Energy Minor

Energy touches all aspects of the human experience and is central to nearly every global challenge the world faces today, from raising the standards of living around the world to the existential threat of climate change. The scientific basis of energy is inherently multidisciplinary, and social and behavioral sciences are also crucial to understanding the economics and policy driving technology adoption. The Energy minor program addresses the growing need for trained engineers and scientists in the many sectors that develop, manage, and propagate these technologies.

The Energy minor is jointly administered by the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Whiting School of Engineering and is affiliated with the Ralph O’Connor Sustainable Energy Institute (ROSEI, https://energyinstitute.jhu.edu/) which provides additional support and co-curricular opportunities to students in the program. If you have questions regarding the minor, please direct them to Professor Susanna Thon at susanna.thon@jhu.edu.

Energy Minor Requirements

The Energy minor is designed to allow students majoring in a diverse set of disciplines to develop additional expertise in energy and to position them to become leaders in the energy field, either directly as entering professionals in industry, government laboratories, and other organizations, or as students in the best graduate programs. It consists of 26-29 credits of energy-related courses in four areas: (a) pre-requisite courses, (b) fundamentals, (c) science and policy context, and (d) technical energy electives. There are two options for completing the fundamentals.  Option I is recommended for students completing a major that does not require a thermodynamics course.  Option II is recommended for students completing a major that requires a thermodynamics course.  Students are encouraged to select electives to fit their particular interests and career goals.

Elective courses that can count toward the minor are those focused on science and policy issues related to energy and relevant technical skills and knowledge areas.  The joint KSAS and WSE Directors of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) distribute a list of approved courses for the minor each semester, and these courses are denoted with the POS tags ENGY-SCIPOL and ENGY-TECH in the Schedule of Classes. Approval for other appropriate courses can be sought by emailing one of the DUS’s. All courses must be taken for a letter grade, and students must earn a grade of C- or better to apply the course to the minor. Consult the Energy minor’s website for additional information: https://energyinstitute.jhu.edu/energy-minor/.

Minor Requirements
Pre-Requisites
AS.110.106Calculus I (Biology and Social Sciences)4
or AS.110.108 Calculus I (Physical Sciences & Engineering)
AS.171.101General Physics: Physical Science Major I4
or AS.171.103 General Physics I for Biological Science Majors
or AS.171.105 Classical Mechanics I
or AS.171.107 General Physics for Physical Sciences Majors (AL)
AS.173.111General Physics Laboratory I1
or AS.173.115 Classical Mechanics Laboratory
Fundamentals: Option I *
EN.520.370Introduction to Renewable Energy Engineering3
AS.171.102General Physics: Physical Science Major II **4
or AS.171.104 General Physics/Biology Majors II
or AS.171.106 Electricity and Magnetism I
or AS.171.108 General Physics for Physical Science Majors (AL)
AS.173.112General Physics Laboratory II **1
or EN.560.112 Electromagnetism & Sensors Lab
Fundamentals: Option II *
EN.520.370Introduction to Renewable Energy Engineering3
AS.030.301Physical Chemistry I2-4
or AS.171.312 Statistical Physics/Thermodynamics
or AS.250.372 Biophysical Chemistry
or EN.510.312 Thermodynamics/Materials
or EN.530.231 Mechanical Engineering Thermodynamics
or EN.540.203 Engineering Thermodynamics
or EN.580.241 Statistical Physics
Science and Policy Context Electives
Complete a minimum of 6 credits of approved electives with the ENGY-SCIPOL POS-Tag6
Technical Energy Electives
Complete a minimum of 6 credits of approved electives with the ENGY-TECH POS-Tag6
Total Credits27-29
*

Students complete either (1) Fundamentals: Option I or (2) Fundamentals: Option II.

**

Courses must be taken at Johns Hopkins. Exam credits and waivers cannot be used to satisfy the requirements.  

Sample Programs of Study 

Students majoring in a natural science discipline who do Option I of the fundamentals may follow a curriculum similar to the following:

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
FallCredits
AS.110.108 Calculus I (Physical Sciences & Engineering) 4
AS.171.101 General Physics: Physical Science Major I 4
AS.173.111 General Physics Laboratory I 1
 Credits9
Spring
AS.171.102 General Physics: Physical Science Major II 4
AS.173.112 General Physics Laboratory II 1
 Credits5
Second Year
Fall
EN.520.370 Introduction to Renewable Energy Engineering 3
 Credits3
Third Year
Fall
Policy elective (ENGY-SCIPOL) 3
 Credits3
Spring
Policy elective (ENGY-SCIPOL) 3
 Credits3
Fourth Year
Fall
Technical elective (ENGY-TECH) 3
 Credits3
Spring
Technical elective (ENGY-TECH) 3
 Credits3
 Total Credits29

Students majoring in an engineering field who do Option II of the fundamentals may follow a curriculum similar to the following:

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
FallCredits
AS.110.108 Calculus I (Physical Sciences & Engineering) 4
AS.171.101 General Physics: Physical Science Major I 4
AS.173.111 General Physics Laboratory I 1
 Credits9
Second Year
Fall
EN.520.370 Introduction to Renewable Energy Engineering 3
 Credits3
Spring
EN.510.312 Thermodynamics/Materials 3
 Credits3
Third Year
Fall
Policy elective (ENGY-SCIPOL) 3
 Credits3
Spring
Technical elective (ENGY-TECH) 3
 Credits3
Fourth Year
Fall
Policy elective (ENGY-SCIPOL) 3
 Credits3
Spring
Technical elective (ENGY-TECH) 3
 Credits3
 Total Credits27