Applied Climate Science

Applied climate professionals are active in assessing climate risk, informing decision makers, working with policy makers, and providing climate information to private and public sectors. The applied climate science (ACS) major will provide a foundation for understanding the climate system and its components, as well as interactions of the climate system components with, and impacts on, the environment and human activities. Upon the completion of the major, graduates will be prepared to address applied climate science issues such as climate change and climate variability.

The goal of the major is to provide a higher level of understanding in climatology in order to understand complex climate-based problems and their interrelationships with natural resources and ecosystem management issues that are pervasive today and will become even more important in the future. Issues such as natural hazard management, climate change, climate variability, changing frequency and severity of extreme climate events, environmental degradation, deforestation, and increased demand for water and other natural resources are at the root of this increased demand for applied climate professionals.