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Earth and Environmental Systems program requirements

What the Earth and Environmental Systems Major requires, as the 2026-2027 Arts & Science Calendar states it, and every course it names.

Earth and Environmental Systems Major

  • Science program
  • 8.0 credits
  • Open enrolment
  • ASMAJ2745

Enrolment

This is an open enrolment program. A student who has completed 4.0 credits may enrol in the program. The full enrolment requirements are on the Calendar's page for this program.

Completion requirements

(8.0 credits including at least 2.0 credits at 300+ level with at least 0.5 credit at 400-level.)

12.0 credits of foundation science courses selected from BIO120H1/ BIO130H1, CHM135H1, CHM136H1, PHY131H1, PHY132H1, (MAT130H1/ MAT135H1), ENV237H1/ ENV238H1

23.5 credits of ESS core courses:

1.0 credit chosen from the following courses: JEG100H1 (Introduction to Physical Geography)/ ESS262H1 (Earth System Processes), ESS224H1 (Intro to Mineralogy and Petrology), ESS241H1 (Geologic Structures and Maps)

1.5 credit at the 200 and 300-level (0.5 credits must be taken from each category): Biology processes: ESS261H1/ ESS363H1/ GGR305H1/ JEG305H1 Surface processes: JEG201H1/ JEG205H1/ ESS331H1/ ESS362H1 Water processes: JEG206H1/ ESS311H1/ ESS312H1/ ESS362H1

0.5 credit of field courses: ESS410H1 (Field Techniques in Hydrogeochemistry)/ ESS450H1 (Geophysical Field Techniques)/ GGR390H1 (Field Methods)

0.5 credit of capstone courses: ESS461H1 (Paleoenvironmental Studies)/ ESS464H1 (Biological Perspectives on Earth Systems Evolution)/ ESS465H1 (Topics in Critical Zone Processes)

32.5 credits of elective courses:

In addition to the above core courses, you need to take 2.5 credits of electives. This requirement can be satisfied by any of the Earth Sciences Courses listed in categories A to F below. The following clusters of courses are neither mutually exclusive nor meant to limit choice but intended to show logical course complements. These are not program requirements; rather the clusters are presented to aid students in course selection according to their interests.

a) Earth Surface Processes

ESS224H1, ESS241H1, ESS245H1/ ESS345H1, JGA305H1, ESS311H1, ESS331H1, ESS445H1, GGR201H1/ JEG201H1, GGR205H1/ JEG205H1, GGR272H1, GGR301H1/ JEG301H1, GGR406H1/ JEG406H1

b) Paleoclimate

ESS245H1/ ESS345H1, ESS261H1, ESS331H1, ESS361H1, ESS362H1, ESS461H1, ESS464H1, EEB240H1/ ENV234H1, GGR305H1/ JEG305H1

c) Biogeochemistry

ESS223H1/ ENV233H1, ESS245H1/ ESS345H1, ESS311H1, ESS312H1, ESS313H1, ESS362H1, ESS363H1/ ESS462H1, JEG305H1, ESS410H1, ESS465H1

d) Global Environmental Change

ESS245H1/ ESS345H1, ESS313H1, JGA305H1, ESS362H1, ESS363H1/ ESS462H1, ESS462H1, ESS463H1, ESS465H1, GGR203H1, GGR314H1, PHY392H1, GGR308H1/ JEG308H1, GGR406H1/ JEG406H1

e) Quaternary Science

ESS224H1, ESS245H1/ ESS345H1, JGA305H1, ANT314H1, ANT315H1, ANT409H1, ANT419H1, ESS461H1, GGR201H1/ JEG201H1, GGR301H1/ JEG301H1, JEG308H1, GGR406H1/ JEG406H1

f) Other Relevant Courses

ESS261H1, ESS321H1, ESS313H1, ESS322H1, ESS450H1, GGR315H1, ENV337H1, JSC301H1, ESS381H1, ESS398H0/ ESS398Y0, ESS424H1, ESS481H1, ESS490H1, ESS491H1/ ESS492Y1

Students in this program have the option to complete the Arts & Science Internship Program (ASIP) stream.

Courses these requirements name

  • BIO120H1Adaptation and Biodiversity
  • BIO130H1Molecular and Cell Biology
  • CHM135H1Chemistry: Physical Principles
  • CHM136H1Introductory Organic Chemistry I
  • PHY131H1Introduction to Physics I
  • PHY132H1Introduction to Physics II
  • MAT130H1Calculus I for Life Sciences
  • MAT135H1Calculus I
  • ENV237H1Physics of the Changing Environment A
  • ENV238H1Physics of the Changing Environment B
  • JEG100H1Introduction to Physical Geography and Earth Science
  • ESS262H1Earth System Processes
  • ESS224H1Introduction to Mineralogy and Petrology
  • ESS241H1Geologic Structures and Maps
  • ESS261H1Earth System Evolution
  • ESS363H1Global Biogeochemical Cycles
  • GGR305H1Biogeography last in the 2024-2025 Calendar
  • JEG305H1Biogeography
  • JEG201H1Geomorphology
  • JEG205H1Introduction to Soil Science
  • ESS331H1Sedimentation and Stratigraphy
  • ESS362H1Oceanography
  • JEG206H1Introduction to Hydrology
  • ESS311H1Aqueous Geochemistry
  • ESS312H1Hydrogeology
  • ESS410H1Field Techniques in Environmental Geosciences
  • ESS450H1Geophysical Field Techniques
  • GGR390H1Field Methods
  • ESS461H1Palaeoenvironmental Studies
  • ESS464H1Biological Perspectives on Earth System Evolution
  • ESS465H1Topics in Critical Zone Processes
  • ESS245H1Computational Geology
  • ESS345H1
  • JGA305H1Environmental and Archaeological Geophysics
  • ESS445H1Global Tectonics
  • GGR201H1Geomorphology last in the 2024-2025 Calendar
  • GGR205H1Introduction to Soil Science last in the 2024-2025 Calendar
  • GGR272H1Geographic Information and Mapping I
  • GGR301H1Fluvial Geomorphology last in the 2024-2025 Calendar
  • JEG301H1Fluvial Geomorphology
  • GGR406H1Geomorphology and the Anthropocene last in the 2024-2025 Calendar
  • JEG406H1Geomorphology and the Anthropocene
  • ESS361H1Atmosphere-Biosphere Interact last in the 2023-2024 Calendar
  • EEB240H1Environmental Biology: From Organisms to Ecosystems
  • ENV234H1Environmental Biology: Structure and Function of Ecosystems last in the 2021-2022 Calendar
  • ESS223H1Introduction to Geochemistry
  • ENV233H1
  • ESS313H1Contaminants in the Environment and Geoethics
  • ESS462H1Global Biogeochemical Cycles last in the 2023-2024 Calendar
  • ESS463H1
  • GGR203H1Introduction to Climatology
  • GGR314H1Global Warming
  • PHY392H1Physics of Climate
  • GGR308H1Canadian Arctic Environments last in the 2024-2025 Calendar
  • JEG308H1Canadian Arctic Environments
  • ANT314H1Archaeology of the Pacific Northwest last in the 2023-2024 Calendar
  • ANT315H1Arctic Archaeology
  • ANT409H1Landscape Archaeology
  • ANT419H1Current Debates in Palaeolithic Archaeology last in the 2025-2026 Calendar
  • ESS321H1Advanced Mineralogy
  • ESS322H1Igneous Petrology
  • GGR315H1Environmental Remote Sensing
  • ENV337H1Human Interactions with the Environment
  • JSC301H1Principles and Practices in Science Education
  • ESS381H1Special Topics in Earth Science
  • ESS398H0Research Excursions
  • ESS398Y0Research Excursions
  • ESS424H1Metamorphic Petrology
  • ESS481H1Advanced Topics in Earth Sciences
  • ESS490H1Geological Capstone Fieldtrip
  • ESS491H1Undergraduate Thesis Project
  • ESS492Y1Undergraduate Thesis Project
Check your progress in Atlas Earth and Environmental Systems Major in the Calendar

Requirements are quoted from the 2026-2027 Arts & Science Calendar, which is the official version. Atlas is independent of U of T, so confirm important decisions with your department or college registrar. See how to read program requirements or browse every program.

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