Approved Laboratory, Earth Science, Design & Major Approved Electives

More details on the following courses can be found in the Cornell courses of study, the Spring 2026 Roster or the Fall 2025 Roster.

Laboratory Courses

  • BEE 4270 Water Measurement and Analysis Methods (3 cr, Fall)
  • CEE 4370/6370 Experimental Methods in Fluid Dynamics (4 cr, Spring, Alternate Years, Sp2026 next offered)1
  • CEE 4530 Lab Research in Envir. Eng. (3 cr, Spring)

Earth Science Courses

  • BEE 3710 Physical Hydrology for Ecosystems (3 cr, Spring)
  • EAS 2250 The Earth System (4 cr, Fall)
  • EAS 2680 Climate and Global Warming (3 cr, Spring)
  • EAS 3010 Evolution of the Earth Systems (4 cr, Fall)
  • EAS 3030 Introduction to Biogeochemistry (4 cr, Fall)
  • EAS 3050 Climate Dynamics (3 cr, Fall)
  • PLSCI 2600 Soil Science (4 cr, Fall)
  • PLSCI 3650 Environmental Chemistry: Soil, Air, and Water (3 cr, Spring)
  • NTRES 3240 Sustainable, Ecologically Based Management of Water Resources (3 cr, Spring)

Note: More advanced Earth Science courses generally accepted by petition.

Design and Major Approved Electives

A total of 6 courses across capstone design, design and major-approved electives must be selected from among the courses in the list below. At least three of these six courses must be capstone design or design electives. At least one of the three design electives must be a capstone design elective.  Design courses are designated with an asterisk (*), and capstone design courses are italicized and designated with a double asterisk (**). Capstone design, design, and major approved electives have been designated under one of four focus areas below. Students can select electives from any combination of focus areas.

Sustainable Energy

  • CEE 5200 Economics of the Energy Transition (3 cr., Fall)
  • CHEME 6660/6661/6670 Analysis of Sustainable Energy Systems (3 cr., Fall)
  • MAE 5010 Future Energy Systems (3 cr., Spring)
  • *CEE 4880 Applied Modeling & Simulation for Renewable Energy Systems (3 cr., Spring)
  • **CEE 4210 Renewable Energy Systems (3 cr., Fall)

Environmental Processes

  • BEE 4520 Advances in Bioremediation (3 cr., Spring)
  • BEE 4590 Physical Design in Biological Engineering (3 cr., Fall)
  • BEE 4800 Atmospheric Chemistry: From Air Pollution to Global Change (3 cr., Fall)
  • CEE 4510 Microbiology for Environmental Engineering (3 cr., Fall)
  • CEE 4535 Water Chemistry for Environmental Engineering (3 cr., Fall)
  • CEE 4555 Physical/Chemical Processes (3 cr., Fall)
  • CEE 4570 Environmental Biological Processes (3 cr., Fall)
  • CEE 6590 Environmental Organic Chemistry (3 cr., Spring)
  • EAS 4570 Atmospheric Air Pollution (3 cr., Spring; Offered Alternate Years)
  • **CEE 4565 Waste Water Processes and Resource Recovery (3 cr., Spring)

(CEE 4570 Env. Bio Processes is a recommended major approved elective to precede CEE 4565.)

Hydrology and Environmental Fluid Mechanics

  • BEE 4620 Justice and Sustainability in Freshwaters: Managing for Water Quality (3 cr., Spring)
  • BEE 4710 Introduction to Groundwater (3 cr., Spring)
  • BEE 6740 Ecohydrology (3 cr., Spring, alternate years)
  • CEE 3410 Geotechnical Engineering for Energy, Environment and Civil Infrastructure (4 cr., Fall)
  • CEE 4370 (6370*) Experimental Methods in Fluid Dynamics (4 cr., Spring, alternate years)
  • CEE 6550 Transport, Mixing and Transformation in the Environment (3 cr., Spring)
  • *CEE 4350 Coastal Engineering (4 cr., Spring; alternate years, 2025 next)
  • **BEE 4730 Watershed Engineering (4 cr., Fall)

Sustainable Systems and Environmental Analytics

  • BEE 3299 Sustainable Development (3 cr., Spring)
  • BEE 4310 Environmental Statistics and Learning (3 cr., Fall)
  • BEE 4830 Engineering Sustainability (3 cr., Spring)
  • BEE 4850 Environmental Data Analysis and Simulation (3 cr., Spring)
  • CEE 4930 Data Analytics (4 cr., Fall)
  • *CEE 4200 Managing Water Resources in a Changing World (3 cr., Fall)
  • CEE 5980 Decision Framing and Analytics (3 cr., Fall)
  • PLSCI 4200 Geographic Information Systems (3 cr., Spring)
  • *CEE 4665 Modeling and Optimization for Smart Infrastructure Systems (3 cr., Fall)
  • *CEE 4795 Sensors for the Built and Natural Environments (3 cr., Spring)
  • *CEE 4800 Engineering Smart Cities (3 cr., Fall)
  • *CEE 4640 Sustainable Transportation System Design (3 cr., Fall)

 

Note: EnvE Major Approved Electives are 3 or 4 credit environmental engineering-related technical courses that support the professional objectives of the student and which have either (1) a technical prerequisite that is a required engineering course in the EnvE curriculum, or (2) an advanced rank limited to juniors or above.

1 CEE 4370 can be used to fulfill both lab and major approved elective requirement, while CEE 6370 can be used to fulfill both the lab and design requirement, in either case, students must then take an additional major approved elective from the major approved elective list to maintain the total number of required units in the program.