Category: Students

The Presidents’ Council, State Universities of Michigan has approved Michigan Tech’s new Bachelor of Science degree in Natural Resources Management. The new program will start this fall.

“The value of this new undergraduate degree program in natural resources management is that it is interdisciplinary and thus complements our existing disciplinary programs in natural resources,” said Terry Sharik, dean of the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science. “Thus, rather than focusing on a single renewable resource, such as wood, wildlife, water or recreation, it will integrate across these resource areas and include the ecological, social and economic dimensions of natural resource or ecosystem management. It will complement our other degree programs as the graduates of this new program will be tasked with overseeing teams of specialists to work on complex issues related to natural resources and the environment. Another plus for the new degree program is it is likely to attract students who might not otherwise be attracted to our existing programs.

“We know from national data that such programs tend to attract a higher proportion of females and under-represented minorities than more traditional natural resource programs focused on single resources, and thus our new program should increase the overall diversity of our student body,” Sharik went on to say.

Article by Jennifer Donovan