The Geography and Environmental Engineering, Master of Science in Engineering (MSE) is designed to prepare students with an ABET-accredited undergraduate engineering degree, or equivalent, to enter the workforce as leaders in the field. Students have five tracks to choose from, each with unique curricular requirements.
M.S.E. Tracks
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE
Focuses on the analysis and design of processes that affect the quality of both the natural and built environment. Specific topics include: physical, chemical and biological phenomena relevant to drinking water treatment, waste and wastewater treatment, environmental remediation, air pollution and air quality, and transport and transformation of pollutants in the environment.
HYDROLOGY AND WATER RESOURCES ENGINEERING
Focuses on the role of hydrologic processes in various earth and environmental contexts, including extreme events such as: floods and droughts, climate change impacts, transport within aquatic systems, geomorphology and landscape development, and the analysis, design, and operation of water resources systems.
DATA SCIENCE AND ANALYTICS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND ENGINEERING
Emphasizes innovative computational, statistical, and “big data” tools with applications to environmental problems in air pollution, energy systems, hydrology, and climate change.
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND ECONOMICS
Focuses on the use of models of physical and economic systems to analyze and improve the design and operations of public policies, environmental control systems, and infrastructure for energy, transportation, water, and other critical services.
Program Requirements
The following general requirements apply to all M.S.E. students:
- a minimum of 30 graduate credits including no more than 1 credit of seminar, 1 credit of intersession course work or 1.5 credits from CLE (with advisor approval), and 6 credits of independent research counting toward the 30 credits.
- All WSE graduate students are required to complete AS.360.624 Responsible Conduct of Research (Online), as well as Academic Ethics EN.500.603 Graduate Academic Ethics, in the first semester that they are enrolled as a student.
- at least 50% of the required 30 credits must come from courses within the department. The Department of Environmental Health and Engineering's course codes are 570, 180-5, and 187-8.
- students are permitted to apply up to two classes with a grade of “C” toward their degree.
- 5-6 required courses and 4-5 recommended elective courses depending on the track. In order to substitute an alternate course for a recommended elective, students must receive written approval from their advisor prior to registering.
- prerequisites (required) for the M.S.E. program include mathematics: differential equations and computing skills.
- up to four courses from AAP or EP may be taken and counted to receive a master’s degree as long as there is sufficient rigor and prior approval as deemed by the advisor. Students must have written consent from advisor (an email will suffice) prior to signing up for the course.
- students will earn credits for BSPH courses according to this BSPH-WSE credit conversion:
- 3 WSE credits for a 4 or 5-credit BSPH course
- 2 WSE credits for a 2 or 3-credit BSPH course
- 1 WSE credit for a 1-credit BSPH course
The M.S.E. program is typically a two semester program based on course work alone. However, M.S.E. students have the option to complete an independent research project, submitted as a formal essay or group project report. An M.S.E. degree with significant research components will usually require three to four semesters for completion and is generally intended for those students planning to work in engineering practice. Each individual’s program of study is planned by the student in consultation with department faculty and must be approved by the faculty advisor. M.S.E. students select from the tracks below.
Tracks for the M.S.E. Degree
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE
This track focuses on the analysis and design of processes that affect the quality of both the natural and built environment.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required courses (choose 5-6): | ||
| EN.575.645 | Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
| EN.570.615 | Current Trends in Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
| EN.570.641 | Environmental Inorganic Chemistry | 3 |
| EN.570.643 | Aquatic and Biofluid Chemistry | 3 |
| EN.570.644 | Physical and Chemical Processes | 3 |
| EN.575.706 | Biological Processes for Water & Wastewater Treatment | 3 |
| EN.570.657 | Air Pollution | 3 |
| AS.270.679 | Atmospheric Science | 3 |
| One course in engineering mathematics or statistical analysis, such as: | ||
| EN.570.616 | Data Analytics in Environmental Health and Engineering | 3 |
| EN.570.654 | Geostatistics: Understanding Spatial Data | 3 |
| EN.570.695 | Environmental Health and Engineering Systems Design | 3 |
| EN.570.697 | Risk and Decision Analysis | 3 |
| Recommended electives include: | ||
| EN.570.619 | Methods in Microbial Community Analysis | 3 |
| EN.570.626 | Groundwater, Porous Media, and Hydrogeology | 3 |
| EN.570.651 | Environmental Transport and Dispersion | 3 |
| EN.570.652 | Experimental Methods in Environmental Engineering and Chemistry | 4 |
| EN.570.690 | Solid Waste Engineering and Management | 3 |
| EN.570.691 | Hazardous Waste Engineering and Management | 3 |
| AS.270.618 | Remote Sensing of the Environment | 3 |
| AS.270.641 | Present and Future Climate | 3 |
HYDROLOGY AND Water resources engineering
This track focuses on the role of hydrologic processes in various earth and environmental contexts, including extreme events.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required courses: | ||
| EN.570.653 | Hydrology | 3 |
| EN.570.651 | Environmental Transport and Dispersion | 3 |
| One course in applied mathematics, numerical analysis, or engineering mathematics, such as: | ||
| EN.570.695 | Environmental Health and Engineering Systems Design | 3 |
| EN.570.697 | Risk and Decision Analysis | 3 |
| EN.530.766 | Numerical Methods | 3 |
| One course in Data Analytics and Statistical Methods, such as: | ||
| EN.570.616 | Data Analytics in Environmental Health and Engineering | 3 |
| EN.570.654 | Geostatistics: Understanding Spatial Data | 3 |
| Recommended electives include: | ||
| EN.570.615 | Current Trends in Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
| EN.570.626 | Groundwater, Porous Media, and Hydrogeology | 3 |
| EN.570.641 | Environmental Inorganic Chemistry | 3 |
| EN.570.643 | Aquatic and Biofluid Chemistry | 3 |
| EN.570.644 | Physical and Chemical Processes | 3 |
| EN.570.652 | Experimental Methods in Environmental Engineering and Chemistry | 4 |
| EN.570.690 | Solid Waste Engineering and Management | 3 |
| EN.575.626 | Hydrogeology | 3 |
| EN.575.629 | Modeling Contaminant Migration through Multimedia Systems | 3 |
| EN.575.708 | Open Channel Hydraulics | 3 |
| EN.575.716 | Principles of Estuarine Environment: The Chesapeake Bay Science and Management | 3 |
| EN.575.728 | Sediment Transport and River Mechanics | 3 |
| EN.575.730 | Geomorphic and Ecologic Foundations of Stream Restoration | 3 |
Data science aNd analytics for ehe
This track emphasizes innovative computational, statistical, and “big data” tools with applications to environmental problems in air pollution, energy systems, hydrology, and climate change.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Data Science Foundations (2 courses) | ||
| Choose any two of the following courses to fulfill the data science foundations requirement: | ||
| EN.570.616 | Data Analytics in Environmental Health and Engineering | 3 |
| EN.570.654 | Geostatistics: Understanding Spatial Data | 3 |
| EN.553.620 | Probability | 4 |
| EN.553.626 | Introduction to Stochastic Processes | 4 |
| EN.553.630 | Mathematical Statistics | 4 |
| AS.180.334 | Econometrics | 3 |
| Environmental Foundations (3 courses) | ||
| Students interested in air pollution and climate should consider the following courses: | ||
| EN.570.657 | Air Pollution | 3 |
| PH.182.615 | Airborne Particles | 4 |
| PH.180.607 | Climate Change and Public Health | 3 |
| AS.270.679 | Atmospheric Science | 3 |
| AS.270.641 | Present and Future Climate | 3 |
| AS.270.618 | Remote Sensing of the Environment | 3 |
| Students interested in hydrology and water resources should consider the following courses: | ||
| EN.570.351 | Introduction to Fluid Mechanics | 3 |
| EN.570.626 | Groundwater, Porous Media, and Hydrogeology | 3 |
| EN.570.653 | Hydrology | 3 |
| EN.570.651 | Environmental Transport and Dispersion | 3 |
| EN.570.643 | Aquatic and Biofluid Chemistry | 3 |
| AS.270.618 | Remote Sensing of the Environment | 3 |
| Students interested in energy systems should consider the following courses: | ||
| EN.570.607 | Energy Policy and Planning Models | 3 |
| EN.570.616 | Data Analytics in Environmental Health and Engineering | 3 |
| EN.570.654 | Geostatistics: Understanding Spatial Data | 3 |
| EN.570.697 | Risk and Decision Analysis | 3 |
| Students interested in health applications should consider the following courses: | ||
| PH.182.613 | Exposure Assessment Techniques for Health Risk Management | 3 |
| Advanced Data Science (2 courses) | ||
| Students should take two additional courses in statistics, applied match, or computing. Graduate-level courses in the following department will fulfill this requirement: EHE (only Geostatistics fulfills this requirement if not used to fulfill requirements in the Data Science Foundations category), Applied Math and Statistics (e.g., Data Mining, Bayesian Statistics, Seminar in Data Analysis, and other courses ), Computer Science (e.g., Parallel Programming, Causal Inference, and other courses), Biostatistics, and Earth & Planetary Sciences (only Inversion Modeling & Data Assimilation or Geoscience Modeling fulfills this requirement). | ||
| Data Science Project (3 credits) | ||
| This requirement is waived if students are conducting master’s thesis research for credit. | ||
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND ECONOMICS
This track focuses on the use of models of physical and economic systems to analyze and improve the design and operations of public policies, environmental control systems, and infrastructure for energy, transportation, water, and other critical services.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required course | ||
| EN.570.873 | Environmental Science & Management Seminar | 1 |
| Take 6 courses from any of the following focus areas: | ||
| Fundamental Decision Frameworks | ||
| EN.570.697 | Risk and Decision Analysis | 3 |
| PH.318.603 | Applied Microeconomics for Policymaking | 3 |
| or BU.220.620 | Business Microeconomics | |
| Fundamental Tools | ||
| EN.570.695 | Environmental Health and Engineering Systems Design | 3 |
| EN.570.616 | Data Analytics in Environmental Health and Engineering | 3 |
| or EN.570.654 | Geostatistics: Understanding Spatial Data | |
| Fundamentals of Environmental Systems | ||
| EN.570.643 | Aquatic and Biofluid Chemistry | 3 |
| EN.570.644 | Physical and Chemical Processes | 3 |
| EN.570.653 | Hydrology | 3 |
| EN.570.657 | Air Pollution | 3 |
| AS.270.679 | Atmospheric Science | 3 |
| Applications | ||
| EN.570.607 | Energy Policy and Planning Models | 3 |
| EN.560.653 | An Introduction to Network Modeling | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Environmental History and Politics (recommend SAIS courses) | ||
| EN.570.406 | Environmental History | 3 |
| SA.500.104 | Climate Change: Economics and Politics | 4 |
| Methods | ||
| EN.553.613 | Applied Statistics & Data Analysis I | 4 |
| EN.553.642 | Investment Science | 4 |
| EN.553.661 | Optimization in Finance | 4 |
| EN.560.618 | Probabilistic Methods in Civil Engineering and Mechanics | 3 |
| Economics | ||
| PH.318.603 | Applied Microeconomics for Policymaking | 3 |
| Energy Systems | ||
| EN.520.627 | Photovoltaics and Energy Devices | 3 |
| EN.530.664 | Energy Systems Analysis (graduate) | 3 |
| EN.540.630 | Thermodynamics & Statistical Mechanics | 3 |
| AS.030.404 | Electrochemical Systems for Energy Conversion and Storage | 3 |
| AS.271.402 | Water, Energy, and Food Nexus | 3 |
| AS.410.777 | 4 | |
| AS.425.604 | Energy & Climate Finance | 3 |
| AS.425.601 | Principles and Applications of Energy Technology | 3 |
| AS.425.625 | Solar Energy:Science, Technology & Policy | 3 |
| SA.500.122 | Life Cycle Assessment | 4 |
| SA.500.130 | The Water, Energy and Food Nexus | 4 |
| SA.500.122 | Life Cycle Assessment | 4 |
| Environmental Health Risk | ||
| PH.317.600 | Introduction to the Risk Sciences and Public Policy | 4 |
| PH.317.605 | Methods in Quantitative Risk Assessment | 4 |
| PH.317.610 | Risk Policy, Management and Communication | 3 |