Environmental Studies Program, CSUF

Why Choose the Environmental Studies Program at CSUF?

Our program offers a transdisciplinary perspective on Environmental Studies at an advanced level. Students have access to faculty expertise in the natural sciences, engineering, social and behavioral sciences, business and economics, the arts, and humanities. The Master of Science degree in Environmental Studies is an important qualification for environmental professionals, and signifies the skills to independently conduct and supervise environmental research and environmental impact assessment. Some graduates continue in academics, pursuing doctoral degrees. Still others are educators at the K-12 or community college level.

Requirements for admission to ENST Program:

Admission to the Environmental Studies Program is competitive. We accept students as a cohort, and we are limited in the number per cohort. The following are minimum requirements necessary to apply, but meeting these in no way guarantees admission to the program

A Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
Good standing at the last attended college
A minimum grade-point average of 3.0 in the last 60 units of attempted coursework
Two (2) letters of recommendation, and
Completion of one (1) course in ecology AND one (1) course in quantitative methods.
The GRE is not required but is useful for advisement purposes.

Important Application Considerations
Letters of Recommendation
Conditional Admission Policies
ENST Program Pre-Requisites
Transfer Coursework from Other Schools
Fee Information and Graduate Funding Opportunities
California Residency Requirements

Important Application Considerations

• All prospective students must apply DIRECTLY to the CSUF office of Admission and Records for admission prior to being evaluated by the Environmental Studies Program.

• Once prospective students start the application process, their applications are acknowledged by the university and each student is sent a letter with a student identification number and PIN number. These numbers allow students to track the progress of their applications online. Please allow 4-6 weeks for processing an application once all of the documents have been received. Please refrain from making enquiries regarding your application before then.

Students may reach the Titan Admissions Status office at (657) 278-7904 or on the web http://www.fullerton.edu/prospective.htm

• Please Note: All application materials, except for the 2 letters of reference, must be sent directly to the CSUF Applications and Records Office. Applicant must NOT send transcripts, or any other documents that are requested in the CSUF application form to the Environmental Studies Office. If these documents are not received by the Admissions and Records office, the application will be rejected.

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Letters of Recommendation

• Reference letters must be written on official letterhead. At least one of the two letters must be submitted from a past academic instructor or advisor. The other letter may come from an employer or someone who has had a close working relationship with the applicant (in a supervisory capacity).

• These letters must clearly indicate the nature of the relationship between the person writing the referral and the applicant to the ENST Program, and it must be indicated why it is believed that the applicant would be able to successfully undertake this degree. The ENST Program does not provide a special form, nor does it require a specific format for the reference letters to follow.

• Please have the 2 letters of reference sent to:

California State University, Fullerton
C/O Environmental Studies Program Office
Humanities H-420A
Fullerton, CA 92834-6850

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Conditional Admission Policies

Upon acceptance to the ENST program, each student should receive a "Graduate Recommendation Sheet" from the Admissions and Records Office. This sheet lists any and all deficiencies of the prospective student. This means, for instance, if a student has not taken an ecology or quantitative methods course prior to applying to the program, he or she may be conditionally admitted to the Program; however, ALL deficiencies must be made up within one year of program admission.

Note: Should an applicant not receive a copy of the Graduate Recommendation Sheet, he or she should be sure to contact the ENST Associate Coordinator.

ENST Program Pre-Requisites

Ecology and Quantitative Methods/Statistics
If an applicant does not meet one or both of the ENST Program course pre-requisites upon admission to the program, the student is given a maximum of one year to meet the deficiency (ies). Lower or upper division courses fulfill these course requirements.

• List of appropriate examples of courses that will meet each of the Program course pre-requisites (Suggested CSUF Pre-requisites).

• Suitable pre-requisite courses may be taken at another university or community college.

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Transferring Coursework from Other Schools (also see catalog)

If approved by the Coordinator, ENST graduate students may transfer up to fifteen (15) units worth of coursework from other universities to their Study Plans. Special Note: only nine (9) units worth of graduate level coursework that has been earned through CSUF’s Extended Education University may be transferred to the ENST study plan. See the “Graduate Regulations” section of the CSUF catalog for more information regarding transfer requirements.

Students wishing to enter the ENST Program should recognize that completing ENST courses prior to acceptance into the Program does not guarantee University or program admission nor acceptance of these (or other post-graduate) courses on any future ENST study plan. In order to transfer coursework to your ENST study plan, applicants are required to provide a copy of their transcripts, a course description from the University’s Catalog and speak with the ENST Coordinator. Past coursework may NOT be transferred if it meets any of the following criteria:

(1) The courses have been used to complete:
     (a) General education requirements
     (b) Bachelor’s degree requirements
     (c) Graduate degree requirements

(2) It has been more than 5 years since the course(s) was taken.

(3) The course(s) is not graduate level, upper division, or

(4) A grade below “C” was earned for the course(s)

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Fee Information

For information regarding university fees and estimates for cost of living in Southern California, please refer to the following website for more information: http://www.fullerton.edu/catalog/admissions_and_registration/feeinfo.asp

For information specifically regarding International students, please refer to: http://www.fullerton.edu/international/

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Graduate Funding Opportunities

At this time, the ENST office does not support graduate assistantships or other kinds of subsidized funding opportunities for students in the program. If you are interested in information regarding financial aid opportunities offered through the university, please go to the following link: http://www.fullerton.edu/catalog/admissions_and_registration/finaid.asp

The Interclub Council (ICC) at CSUF offers some funding for conferences and research. Check with the ENST ICC Representative for information on the proposal/funding request process. Also be sure to check postings on the bulletin board outside the ENST office (H-420A).

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