College of the Environment

MAPs are being updated

These pages are currently under revision, and may not have a complete list of programs. Please contact Hannah Nevitt to explore all program options.

The following programs offer significant coursework and field immersion opportunities for Environmental Studies and Environmental Science. This is meant to highlight a variety of programs by region. Please note there are many other options available beyond what is listed. This is not a guaranteed list for credit transfer. Students must obtain department advisor approval for fulfilling degree requirements. Students must apply to both the provider through the links below, and to WWU Education Abroad

Environmental Science Degrees

University Catalogue Information (Program Requirements): Environmental Science, BS, Environmental Studies, BA, Environmental Studies-Geography Emphasis, BA

Explore Programs

Advisor

Kathryn Patrick

Advisor for College of the Environment

Office: ES 539

Mary Moores

Advisor for College of the Environment

Office: ES 539

Advising Info

After you decide on a program and the courses you will take abroad, you must complete the Departmental Academic Advising Esign Form with your academic advisor. The form must be completed before your program commences.   

Review Your Degree Works  

Web4U > Student > Student Records > Degree Works. Follow steps to see what you have completed, and what you still need for your degree plan. At least 50% of the credit hours required for the major/minor must be earned at Western.   

An official transcript from your program must be sent to Education Abroad for processing upon completion of your program.  

More Info  

Program Options

Study Abroad Provider

  • Independent organizations that facilitate or administer study abroad programs for students
  • Quarter, semester, academic year, calendar year, and summer
  • Pay a program fee that includes tuition, housing, etc. (varies)
  • More services provided
  • Often includes excursions, onsite pickup, varied housing options
  • Part time internships can be available for credit

Faculty-led Global Learning Program

  • WWU faculty organize and lead academic programs abroad
  • Quarter, summer, and academic breaks
  • Earn WWU credits and learn from WWU faculty abroad while studying with other WWU students
  • Pay tuition and fees at WWU in addition to a program fee for onsite costs

Western Exchange

  • Bilateral agreements between WWU and universities abroad to exchange students
  • Chance of placement is high
  • Semester and year-long options
  • Pay WWU in-state tuition and mandatory fees
  • Room & board paid onsite
  • Take courses with international students at universities abroad
  • Eligibility requirements vary
  • More independent and less services

ISEP Exchange

  • ISEP stands for International Student Exchange Program
  • Students can choose from over 135 universities in 36 different countries
  • Students provide ISEP with a list of preferred sites. Chance of placement varies from site to site.
  • Semester & year-long options only
  • Pay WWU in-state tuition and mandatory fees
  • Room & board paid to WWU
  • Take courses with international students at universities abroad
  • More independent and less services provided

Research, Fellowships & Grants

Africa

Botswana

ISEP - University of Botswana, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Kenya

SFS - Kenya Wildlife, Water and Climate Resilience, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Madagascar

SIT - Madagascar - Biodiversity & Natural Resource Management, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Courses in English: Prerequisites of French

  • Biodiversity and Resource Management Seminar, Environmental Research Methods and Ethics, Independent Study Project

South Africa

  • ISA - Sustainable Development, Environmental Studies & Sport Science, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

    Courses offered in English,

    • Biochemistry II, Biology I, Chemistry I, General Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Community Ecology, Animal Physiology, Plant Ecology, Environmental Science, Concepts of Physics, Animal Diversity, Exercise Science I, Exercise Physiology I
  • CIEE - Open Campus Cape Town, Spring Semester, Spring Quarter, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

    Courses in English:

    • Climate Change Science and Policy, Sustainability in the Anthropocene, Geographic Information Systems and Mapping our Changing World, Global Change and the Environment, Fisheries, Biology, and Sustainability, Agricultural Ethics and the Developing World, Global Environmental Policy, Conservation Biology
  • ISEP - University of Johannesburg, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Tanzania

Asia

Cambodia

SFS - Cambodia Climate Change, Ethics & Conservation, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

China

CIEE - Open Campus Shanghai, Spring Semester, Spring Quarter, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

Hong Kong

ISEP - The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Mongolia

SIT - Mongolia & Siberia Nomadism, Geopolitics & Environment, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Nepal

Thailand

Vietnam

Central America

Belize

Wildlands Studies - Belize, Summer Quarter

Courses in English:

Environmental Wildlands Studies, Environmental Field Study, Wildlands Environment and Culture

Costa Rica

  • CIEE - Summer Sustainability & The Environment, Summer Quarter

    Can work for spring quarter or summer:

    Spring Quarter (Summer 1+2) = May 15 - Aug. 5th for 18 quarter credits.

    Summer 2 = June 26 - Aug 5th for 9-10 quarter credits.

    Courses in English:

    • Conservation Biology, Biology of Tropical Diseases, Sustainable Development for the Tropics, Nature, Photography, Social Media & Environmental Engagement, Environmental Engineering for the Tropics, Global Change & Environment, International Agriculture, Survival Spanish.
  • Wildlands Studies - Costa Rica, Spring Quarter
  • CIEE- Summer Tropical Ecology & Conservation, Summer Quarter

    Courses in English:

    • Tropical Biology, Independent Research in Biology/Ecology
  • ISA Service Learning - San Jose, Costa Rica, Summer Quarter

    $2,750 4-week summer. Placement site, housing, meals, airport pickup. Additional $275 for 3 quarter credits

    • Placements 
      • Center for Dance, Theatre & Circus -promoting appreciation of environment, art, music & tech.
      • Bilingual School - PK-12 school's mission on civic commitment, personal growth and environmental conservation. Teacher's Aide, TESOL, Physical Education
      • Environmental, Cultural & Recreational Park - gardening, planting, weeding, reforestation initiatives, and nursery restoration and creation of artificial lakes, environmental education workshops, playground creation, and work with schools in the local community
      • Butterfly Garden - planting shrubs and weeding in the greenhouses or garden trails, feeding larvae and butterflies in the laboratory, or assisting with content creation and social media marketing.
  • CEA - Veritas University, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

    Courses in English:

    • Tropical Marine Biology, Tropical Botany, Tropical Ecology, Freshwater Ecology, Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, Sustainable Development and Environmental Awareness, Climate Change: Impact and Adaptions, Environmental Impact and Social Development, Marine Molecular Biology, Innovation for Sustainable Development

    (More potential options available) 

  • USAC - San Ramon, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

    Courses in English:

    • 200/400 Level Independent Research, Sustainable Development: Women and the Environment, Tropical Ecology, Tropical, Ecology and Population Biology, Biological Diversity, Tropical Marine Biology(+optional field study), Tropical Conservation Biology, Environmental Policy
  • USAC - Heredia, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

    Courses in English:

    • Introduction to Tropical Ecology, Sustainable Development, Tropical Conservation Biology (Field Study available), Tropical Marine Biology, Introduction to Conservation Biology, Climate, Global Change and Society, Water in Tropical Landscapes(+optional field study)

Panama

SIT - Panama Tropical Ecology, Marine Ecosystems & Biodiversity Conservation - Panama & Costa Rica, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Courses in English:

  • Human Ecology and Conservation in the Tropics, Comparative Tropical Ecology, Environmental Research Methods and Ethics, Independent Study Project

Europe

Austria

Denmark

CIEE - Open Campus Copenhagen, Spring Semester, Spring Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

Courses in English:

Sustainable Development in the 21st Century, Global Environmental Policy, Conservation Biology, Global Change and the Environment, Internship Seminar, Directed Independent Research

England

Finland

France

  • ISEP - Université de Nantes, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter
  • ISA - Lille, Summer Quarter
  • CIEE - Open Campus Paris, Spring Semester, Spring Quarter, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

    Courses in English:

    Sustainable Development in the 21st Century, Global Environmental Policy, Conservation Biology, Global Change and the Environment, Internship Seminar, Directed Independent Research

  • CEA - Science & Engineering - French Riviera, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

    Classes in English:

    • Environmental Economics and Policy, General Chemistry I, General Chemistry Lab I, General Ecology, General Chemistry II, General Chemistry Lab II, Oceanography

Germany

Greece

Iceland

Ireland

  • USAC - Cork, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

    Introduction to Environmental Science, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, Environmental Risk Assessment and Auditing, Habitats and Ecosystems, Conservation Biology, Physics for the Environmental Sciences I, Environmental Geography, Biogeography, Introduction to Remote Sensing, Environmental Remote Sensing, Economic and Rural Geography, Introduction to Geographical Informational Systems

    (More Classes Available) 

    Recommended: Environmental Studies and Environmental Studies with geography emphasis

  • CEA - Galway, Spring Semester, Academic Year

    Courses in English:

    Plant Resources and Ecosystems, Organic Chemistry, Aquatic Geochemistry, Ocean Dynamics, Physics of the Environment II, Biogeography

  • CEA - Ecology & Living Landscapes Summer - Ireland, Summer Quarter
    • Living Landscapes of the Burren and East County Galway
  • ISA- Ireland, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Italy

Netherlands

  • CIEE - Business & Sustainability - Amsterdam, Summer Quarter
  • USAC - Maastricht, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

    Classes in English: 

    • Sustainable Development, Climate Change, The Study of Environmental Problems: Between Nature, Society, and Politics, Authority, Expertise and Environmental Change

Norway

Western Exchange - Western Norway University of Applied Sciences - Pay In-State Tuition & Fees!, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter
  • Sogndal campus offers themed coursework in Geohazards and Climate Change, as well as Mountain Studies.
  • Stord campus offers themed coursework in Fjords and Glaciers

Poland

API - Kraków, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

Energy Security

Scotland

  • USAC - University of Stirling, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter
    • Biogeography: An Ecological and Environmental Approach, Energy and Society, Environmental Policy and Management, Geographical Information Systems, Global Environmental Issues, Methods and Applications in Environmental Sciences
  • ISEP - Edinburgh Napier University, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Spain

  • API - Pablo de Olavide University, Seville, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

    Courses in English:

    Organic Chemistry II with Lab, Ecological Systems

  • CIEE - Open Campus Madrid, Spring Semester, Spring Quarter, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

    Courses in English:

    Sustainability and the Anthropocene, Conservation Biology, Biology of Tropical Diseases, Sustainable Development in the 21st Century, Global Change and the Environment, Directed Independent Research

  • ISEP - Universidad de Almeria, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter
  • CEA - Granada, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

    Courses in English:

    Sustainability in the Mediterranean, Spain's Evolving Social and Demographic Landscapes

  • CEA - Alicante Science & Engineering, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

    Courses in English: 

    Organic Chemistry, Advanced Organic Chemistry, Modelling Ecological Systems, Introduction to Human Geography, Ecology

  • ISA - Internship - Valencia, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

Sweden

Middle East

Jordan

United Arab Emirates

North America

Canada

Mexico

  • , Summer Quarter
  • CIEE - Open Campus Yucatan, Spring Semester, Spring Quarter, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

    Courses in English:

    • Calculus I, General Physics I, Statistics

Oceania

Australia

Fiji

SIT - Samoa Social & Environmental Change in Oceania - Fiji, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

Courses in English:

  • Climate Change and Resilience in Oceania

French Polynesia

Wildlands Studies - French Polynesia, Summer Quarter

New Zealand

South America

Argentina

  • API - Mendoza, Spring Semester, Fall Quarter

    English courses in:

    • Environment, Politics & Identity, Internship, Population Ecology, Topics in Rural Development Economics, Water Resource Management in an Arid Climate, Agribusiness & more
  • CIEE - Open Campus Buenos Aires, Spring Semester, Spring Quarter, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter, Winter Quarter

    Classes in English:

    • Agricultural Ethics and the Developing World, Climate Change Science and Policy, Sustainability and the Anthropocene, Global Environmental Policy, GIS and Mapping our Changing World, Conservation Biology

Chile

Wildlands Studies - Chile, Winter Quarter

Courses in English:

  • Environmental Wildlands Studies, Environmental Field Survey, Wildlands Environment and Culture

Ecuador

Uruguay

USAC - Montevideo, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

English courses in:

  • Viticulture, Gender & Environment, The Global Food Challenge, Agribusiness, Sustainability: Alternatives to Development, Internships

Various

Various

Virtual Global Internship

SIT - Virtual Internship in Environment, Development & Sustainability, Spring Semester, Summer Quarter, Fall Quarter

West Indies

Bahamas

, Summer Quarter