Environmental Studies welcomes all students interested in gaining the scholarly background and practical skills needed to address pressing environmental challenges. We accept incoming freshman, current UCSB students looking to change or add ES as a double major, and transfer students.  If you're a current UCSB student looking to declare ES or switch between one of our three degrees please follow the directions provided below.  If you're a prospective incoming freshman or transfer student we encourage you to visit our Degrees Offered webpage  to learn more about our degree options and major requirements and then contact an ES Academic Advisor to discuss how best to prepare for one before arriving on campus.  

Qualifications

  1. Degree Options:  Environmental Studies offers three degrees. To learn more about them and to select the right one for you visit the Degrees Offered webpage.
  2. Courses Required:  Environmental Studies does not have a "pre-major" or require one to complete the entire Preparation for the Major section before applying. However, students looking to declare ES or HYDRO should complete at least one of the required lower-division Environmental Studies courses (ENV S 1, 2, or 3) and at least two additional lower-division preparation courses. Exceptions for those who are currently enrolled in one of the above courses or for other extenuating circumstances may be considered.
  3. GPA:  There's no minimum GPA requirement to declare a major in Environmental Studies; but a student should be in good academic standing (overall GPA of 2.0 or higher) at the time they submit the change of major forms.

If you have any questions about declaring the ES major please email advising@es.ucsb.edu or visit the ES Academic Advisors in Bren 4312. 

Steps to Declare or Switch your ES major

The process to change your major is conducted online via UCSB’s Student Success Hub (SSH) webpage and typically takes 1-2 weeks for department approval and to be posted in SSH and GOLD. Please note that additional review and approval by the College of Letters and Science (L&S) may be necessary for certain reasons noted below, which could extend processing by an additional 1-2 weeks.

  • You are attempting to change your major after you have completed 135 units or more (i.e., senior standing)
  • You are proposing a double major
  • You are changing to or from the College of Engineering or College of Creative Studies. 
  • You need more than 200 units and need to stay enrolled at UCSB for more than 12 quarters (6 for transfer students) to graduate.  In such cases the College will email a Proposed Schedule for Graduation (PSG) used to outline a plan to complete all remaining graduation requirements. Students sent a PSG will need to consult an ES Advisor to review and sign their form before it can be returned to the College.

If declaring a double major, in Step #3, follow one of the two options for Second/Double Major.  

Step #1:  You need to be familiar with your major requirements. Click the ES major you wish to pursue to download the official major requirement sheet. You may have to right-click to download file.
     - Environmental Studies, B.A.  
     - Environmental Studies, B.S.   
     - Hydrologic Science and Policy, B.S.  

Step #2:  Save the document and review it thoroughly. This document will be required when submitting your Change of Major petition in SSH.  If you have questions about the major requirements contact a ES Academic Advisor before submitting your official Change of Major Petition. 

Step #3:  Access the Change of Major Petition within SSH here. Then follow the set of steps below that fits your situation to submit your petition: 

Single Major Process

Add a second major

Adding Two Majors

Switching Majors in Another College:

If you are changing between UCSB Colleges, or looking to enroll in Dual Colleges, you will need to follow some additional instructions provided on the College of L&S Change of Major webpage here and then scroll down to the Change of College Petition link or the Dual College Petition link, and read the directions. Students in these situations are encouraged to contact the new department or college advisor before you begin this process. For the College of Creative Studies, you must consult a college advisor first.
 

More Detailed Steps to Declare the Major

This is a more detailed text version of the steps found in the boxes above.

Single Major: Declaring or Switching your ES or HYDRO major:

  1. Access the Petition in Student Success Hub by clicking here
  2. Next, choose from the drop-down menu the L&S Environmental Studies degree you want to declare (B.A. ES, B.S. ES or B.S. HYDRO)
  3. Then upload your ES or HYDO Major Requirement sheet when prompted. Doing so acknowledges you've read and understand your major requirements.
  4. Then hit submit
  5. The department approval process takes 1-2 weeks and will be noted in SSH and posted on GOLD once approved.

Double Major: If keeping your first major and adding ES or HYDRO:

  1. Access the Petition in Student Success Hub by clicking here
  2. Next, choose the major you are keeping
  3. Then, from the drop-down menu select the L&S Environmental Studies degree you want to declare as your second major (B.A. ES, B.S. ES or B.S. HYDRO)
  4. Read and acknowledge the Double Major Memo of Understanding
  5. Then upload your ES or HYDO Major Requirement sheet. Doing so acknowledges you've read and understand your major requirements.
  6. Then hit submit
  7. Approval of a double major takes 2-4 weeks. Once approved it will be noted in SSH and posted on GOLD.

Double Major: If declaring a new ES/HYDRO and a second new major:

Because Student Success Hub only allows for a single major change at a time, to declare two new majors students must submit two petitions (declare first major and get it approved and then submit a second petition to add ES as your double major). This includes ES majors changing between the B.S. and the B.A. and adding a second new major.

  1. Access the Petition in Student Success Hub by clicking here
  2. Next, from the drop-down menu select the first major you want to declare. Note: each department may have additional steps one must follow to declare their major so be sure to check with that department first before submitting the petition.
  3. Then hit submit
  4. Approval will take 1-2 weeks. Once approved it will be noted in SSH and posted on GOLD.
  5. Once the first major change has been approved, follow the instructions for adding Double Majors Keeping Your first Major and then add ES as your second major