Doctorate (Ph.D.) in Sustainability

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

The Ph.D. in Sustainability engages scientists and leaders in research to investigate the urgent sustainability challenges of the 21st century. The flexible, interdisciplinary nature of the program allows students to focus on problems of interest to them, drawing upon relevant knowledge from a variety of disciplines.

Learning Outcomes

Ph.D. graduates will have an advanced understanding of the dynamics of coupled socioecological systems and will be able to lead others in research and providing adaptive solutions to specific sustainability challenges. In addition to the common learning outcomes (cross-link), Ph.D. students will be able to:

• Understand the concepts and methods of a number of critical disciplines bearing on the sustainability of systems at different spatio-temporal scales.
• Lead others in applying these concepts and methods to developing sustainable strategies for water, land, air, and urban management at the local and global level.
• Lead others in the analysis and design of the built environment and institutions' policies, regulations, and technologies to support sustainable development. In addition, they will be able to research particular sustainability challenges and develop standard (transferable) skills, including the capacity to:
• Identify problems
• Formulate and test hypotheses
• Use statistical, econometric, and geographical-information-system techniques to construct and analyze datasets
• Build and apply models

Careers

Graduates will be able to gain employment in areas such as:

• Education
• Local, State, and Federal Government
• Intergovernmental Organizations
• International Nongovermental Organizations
• Consultancy
• Industry
• Utilities
• Regulatory Agencies

To explore career options in sustainability, visit the Careers section.