Earth Systems Major

The Earth Systems Program is an interdisciplinary environmental science major.  Students learn about and independently investigate complex environmental problems caused by human activities in conjunction with natural changes in the Earth system.  Earth Systems majors become skilled in those areas of science, economics, and policy needed to tackle the world’s most pressing social-environmental problems and sustainability challenges.

Choose one of eight academic tracks

To find out more about specific requirements for each track, select a track below.

Stanford Bulletin - Earth Systems Program
Please visit the Stanford Bulletin for a comprehensive view of the Earth Systems Undergraduate Program.
 

Learning Outcomes

The program expects majors to be able to demonstrate the following learning outcomes. These learning outcomes serve as benchmarks for evaluating students and the program's undergraduate degree. Students are expected to:

1. demonstrate knowledge of foundational skills and concepts in order to advance the interdisciplinary study of the environment.
2. demonstrate the ability to analyze, integrate and apply relevant science and policy perspectives to social-environmental problems. 
3. demonstrate the ability to communicate complex concepts and data relevant to social-environmental problems and questions to expert and non-expert audiences.