2025-2026 Academic Catalog
Welcome to Virginia Tech! We are excited that you are here planning your time as a Hokie.
Welcome to Virginia Tech! We are excited that you are here planning your time as a Hokie.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Degree Core Requirements (20 credits) | ||
| ENSC 3604 | Fundamentals of Environmental Science | 3 |
| PHYS 2205 | General Physics | 3 |
| WATR/GEOG 2004 | Water, Environment, and Society | 3 |
| WATR/FREC 3104 | Principles of Watershed Hydrology | 3 |
| WATR/FREC 3754 | Watersheds and Water Quality Monitoring | 3 |
| WATR/FREC/AAEC 4464 | Water Resources Policy and Economics | 3 |
| WATR/ALS 4614 | Watershed Assessment, Management, and Policy | 2 |
| Subtotal | 20 | |
| Major Requirements (42 credits) | ||
| BIOL 1116 | Principles of Biology Laboratory | 1 |
| CHEM 1045 | General Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| GEOG 1524 | Introduction to Earths Climate | 3 |
| GEOG/GEOS 4134 | Interdisciplinary Issues and Ethics in Water Resources | 3 |
| PHYS 2215 | General Physics Laboratory | 1 |
| WATR/FREC 4244 | Hydroinformatics | 3 |
| Water Law and Planning requirement (3 credits - choose 1 course) | 3 | |
| Environmental Law | ||
| Introduction to Environmental Policy and Planning | ||
| Law of Critical Environmental Areas | ||
| Land Use and Environment: Planning and Policy | ||
| Geospatial Technology requirement (3 credits - choose 1 course) | 3 | |
| Information Technologies for Natural Resource Management | ||
| Forest Photogrammetry and Spatial Data Processing | ||
| Principles of Geographic Information Systems | ||
| Introduction to Remote Sensing | ||
| Water Science and Water Policy Specializations: | ||
| As part of the Major Requirements, students must complete both a Water Science and a Water Policy Specialization. For each section below, complete 12 credits. Choose 9 credits in one specialization area; for the remaining 3 credits, select any approved specialization course. See specialization course list attached. | ||
| Water Science Specialization | ||
| Select 9 credits in one of the three specializations areas below and an additional 3 credits from any Water Science course listed under specializations. (12 credits total) | 12 | |
I. Aquatic Ecosystems | ||
II. Hydrology | ||
III. Water Quality | ||
| Water Policy Specialization | ||
| Select 9 credits in one of the two specializations areas below and an additional 3 credits from any Water Policy course listed under specializations. (12 credits total) | 12 | |
I. Water Planning, Policy, and Economics | ||
II. Water, Climate, Energy, and Global Issues | ||
| Restricted Electives | ||
| Select 6 credits from courses listed under Water Science Specializations or Water Policy Specializations or from those listed as Restricted Electives. | 6 | |
| Select remaining credits of Free Electives | 7 | |
| Pathways Requirements (45 Pathways credits) | ||
| 1. Discourse (9 credits: 6 foundational credits, 3 applied/advanced) | 9 | |
| Select 6 credits in Pathways Concept 1F - Discourse - Foundational | ||
| Select 3 credits in Pathways Concept 1A - Discourse -Applied / Advanced; select one of the following: | ||
| Introduction to Professional and Technical Writing | ||
or ENGL 3764 | Technical Writing | |
| 2. Critical Thinking in the Humanities (6 credits) | ||
| Select six credits in Pathways Concept 2 - Critical Thinking in the Humanities | 6 | |
| 3. Reasoning in the Social Sciences (6 credits) | 6 | |
| Select three credits in Pathways Concept 3 - Reasoning in the Social Sciences | ||
| Economics of the Food and Fiber System | ||
or ECON 2005 | Principles of Economics | |
| 4. Reasoning in the Natural Sciences (6 credits) | 6 | |
| Principles of Biology | ||
| General Chemistry | ||
| 5. Quantitative and Computational Thinking (9 credits: 6 foundational credits, 3 applied/advanced credits) | 9 | |
| Elementary Calculus | ||
or MATH 1225 | Calculus of a Single Variable | |
| Elementary Calculus | ||
or MATH 1226 | Calculus of a Single Variable | |
| Biological Statistics | ||
| 6. Critique and Practice in Design and the Arts (6 credits: 3 design & 3 arts, or 6 integrated) | ||
| Select three credits in Pathway 6a and three credits in Pathway 6d | 6 | |
| 7. Critical Analysis of Identity and Equity in the United States (3 credits) - may be double counted with another core outcome or major requirement | ||
| Select three credits in Pathway 7 * | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 120 | |
May be double-counted with another core outcome or major requirement
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 4004 | Freshwater Ecology | 4 |
| BIOL/ENSC 4164 | Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
| BIOL/ENT 4354 | Aquatic Entomology | 4 |
| ENT/BIOL/FIW 4484 | Freshwater Biomonitoring | 4 |
| FIW 4534 | Ecology and Management of Wetland Systems | 3 |
| FIW 4614 | Fish Ecology | 3 |
| FREC 4374 | Forested Wetlands | 3 |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BSE 4224 | Field Methods in Hydrology | 3 |
| CSES/GEOG/GEOS 3304 | Geomorphology | 3 |
| CSES 3614 | Soil Physical and Hydrological Properties | 3 |
| FREC 4354 | Forest Soil and Watershed Management | 3 |
| GEOS 4804 | Groundwater Hydrology | 3 |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BSE 4394 | Water Supply and Sanitation in Developing Countries | 3 |
| CEE 3104 | Introduction to Environmental Engineering | 3 |
| BIOL/ENSC 4164 | Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
| ENSC 3634 | Physics of Pollution | 3 |
| ENSC/CHEM 4734 | Environmental Soil Chemistry | 3 |
| ENSC 4314 | Water Quality | 3 |
| FREC 4354 | Forest Soil and Watershed Management | 3 |
| FREC 4374 | Forested Wetlands | 3 |
| FREC 4784 | Wetland Hydrology and Biogeochemistry | 3 |
| GEOS 4634 | Environmental Geochemistry | 3 |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AAEC 3004 | Agricultural Production and Consumption Economics | 3 |
| AAEC 3314 | Environmental Law | 3 |
| AAEC 3324 | Environment and Sustainable Development Economics | 3 |
| AAEC 4314 | Environmental Economic Analysis and Management | 3 |
| AAEC 4344 | Sustainable Development Economics | 3 |
| CEE 4134 | Environmental Sustainability - A Systems Approach | 3 |
| CEE 4344 | Water Resources Planning | 3 |
| FREC/NR 4014 | Natural Resources Economics | 3 |
| FREC 4434 | Natural Resource Policy | 3 |
| SPIA 2554 | Collaborative Policy-Making and Planning | 3 |
| UAP 3354 | Introduction to Environmental Policy and Planning | 3 |
| UAP 4344 | Law of Critical Environmental Areas | 3 |
| UAP 4374 | Land Use and Environment: Planning and Policy | 3 |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BSE 4394 | Water Supply and Sanitation in Developing Countries | 3 |
| CEE 4134 | Environmental Sustainability - A Systems Approach | 3 |
| FREC 2004 | Forest Ecosystems | 3 |
| FREC 2124 | Forests, Society & Climate | 3 |
| FREC/IS/PSCI 4174 | Climate Change and the International Policy Framework | 3 |
| GEOG 1514 | Introduction to Meteorology | 3 |
| GEOG 3104 | Environmental Justice, Resources and Development | 3 |
| GEOS 4314 | Coastal Hazards | 3 |
| IS 4014 | International Development | 3 |
| NR/GEOG 4444 | Practicing Sustainability | 3 |
| PSCI/UAP 3344 | Global Environmental Issues: Interdisciplinary Perspectives | 3 |
| UAP/GEOG/WGS 4214 | Gender, Environment, and International Development | 3 |
| UAP/GEOG/SOC 4764 | International Development Policy and Planning | 3 |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AAEC 3604 | Agricultural Law | 3 |
| ALS 3404 | Ecological Agriculture: Theory and Practice | 3 |
| BIOL 1105 | Principles of Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 1115 | Principles of Biology Laboratory | 1 |
| BIOL 2604 | General Microbiology | 3 |
| BIOL 2804 | Ecology | 3 |
| BIOL 3204 | Plant Taxonomy | 3 |
| BIOL 4014 | Environmental Toxicology | 2 |
| BSE 2304 | Landscape Measurements and Modeling | 3 |
| BSE 3324 | Small Watershed Hydrology | 3 |
| BSE 3334 | Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment and Control | 3 |
| BSE 4304 | Introduction to Watershed Modeling | 3 |
| CEE 3304 | Fluid Mechanics for Civil and Environmental Engineering | 4 |
| CEE 3314 | Water Resources Engineering | 4 |
| CEE 4104 | Water and Wastewater Treatment Design | 3 |
| CEE 4304 | Hydrology | 3 |
| CEE 4314 | Groundwater Resources | 3 |
| CHEM 1036 | General Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 1046 | General Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| CHEM 2514 | Survey of Organic Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 2535 | Organic Chemistry | 3 |
| CSES 3114/GEOS 3614 | Soils | 3 |
| CSES 3124/GEOS 3624 | Soils Laboratory | 1 |
| CSES 4854 | Wetland Soils and Mitigation | 3 |
| ECON 4014 | Environmental Economics | 3 |
| ENSC 3134 | Soils in the Landscape | 3 |
| ENSC 4244 | Ecological Restoration | 3 |
| ENSC 4414 | Monitoring and Analysis of the Environment | 2 |
| ESM 3024 | Introduction to Fluid Mechanics | 3 |
| FIW 2114 | Principles of Fish and Wildlife Conservation | 3 |
| FIW 4624 | Marine Ecology | 3 |
| FREC Any 2000 - 4000 level FREC course | 3 | |
| GEOG 1104 | Introduction to Environmental Geography | 3 |
| GEOG/NR 1115 | Seeking Sustainability | 3 |
| GEOG/NR 1116 | Seeking Sustainability | 3 |
| GEOG Any 2000 - 4000 level GEOG course | 3 | |
| GEOS 1004 | Earth Science: Our Past, Present, and Future | 3 |
| GEOS 1024 | Earth Resources, Society, and Environment | 3 |
| GEOS 1034 | Earths Natural Hazards | 3 |
| GEOS 1104 | Introduction to Earth Sciences Laboratory | 1 |
| GEOS 1124 | Earth Resources, Society and Environment Laboratory | 1 |
| GEOS 2104 | Elements of Geology | 3 |
| GEOS 3014 | Environmental Geosciences | 3 |
| GEOS 3034 | Oceanography | 3 |
| HIST 3144 | American Environmental History | 3 |
| LAR 3154 | Watershed Sensitive Site Design and Construction | 4 |
| MATH 2114 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | 3 |
| MATH 2214 | Introduction to Differential Equations | 3 |
| PHYS 2206 | General Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 2216 | General Physics Laboratory | 1 |
| PHYS 2305 | Foundations of Physics | 4 |
| PSCI/UAP 3444 | Administrative Law and Policy | 3 |
| PSCI/UAP 3714 | The U. S. Policy Process | 3 |
| PSCI/UAP 3744 | Public Policy Analysis | 3 |
| SBIO 2504 | Circular Economy Analytics for Sustainable Systems | 3 |
| STAT 3006 | Statistical Methods | 3 |
| STAT 3616 | Biological Statistics | 3 |
| UAP 3014 | Urban Policy and Planning | 3 |
| UAP 3024 | Urban and Regional Analysis | 3 |
| UAP 4754 | Legal Foundations of Planning | 3 |
Policy on Student Exchanges: If studying overseas or at another U.S. university, begin planning at least 9 months prior to your departure to allow time to determine what substitutions, if any, will be allowed and to arrange your schedule to ensure that all requirements for graduation will be met.
Minimum credits required for graduation is 120.
US Office of Personnel Management: Hydrology Qualification Standards:
Basic Requirements:
Degree: physical or natural science, or engineering that included at least 30 semester hours in any combination of courses in hydrology, the physical sciences, geophysics, chemistry, engineering science, soils, mathematics, aquatic biology, atmospheric science, meteorology, geology, oceanography, or the management or conservation of water resources. The course work must have included at least 6 semester hours in calculus (including both differential and integral calculus, e.g., MATH 1025 Elementary Calculus and MATH 1026 Elementary Calculus), and at least 6 semester hours in physics (e.g., PHYS 2205 General Physics and PHYS 2206 General Physics).
Notes:
In-Major GPA Computation: Degree core requirements and major requirements (with the exception of PHYS 2205 and Lab major requirements) count toward in-major GPA. This includes courses in the water science specialization and water policy specialization. For restricted electives and free electives, any course taken from either a water science specialization or a water policy specialization counts toward the in-major GPA.
PHYS 2305 Foundations of Physics may substitute for PHYS 2205 General Physics and PHYS 2215 General Physics Laboratory
CHEM 1055 General Chemistry for Chemistry Majors may substitute for CHEM 1035 General Chemistry and CHEM 1045 General Chemistry Laboratory
STAT 3005 Statistical Methods may substitute for STAT 3615 Biological Statistics
Foreign Language Requirement: Students who did not successfully complete at least two years of a single foreign, classical, or sign language during high school must successfully complete six (6) semester hours of a single foreign, classical, or sign language at the college level. Courses taken to meet this requirement do not count toward the hours required for graduation. Please consult the Undergraduate Catalog for details.
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