:

The Summer Institute (8 credits): Students enter the program by enrolling in an intensive Summer Institute that is coordinated and taught by an interdisciplinary team of UNH faculty. The curriculum involves a case study approach, integrating the three focus areas in an experiential setting. This experience gives students a foundation for creating a rigorous, coherent, and challenging program of study, which they begin (on a part- or full-time basis) during the following year.

Individualized Program of Study (20 credits): The three focus areas of the program provide the structure within which students pursue and integrate the courses that make up their individualized program of study. With the guidance of an adviser, students select a group of courses that balances depth and breadth. All individualized programs of study are approved by the program’s executive committee.

Practicum (4 credits): The field-based Practicum is taken as the final course in the program. Students work in an internship site demonstrating their ability to put into practice a thoughtful and effective vision of environmental education. In the seminar that accompanies the internship, students create and present a portfolio that reflects what they have achieved in the program. Completion of the program portfolio marks the fulfillment of the requirements for the master’s degree.