Doctor of Philosophy in Ecosystem Sustainability

Many physical, ecological and social factors interact to shape the future of our ecosystems and societies. CSU's innovative new graduate program in Ecosystem Sustainability enables students to develop core competencies in ecosystem sciencethe study of organisms and the environmentand apply that knowledge to address real-world issues. We help develop leaders in sustainability science: a new generation of practitioners able to address complex, integrated social and ecological problems, in collaborative partnerships with researchers, resource users and decision-makers.

Our graduates have the tools to understand complex scientific questions in sustainability, and the leadership and collaborative skills required to address current and future issues in sustainability. The program serves as a foundation for a wide range of careers, including academic and scholarly professions, and work in government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and corporate and entrepreneurial environments.

A focus on solutions

Join us, and you will work at the cutting edge of new research on ecosystem sustainability. Collaborating with some of the world's leading ecosystem and sustainability scientists, you will explore solutions to global problems related to water resources, food supplies, energy, greenhouse gas management, land use change, climate change, and environmental justice, amongst others.

What students can expect to gain

This specialized degree training will help you to acquire:

Detailed knowledge of quantitative and qualitative methods
An understanding of complex ecosystem functioning
A transdisciplinary understanding of social-ecological processes
The ability to work in teams across disciplines and with decision makers, resource users and team members outside the academic arena
The skills to conduct integrated assessments using systems approaches, conceptual, mathematical, geospatial, and statistical models, and innovative collaborative processes.
The ability to apply critical thinking in the development of sustainable systems at local and global scales

As a general University policy, the Graduate School requires a minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0 and the department seeks applicants with GPAs of at least 3.3. In very rare instances, applicants with GPAs lower than 3.0, but with documented extenuating circumstances and high qualifications otherwise, may be granted conditional admission and must prove their abilities during their first semester of graduate studies.

Applicants undergraduate background must include satisfactory undergraduate course work in intermediate microeconomics, intermediate macroeconomics, econometrics, and calculus. Admission may be granted conditional on completing appropriate background course work before semester start date.

Besides academic background and test scores, the admissions committee evaluates the degree of fit between the applicant's stated interests and objectives, and the department's program fields and strengths.


IELTS - 6.5,TOEFL IBT - 80 (Internet based), TOEFL PBT - 550 (paper based), PTE minimum score - 58