Jason Scorse, Director of the Center for the Blue Economy, teaches courses in environmental and natural resource economics, ocean and coastal economics, and behavioral economics. He has consulted for major environmental organizations including the Sierra Club, The Nature Conservancy, Earth Justice, and Oceana
Meet Jason ScorseMaster of Arts in Environmental Policy and Management
Become a leader in addressing the world’s toughest sustainability challenges, including climate change, ocean health, and environmental justice.
Our Master of Arts in Environmental Policy and Management prepares you for a rewarding career building climate-resilient, sustainable, and equitable societies. Gain professional experience through real-world projects with this STEM-designated, four-semester degree.
This program is also referred to as International Environmental Policy (IEP).
Start Term | Credits | Duration | In-Person |
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Fall or spring | 60 | 4 semesters | Monterey, California |
Find out if Environmental Policy and Management is right for you
Transform Your Career
Career and Academic Advising
We integrate your career and academic advising, ensuring your coursework aligns with your career goals. The same advisor will guide you from course registration to preparing for interviews and negotiating new career opportunities.
Practical Experience
- You will gain the equivalent of two to four years of professional work experiences to add to your resume during the course of your master’s degree.
- Our Center for the Blue Economy (CBE) offers summer fellowships with top marine organizations as well as paid research assistantships.
- Monterey, California, is a center for marine and ocean conservation and policy, including the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
- Nearby Silicon Valley is at the heart of the green tech revolution, and the organic agriculture movement started in Santa Cruz.
- The San Francisco Bay Area has the highest concentration of environmental NGOs anywhere in the world.
- You will put theory into practice through a semester-long practicum in the field.
Internships
We have 80+ employers of our recent interns and the Institute has partnerships with UNICEF and the GAO for unique opportunities.
Careers
Our graduates find meaningful careers in government, business, and NGOs, including organizations like Oceana, Conservation International, and Microsoft. Many roles in the sustainability industry require a master’s degree and with a Middlebury Institute master’s, you will be in demand.
One Year After Graduation
Curriculum
Our interdisciplinary curriculum is a mix of core and specialization courses that will prepare you to be a solutions-oriented climate and sustainability leader. Build your expertise in:
- Conservation science and policy
- Environmental economics
- Climate policy and governance
- Data analysis
- Geographic information systems (GIS)
- Social and environmental justice
- Intercultural competence and a second language
See the curriculum for more details.
Specializations
Expand your career opportunities with a management specialization:
Professional Practicum
In your final semester, you will put theory into practice through a semester-long practicum working in the field. On-the-job supervisors and faculty mentors will work closely with you to make the practicum a bridge to full-time employment. Learn more about your practicum.
Faculty: Professors and Practitioners
While other graduate schools rely on teaching assistants, you will have direct access to our faculty. They’re active, engaged policy professionals who combine academic expertise with years of professional experience in water conservation, food systems, ocean ecosystem management, sustainable development, responsible mining, sustainability investing, “blue” economic development, and more. Our faculty are committed to your success, becoming your mentors and colleagues, and you will work closely with them on real-world consulting projects and research. Meet our faculty.
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Jeff Langholz is passionate about sustainability of the world’s natural resources. His teaching and research draw from extensive professional experience with the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and consultancies across North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Africa.
Meet Jeff Langholz -
Lyuba Zarsky’s passion is promoting justice and sustainability in business and the economy. She co-founded and co-directed an NGO “think and do tank” on global security and sustainability and served on the Trade and Environment Policy Advisory Committee of the Office of the US Trade Representative.
Meet Lyuba Zarsky -
Fernando DePaolis teaches Data Analysis, Development Economics, and other advanced quantitative policy analysis courses. He develops research and teaches courses on the problems and solutions at the interface between large bodies of water (oceans and lakes) and urban agglomerations.
Meet Fernando DePaolis
Customize Your Environmental Policy and Management Degree
Our flexible curriculum means you can customize your degree:
- STEM designation: expanded career opportunities for international students and scholarships for U.S. students.
- Study a second language and/or intercultural competence.
- Career-oriented specializations: sustainability management, natural resource policy and management, and ocean and coastal resource management.
- Accelerated- and advanced-entry: complete your degree in two or three semesters.
- Joint BA/MA: earn a bachelor’s and master’s in just three years through this transfer program.
- Online MPA in Sustainability: if you want to study online, apply to this part-time and asynchronous related program.
- Peace Corps: Coverdell Fellows program for returned volunteers and an option to integrate Peace Corps service for potential volunteers.
Check out the program details for your options.
Center for the Blue Economy
The Middlebury Institute’s Center for the Blue Economy (CBE) is a research and academic center. CBE develops innovative ways to address critical ocean and coastal resource management issues, especially coastal climate adaptation and “blue” economic development. As an Environmental Policy and Management student, you’ll be eligible for a fully funded CBE summer fellowship with top marine organizations, as well as a research assistant position where you can work on cutting-edge research during your studies.
Sustainability Speaker Series
The Sustainability Speaker Series brings creative, pragmatic, and practice-based environmental professionals to campus. Lectures are free and open to the public. The series features some of today’s most influential leaders across a wide variety of fields. See upcoming speakers.
Scholarships and Financial Aid
More than 95 percent of students who request scholarship consideration receive institutional support. You may receive merit, need-based, partner, and external scholarships and financial aid, which are available to both U.S. and international students.
Your personal enrollment advisor can help you think through financing this important investment in your career development.
How to Apply
We take a holistic approach when considering your application, looking at your academic background, international exposure, professional experience, and career goals. We welcome applicants with or without work experience, and our program has numerous opportunities for you to gain professional experience before you graduate. This approach aligns with the Institute’s core values of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
We do not require GRE or GMAT scores for our master’s programs but competitive scores may strengthen your application and positively influence scholarship decisions.
Featured News
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| by Mark C. Anderson
Over the years, dozens of Institute students have been drawn to explore environmental issues involving the Arctic and found their way into a wide variety of careers.
Tidepools and our Interconnectedness: Reflections on Experiential Learning in Monterey
| by Caitlin Fillmore
Hands-on experiences teaching for Study Away semester in biodiverse Monterey led Middlebury College Professor Megan Mayhew-Bergman to reflect on the individual’s place in the wider world in a recent blog post.
Cultivating Change: Bridging Education & Ecology through Experiential Learning in Colombia
| by Kevin Heller
Environmental Policy student, returned Peace Corps volunteer, and AmeriCorps alumnus, Kevin Heller, shares his first-hand experiences on an experiential learning course offered in Colombia over spring break.