Student drawing biodiveristy while lying down in the grass.

Undergraduate Programs

We tackle challenges as diverse as the world itself.

How we contribute

At CALS, we make change in the world by putting science to work. Students and faculty go beyond the boundaries of classes and campus to tackle the challenges of our time through world-renowned research, education and outreach.

Undergraduate majors

Major & Minor

Environment & Sustainability Major

Our faculty, staff and courses play key roles in the undergraduate major of Environment & Sustainability (E&S), an interdisciplinary, cross-college major that confronts the environment and sustainability challenges of our time.

Many of the school's courses are required in the E&S core curriculum and concentrations. Many faculty members advise in the major.

Student presenting at a podium.

Global Development

The global development major responds to the need for innovative and critical thinking on the concept and practice of development. It prepares students to interpret problems, clarify solutions, develop leadership and foster positive social change. Students receive comprehensive training in the key ideas, issues and debates central to global development. All students take a breadth of interdisciplinary coursework in development scholarship and practice and gain depth in a concentration of their choice, selecting from social and economic development, agriculture and food systems or environment and development.

Learn more about the global development major & minor
Students tour a farm in Costa Rica
Students in the global development course Development in Action visit Costa Rica to learn about agriculture and food systems. Photo by Noël Heaney.

Minors

Community Food Systems

Engage with critical contemporary issues relating to food security, food sovereignty and food justice.

Minor

Education

Bring effective teaching practices to life in your career.

Minor

Leadership

Become a more engaged, reflective and effective citizen with a deeper understanding of the complexities, dynamics and interdependencies of life.

Minor