Environmental Biology

This hands-on concentration trains the next generation of researchers in the environmental biological sciences. Students must have the equivalent of an undergraduate major in biology. Many of your concentration courses will be taken in the Department of Biology. You will have the opportunity to carry out fieldwork and research in a wide range of ecosystems from urban Philadelphia city parks to the cloud forests of Puerto Rico.

Graduates with the Environmental Biology concentration frequently continue their environmental research at the PhD level, or work as biologists in environmental consulting, horticulture or ecology.

Student research

Your capstone project is a culmination of your classroom, research and field experiences in the MES program. Your methods and results are unique to your professional and academic goals. Take a look at abstracts by recent MES students with a concentration in Environmental Biology to understand the breadth of capstone topics and formats.

Every student in the Master of Environmental Studies (MES) program creates a research poster designed to showcase their capstone project. The selection of posters listed below is representative of the range of research projects undertaken by recent students in the Environmental Biology concentration.

Sample Environmental Biology concentration courses

In the Environmental Biology concentration, you will choose from a wide variety of courses in departments and graduate Schools across the University. The following list provides some examples of courses that the program has approved for students to take as part of this concentration.

School/Department Courses
Department of Earth and Environmental Science (MES Home)
  • Wetlands
  • Regional Field Ecology
  • Birds as Environmental Bioindicators
  • Creating Gateways to the Land with Smarter Conversation
  • Field Study of Puerto Rico's Ecology
Department of Biology
  • Field Botany
  • Plant Physiology Through Space and Time
  • Advanced Analysis of Humans and the Environment
  • Freshwater Ecology
  • Statistics for Biologists
  • Plant Systematics
School of Design
  • Topics in Ecological Design

Master of Environmental Studies Virtual Café

Join us on the first Tuesday of every month for an online chat, hosted live from noon - 1 p.m.

Ready to apply?

See deadlines, review our application materials checklist, and get ready to apply.

Building bridges to reach people where they are

MES in the Community

As an MES instructor, freshwater ecologist and graduate program alum Lauren McGrath (MES ’16) teaches the importance of connecting with people in protecting the land.