Master of Environmental Management students choose one of seven specialized program areas as a focal point for their studies.
We Are Duke Environment: A Community of Purpose and Passion
Dean Toddi Steelman introduces the amazing opportunities to become an environmental leader at Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment -- a community of purpose!
Nicholas School Financial Aid Helping Forge Future Leaders
Join 2nd-year Nicholas School MEM/MF student, Kendall DeLyser, as she shares insights into her studies and how financial aid support helped her pursue her education.
Exploring Durham: Nicholas School Students Offer Insider’s Guide to Local Food Scene
Master of Environmental Management students Lily and Ali share some of their favorite spots to eat and drink around Durham, including the Durham Farmer's Market, The Pit, The Parlour, Fullsteam Brewery and more.
Why Taylor Price Chose the Nic School's MEM Program
Taylor Price MEM'18 shares why the Nicholas School's Master of Environmental Management program was the best choice for her studies in environmental policy.
You’ll find Nicholas School alums pursuing their passion and making positive impacts worldwide. Our programs give them the foundational knowledge and practical skills to become leaders and innovators in a wide array of fields and sectors.
MEM'10
MEM'15
Prerequisites
Prerequisites for admission to the Nicholas School are:
- Some previous training in the natural sciences or the social sciences related to the student’s area of interest,
- At least one semester of college calculus;
- A college statistics course that includes descriptive statistics, probability distributions, hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, correlation, simple linear regression, and simple ANOVAs.
Statement of Prerequisite Coursework
The purpose of prerequisite courses is to ensure that on-campus students have sufficient backgrounds to understand the terminology, theory, and practical applications of the required qualitative and quantitative courses in the Master of Environmental Management and Master of Forestry professional degree programs. Students lacking prerequisites may be unable to complete courses in the recommended sequence and may find it difficult to complete the required courses for graduation within the normal two years of study.
Application and acceptance to the MEM and MF degrees is possible with prerequisite deficiencies. However, although we admit applicants with missing prerequisites, we only matriculate students who are missing no more than one required prerequisite. If you have not yet fulfilled a prerequisite, you are strongly urged to complete it prior to matriculating in the Nicholas School. Courses taken after matriculation to satisfy prerequisites do not count towards the credits required for the degree and must be completed with a grade of B- or better during the first year of the program. Students who fail to meet the required prerequisites by the end of the first year of study are at risk of being dismissed from the program.
Prerequisites for admission to the Nicholas School are:
- Some previous training in the natural sciences or the social sciences related to the student’s area of interest
- At least one semester of college calculus that includes: algebra (graphing linear equations, solving systems of linear equations); functions (characteristics of functions in one variable, logarithmic functions, exponential functions); calculus of one variable (derivatives, definite and indefinite integrals); calculus of more than one variable (partial derivatives, total derivatives); first-order differential equations (discrete and continuous time, rates of decay, initial conditions)
- A college statistics course that includes descriptive statistics, probability distributions, hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, correlation, simple linear regression, and simple ANOVAs
Additional courses might be required or recommended depending on the student’s program area of study within the MEM or MF degree. Although students must complete required prerequisites, completion of recommended courses is left up to the student’s discretion.
Courses & Requirements
During the first year of study, students work with a coursework adviser on course selection and on determining an area of study for the Master’s Projects. In the middle of the second semester, the student will choose an MP adviser who will work with the student on developing an MP, and will continue to consult with the course adviser on courses to be taken during the second year. The coursework and MP advisor can be the same or different faculty members. MPs may be either individual or group projects; most Coastal Environmental Management students complete individual projects.
In the second year, students will complete their course requirements and devote time to the completion of the MP. To graduate, students must have a total of at least 48 credit hours. An MP paper and presentation will be made at the end of the second semester of the second year. The required number of credit hours and MP presentation schedule vary slightly for the concurrent degree students.
In addition to courses required for their chosen concentration, all MEM students are required to take the following courses:
- ENVIRON 896 Professional Communications (1/2 credit hour)
- ENVIRON 897 Writing a Master’s Project (1/2 credit hour)
- ENVIRON 898.04 MP Seminar (1 credit hour to be awarded at the end of 4 semesters)
- ENVIRON 899.xx Master’s Project (4 to 6 credit hours)
- Successful completion of online Introductory Master’s Project Tutorials
Successful completion of online Introductory Master’s Project Tutorials is also a requirement.
Advanced Placement (AP) Courses
We will accept advanced placement (AP) courses if the student earns college credit for the course(s) from their undergraduate institution. This information must be clearly documented on the official undergraduate transcript. In the absence of the appropriate documentation on the official undergraduate transcript, we will accept an official letter from the institution’s Registrar’s Office (sent directly to our office), which clearly states the student earned college credit for the advanced placement course(s). The letter may not be sent by the applicant or student. Send by mail or to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu.
Challenge a Deficiency
If you have taken a college level course that you think may fulfill a prerequisite that has been listed as a deficiency, you should submit to us a letter or email identifying the course name and number and also send a syllabus for the course. Send to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu. To prove successful completion of the prerequisite you must also submit an official transcript to the Office of Student Services.
Diagnostic Exams
The Nicholas School administers diagnostic exams in calculus and statistics during Orientation Week. Success on the calculus and statistics prerequisite does not guarantee success on the diagnostic exams in these subjects. Students must complete the prerequisite requirement prior to taking the diagnostic exams. Finally, we encourage students to spend time reviewing these subjects prior to matriculation.
Distance Learning Courses
Students may fulfill prerequisites at any accredited college or university. However, students wishing to enroll in a distance learning course (e.g. online), in order to fulfill a prerequisite, are encouraged to seek prior approval to make sure the course is appropriate to fulfill the prerequisite requirement.
Send an email to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu, which includes the name of the institution, course title, course number, number of credits, dates of the course and the corresponding web-address with course details.
The Nicholas School maintains a short list of Pre-Approved Distance Learning Courses (for required prerequisites only). To request a list of Pre-Approved Distance Learning Courses, send an email to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu.
Notification of Enrollment
Students who plan to matriculate in the fall should provide notification of enrollment in their prerequisite coursework no later than May 15. If you are currently taking or plan to take a course to fulfill a prerequisite, please provide information about the course here.
If desired, students may send a copy of the syllabus or detailed course description for review and approval before they enroll and pay for prerequisite courses. While this step is not required, we encourage students to be sure that the course covers the required topics. Students are welcomed and encouraged to send the course syllabus to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu. Students should allow up to 3-5 business days for the review process to be completed and to receive a response via email.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Before you enroll in a prerequisite course, please read the following important details:
- May be taken at any accredited college or university, including community, technical, and junior colleges.
- Must be taken for college credit. Non-credit courses are not acceptable; this includes courses offered through Coursera and Opencourseware.
- Students must earn a minimum grade of B-. No exceptions.
- The pass/fail grading basis is not acceptable.
- Students may take a traditional-style online course (e.g. a distance learning course with regularly scheduled class meetings).
- Students should not take a correspondence, independent study or self-paced course unless special consent or prior approval granted by the Student Services office.
- Course must be semester long in length (most intensive summer sessions are sufficient).
- The student must send an official transcript upon completion
- Macroeconomics courses will not be accepted to fulfill the microeconomics prerequisite requirement.
Program-Specific Requirements
In additional to the school-wide prerequisites in calculus and statistics, each program area of study requires or recommends additional college- level course preparation, see the list below:
MASTER OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT (MEM) DEGREE
- Business and Environment (BE) - Microeconomics is required; either a full semester microeconomics course or an introductory course that is more than half microeconomics rather than macroeconomics.
- Coastal Environmental Management (CEM) - Microeconomics is required; either a full semester microeconomics course or an introductory course that is more than half microeconomics rather than macroeconomics.
- Environmental Economics and Policy (EEP) - Microeconomics is required; either a full semester microeconomics course or an introductory course that is more than half microeconomics rather than macroeconomics.
- Ecosystem Science & Conservation (ESC) - Principles of Ecology is required; Microeconomics is not required for the ESC program but it is required for Resource and Environmental Economics (ENVIRON 520), a course taken by a large number of ESC students
- Energy & Environment (EE) - Microeconomics is required; either a full semester microeconomics course or an introductory course that is more than half microeconomics rather than macroeconomics.
- Ecotoxicology & Environmental Health (EEH) - One semester of college Chemistry is required; Organic Chemistry and Principles of Ecology are both recommended.
- Global Environmental Change (GEC) - Introductory courses in Earth Sciences/Geology and Biology are both recommended. Applications for the GEC program are no longer being accepted. We encourage prospective students interested in climate change to consider the Climate Change Science and Applications certificate program to augment their academic experience.
- Water Resources Management (WRM) - General courses in Chemistry and Physics are recommended; Microeconomics is not required for the WRM program but it is required for Resource and Environmental Economics (ENVIRON 520), a course taken by a large number of WRM students
MASTER OF FORESTRY (MF) DEGREE
Principles of Ecology and an Introductory Economics course that includes microeconomics are both required. Although students without the level of preparation described above may be accepted for admission, it is expected that deficiencies will be made up prior to entrance by means of formal coursework.
For questions about prerequisite course requirements, contact nsoe-registrar@duke.edu or call 919-613-7459.
Transcript Submission
For application review purposes, official and unofficial transcripts are acceptable. Official transcripts are preferred but unofficial transcripts may be submitted at the time of application. If admitted, official transcripts will be required prior to matriculation.
Unofficial transcripts may be submitted through the online application; via fax to (919) 613-8719; or by scanned electronic copy to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu. Note: All transcripts submitted through the online application are considered unofficial.
Official transcripts should be in sealed envelopes signed or sealed across the flap by the registrar of the institution attended. If the original is not in English, you must also provide a certified English translation. If the undergraduate degree is awarded outside of the U.S., the student must also submit an official degree certificate to show proof the undergraduate degree has been awarded; graduation certificates are not acceptable. Again, the final undergraduate transcript and degree certificate must be submitted in sealed envelopes signed or sealed across the flap by the registrar of the institution attended.
MAILING ADDRESS AND ELECTRONIC SUBMISSIONS
An official hard copy of all undergraduate and non-degree transcripts should be mailed to Duke University Nicholas School/9 Circuit Drive/Box 90330/Durham, NC 27708-0330. Official transcripts should be in sealed envelopes signed or sealed across the flap by the registrar of the institution attended.
Or, if your undergraduate institution uses eSCRIP-SAFE International (or similar agent) for the delivery of official electronic transcripts, please ask the university registrar to forward your official transcript to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu. Official electronic transcripts cannot be submitted directly by the student.
Duke and Inter-Institutional Courses
Calculus
Duke: MATH 111L, or MATH 105L and 106L (2 semesters)
UNC: MATH 231, MATH 232 or MATH 152
NCSU: MA 121, 131 or 141
NCCU: MATH 2000 or 2010
Chemistry
Duke: CHEM 101DL
UNC: CHEM 101
NCSU: CHEM 101 & 102
NCCU: CHEM 1100
Ecology
Duke: BIOLOGY 668 or 290D
UNC: BIOL 201 or ENEC 461
NCSU: BIO 181 or BIO 105
NCCU: BIOL 1201
Microeconomics
Duke: ECON 101D or ECON 201 (preferably)
UNC: ECON 101, 310 or410
NCSU: EC 201, 205 or 301
NCCU: ECON 2100
Statistics
Duke: STA 101, 102, or 111 (requires good calculus background), PUBPOL 812
UNC: STOR 151, STOR 155, BIOS 600, PLAN 720, or SOCI 708
NCSU: ST 101, 305, 311, 507 & 511
NCCU: MATH 1110
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