As colleges add green studies, classes fill
Dec 28 - USA TODAY
Colleges are rapidly adding new majors and minors in green studies, and
students are filling them fast.
Nationwide, more than 100 majors, minors or certificates were created
this year in energy and sustainability-focused programs at colleges big
and small, says the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in
Higher Education. That's up from just three programs added in 2005.
Two factors are driving the surge: Students want the courses, and
employers want the trained students, says Paul Rowland, the
association's executive director.
"There's a great perception that there's a sweet spot with energy to do
good and do well, and it appears to be the place of job growth," says
Rob Melnick, executive dean of the Global Institute of Sustainability at
Arizona State University.
The institute started an undergraduate program in sustainability studies
-- with a focus on solar -- a year and a half ago. It now has about 600
students who've declared sustainability a major. "The growth rate is
unprecedented," even though the program has the toughest admission
standards of any school at the university, Melnick says.
Other schools are also seeing big demand, including:
*Illinois State University in Normal, Ill. The school of 21,000 students
has 65 majors in renewable energy, a program started in 2008 with help
from a $1 million Department of Energy grant. The program has "more
students wanting in than we can handle," says Richard Boser, chair of
the Department of Technology. Nearby employers, including those in wind
energy, hope to hire future graduates, Boser says.
*Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In September it launched a minor
in energy studies. A student survey said 43% of freshmen and sophomores
were very or extremely interested in it. "That's a very large number,"
says Vladimir Bulovic, associate professor of communication and
technology. MIT's student energy club has 1,700 members, vs. several
hundred a few years ago, Bulovic says.
*University of California-Berkeley. The school has seen student interest
in its introductory energy class explode. Ten years ago, it attracted 40
or so students. Now, the class runs 270, says Daniel Kammen, director of
the school's Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory.
The Obama administration has estimated that jobs in energy and
environmental-related occupations will grow 52% from 2000 through 2016,
vs. 14% for other occupations.
That's partly why budget-strapped schools are adding energy and
sustainability programs even while cutting other majors, Rowland says.
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