Earth Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, Doctor of Philosophy

In addition to University Requirements:

Minimum Units for Completion	60
Additional Admission Requirements	Required
Dissertation	Dissertation is required.
Comprehensive Exam	Comprehensive Exam is required.
Oral Defense	Oral Defense is required.
Research	Individualized research is required.

Purpose Statement

The Interdisciplinary PhD Program in Earth Sciences & Environmental Sustainability (ESES) brings together students and faculty from across the University. Many ESES topics address questions that can inform decisions and solutions related to environmental issues made by governments, business and society.
 
ESES students produce discipline-specific science and engineering of the highest quality. They strive to integrate different disciplines from the natural sciences, social sciences and engineering to build, connect and communicate knowledge to increase the broader impacts of their research.
 
ESES students study how planet Earth is changing due to natural phenomena and human activities over spatial and temporal scales. They observe, explain, understand, and project trends in earth, environmental, and societal systems, and investigate the drivers and processes that shape natural and social worlds and the interactions between them.
 
Student Learning Outcomes

ESES students will select one of the following three emphasis areas, based upon their background and the work they will complete toward their dissertation:
 
Earth and Planetary Systems

This emphasis will prepare you to pursue research and educational opportunities that:

• advance knowledge in the critical areas for society of energy, natural resources and water, and natural hazards,
• continue the cutting edge research currently being done on the Earth and Planets, and
• apply this knowledge in areas that bridge between the geosciences and physics, chemistry, engineering, and biology.

The focus area in Earth and Planetary Systems will train and educate future leaders in areas of industry with growing demands (e.g., natural resources and energy), and in government agencies that require PhD-level researchers to inform policy decisions on some of the largest problems facing society.
 
Climate and Environmental Change
 
The Climate and Landscape Change emphasis is designed to develop research and educational skills that:

• advance new understandings of natural climate variability,
• improve projections of climate change and its impacts on ecosystems and their hydrological and geological underpinnings (i.e. the landscape), and
• apply this knowledge to informing policy decisions about how best to manage natural resources under changing climate and related environmental stresses.

This emphasis often combines the long-term perspective from geological archives with process-oriented investigations of today, with the goal of integrating a field-based understanding of natural systems into predictive models to support sustainable resource management in the face of climate change.
 
Engineering Sustainable Systems
 
The goals of this emphasis are to develop research and educational skills that:

• advance engineering analysis and applications relevant to sustainable development,
• improve the efficiency and effectiveness of engineering processes, products, and education, and
• understand and apply their knowledge in the sustainability contexts of economic viability, environmental compatibility and sustainability, societal impacts and policy development and implications.

• The Engineering Sustainable Systems emphasis is designed for the engineer interested in an understanding of the economic, societal and environmental implications of engineering systems. The student will have a strong background in engineering enhanced by understanding future sustainability of our environment, and will be prepared for careers in academia, industry, and governmental organizations.

Additional Admission Requirements

• Individual program admission requirements over and above admission to NAU are required.

• The NAU graduate online application is required for all programs. Admission to many graduate programs is on a competitive basis, and programs may have higher standards than those established by the Graduate College.
  
  Admission requirements include the following:

  • Transcripts.
  • Undergraduate degree from a regionally accredited institution with a 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale ("A" = 4.0), or the equivalent.

  
  Visit the NAU Graduate Admissions website for additional information about graduate school application deadlines, eligibility for study, and admissions policies.
  
  Ready to apply? Begin your application now.

  International applicants have additional admission requirements. Please see the International Graduate Admissions Policy.

• • GRE® revised General Test

• • Three letters of recommendation
  • A writing sample
  • A personal statement or essay

• • Resume or curriculum vitae

Doctoral Requirements

• Take the following 60 units,  with a minimum GPA of 3.0:

  • ENV 555 (3 units)
  • EES 605, EES 606 (2 units)
  • Professional experience: Any experience that significantly broadens knowledge and skills, and advances the student’s career objectives. The requirement can be satisfied through regular course work or through individualized study that expands the student’s skills in an area outside his/her dissertation but in a professional area related to his/her career goals, or research experiences within the context of the dissertation.  See an advisor. (6 units)
  • Select courses specific to an area of emphasis and dissertation topic, with at least 6 units in the area of emphasis chosen with approval of the student's dissertation committee. (30 units):

• • • Climate And Environmental Change Emphasis
      
      • Graduate-level courses with EES, ENV, BIO or FOR prefixes, or other courses that focus on climate or environmental change

• • • Earth And Planetary Systems Emphasis
      
      • Graduate-level courses with GLG prefix, or other courses that focus on earth or planetary systems

• • • Engineering Sustainable Systems Emphasis
      
      • Graduate-level courses with CENE or ME prefixes, or other courses that focus on engineering sustainable systems

• You may have no more than 6 units of 400-level courses. These 400-level courses cannot have been used to satisfy the requirements for any previous degree program(s). You must get your dissertation committee's approval for any courses taken outside of NAU.

• Be aware that some courses may have prerequisites that you must also successfully complete. For prerequisite information, click on the course or see your advisor.

• In addition:
  
  • 698 (seminar) courses selected by student and committee (4 units)
  • EES 799, for the research, writing, and oral defense of an approved dissertation. You can only count 15 units of dissertation credit toward your degree; however, you may end up taking additional units because you must enroll for it each term while you¿re working on your dissertation. (15 units)
  In choosing courses, please be aware that:
  • At least 39 units must be 500- and 600-level courses.
  • Your dissertation committee must approve all of your courses.
  
  RESEARCH REQUIREMENTS
  
  In addition to completing 45 units of coursework, you must demonstrate your independence, research skill, and experience in a discipline within earth sciences and environmental sustainability by choosing a problem and research area in consultation with your dissertation committee and then satisfactorily completing a dissertation.
  
  Your dissertation research meets our standards when it is soundly based in the theoretical context of the subject, proceeds with a sound design that gives due attention to statistical adequacy, and concludes with findings and inferences set forth within an appropriate theoretical context. Your dissertation must demonstrate that you have mastered your field of specialization, carried out independent scholarly work, and contributed significant new knowledge. You must pass an oral defense of your dissertation.
  
  COMPREHENSIVE EXAM
  
  We also require that you demonstrate written and oral communication skills in English at a level that will allow you to effectively communicate your ideas and knowledge to a wide range of audiences. Part of this demonstration involves comprehensive oral exams by the end of your 4th semester designed to establish your competence in a breadth and depth of subjects within your emphasis area and the larger field of earth sciences and environmental sustainability.
  
  RESEARCH COMPETENCY REQUIREMENT
  
  NAU policy for PhD programs includes a research competency requirement that must be satisfied before a student can be admitted to candidacy. This interdisciplinary doctoral program recognizes ENV 555, EES 605, and EES 606, plus one graduate level course with significant content in statistics and/or science/engineering research methods, as meeting this requirement.
  

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