Economics, Policy, Management, and Society

The Economics, Policy, Management, and Society track is designed for students who would be interested in focusing on how society values and makes decisions about the use, management, and protection of natural and environmental resources.

Graduate students in this track can specialize in areas such as: economics, policy, administration and management, planning, operations research, conflict resolution, human dimensions, and land use planning. Studies might consider choices, impacts, and tradeoffs in protecting, restoring, developing, and allocating natural and environmental resources. The research conducted by students in this track may address a wide range of issues and problems from local to international in scope.

View a list of faculty who work with students in this track

Sample Coursework

The NRSM program does not prescribe specific coursework to its students, beyond our orientation course (NR 8101) and a one-credit seminar (NR 8107). Each student, working with their advisor and exam committee, develops a program of coursework that meets the needs of their specific research project and, ultimately, their career goals. See below for a list of courses that are representative of coursework taken by students within this track. When developing a well-rounded degree plan, most students also consider coursework listed under other NRSM tracks (see other Area of Study webpages for examples of coursework within those tracks), or within other departments at the university. 

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Course Subjects A through E

  • AGRO 5121 | Applied Experimental Design | Every Spring | 4 cr
  • APEC 5031 | Methods of Economic Data Analysis | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • APEC 5032 | Economic Data Analysis for Managerial and Policy Decisions | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • APEC 5151 | Applied Microeconomics: Firm and Household | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • APEC 5152 | Applied Macroeconomics: Income and Employment | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • APEC 5321 | Regional Economic Analysis | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • APEC 5651 | Economics of Natural Resource and Environmental Policy | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • APEC 5721 | Economics of Science and Technology Policy | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • APEC 5831 | Food and Agribusiness Marketplace | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • APEC 8004 | Applied Microeconomic Analysis of Social Choice and Welfare | Every Spring | 2 cr
  • APEC 8202 | Mathematical Optimization in Applied Economics | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • APEC 8203 | Applied Welfare Economics and Public Policy | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • APEC 8211 | Econometric Analysis I | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • APEC 8212 | Econometric Analysis II | Every Spring | 4 cr
  • APEC 8601 | Natural Resource Economics | Periodic in Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • APEC 8602 | Economics of the Environment | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • BIOL 5047 | Ecology | Every Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • CEGE 5570 | Design for Sustainable Development: India | Every Summer | 3 to 9 cr
  • CI 5537 | Principles of Environmental Education | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • CI 5747 | Global and Environmental Education: Content and Practice | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • CI 8149 | Qualitative Research: Coding, Analysis, Interpretation, and Writing | Periodic in Fall | 3 cr
  • COMM 5250 | Environmental Communication | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • COMM 5402 | Advanced Interpersonal Communication | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • COMM 5441 | Communication in Human Organizations | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 3 cr
  • COMM 8452 | Seminar: Methods of Intercultural/Diversity Facilitation | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 3 cr
  • DES 8103 | Qualitative and Mixed Methods Research | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • ECON 8105 and 8106 | Macroeconomic Theory | Every Fall | 2 cr
  • EEB 5609 | Ecosystem Ecology | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • EEB 8200 | Sustainability Science Distributed Graduate Seminar | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • ENT 5126 | Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Ecological Data | Spring Even Years | 3 cr
  • EPSY 5221 | Principles of Educational and Psychological Measurement | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • EPSY 5243 | Principles and Methods of Evaluation | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 3 cr
  • EPSY 5244 | Survey Design, Sampling, and Implementation | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • EPSY 5247 | Qualitative Methods in Educational Psychology | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • EPSY 5261 | Introductory Statistical Methods | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 3 cr
  • EPSY 5262 | Intermediate Statistical Methods | Every Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • EPSY 8266 | Statistical Analysis Using Structural Equation Methods | Periodic in Spring | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5061 | Water Quality and Natural Resources | Every Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5071 | Ecological Restoration | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • ESPM 5108 | Ecology of Managed Systems | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • ESPM 5111 | Hydrology and Water Quality Field Methods | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5202 | Environmental Conflict Management, Leadership, and Planning | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5211 | Survey, Measurement, and Modeling for Environmental Analysis | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5241 | Natural Resource and Environmental Policy | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5242 | Methods for Environmental and Natural Resource Policy Analysis | Fall Even Years | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5245 | Sustainable Land Use Planning and Policy | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5251 | Natural Resources in Sustainable International Development | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5256 | Natural Resource Law & the Management of Public Lands & Waters | Spring Odd Years | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5261 | Economics and Natural Resources Management | Every Spring | 4 cr
  • ESPM 5602 | Regulations and Corporate Environmental Management | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5603 | Environmental Life Cycle Analysis | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5604 | Environmental Management Systems and Strategy | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • ESPM 5811 | Environmental Interpretation | Every Spring | 3 cr

Course Subjects F through O

  • FNRM 5101 |  Park and Protected Area Tourism | Fall Odd Years | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5104 | Forest Ecology | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • FNRM 5114 | Hydrology and Watershed Management | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5131 | Geographical Information Systems (GIS) for Natural Resources | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • FNRM 5203 | Forest Fire and Disturbance Ecology | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5204 | Landscape Ecology and Management | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5218 | Measuring and Modeling Forests | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5232 | Managing Recreational Lands | Every Spring | 4 cr
  • FNRM 5259 | Visitor Behavior Analysis | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5264 | Advanced Forest Management Planning | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5411 | Managing Forest Ecosystems: Silviculture | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5413 | Managing Forest Ecosystems: Silviculture Lab | Every Fall | 1 cr
  • FNRM 5431 | Timber Harvesting and Road Planning | Every Spring | 2 cr
  • FNRM 5471 | Forest Management Planning | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • FNRM 5501 | Urban Forest Management: Managing Greenspaces for People | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • FW 4001 | Biometry | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • FW 5003 | Human Dimensions of Biological Conservation | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • FW 8494 | Research in Wildlife | Every Fall | 1 - 4 cr
  • GEOG 5561 | Principles of Geographic Information Science | Every Fall and Spring | 4 cr
  • GEOG 8101 | Proseminar: Nature and Society | Periodic Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • GIS 5555 | Basic Spatial Analysis | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • GIS 5571 | ArcGIS I | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • GIS 5572 | ArcGIS II | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • LA 5004 | Regional Environmental Landscape Planning | Every Spring | 4 cr
  • LAW 6062 | Energy Law | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • MGMT 6033 | Strategy Implementation | Periodic Fall and Spring | 2 cr
  • MGMT 6050 | Management of Innovation and Change | Periodic Fall and Spring | 2 cr
  • NR 5021 | Statistics for Agricultural and Natural Resource Professionals | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • OLPD 5061 | Ethnographic Research Methods | Periodic Fall, Spring, and Summer | 3 cr
  • OLPD 5104 | Strategies for International Development of Education Systems | Periodic in Fall | 3 cr
  • OLPD 5501 | Principles and Methods of Evaluation | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 3 cr
  • OLPD 5528 | Focus Group Interviewing Research Methods | Every Fall | 1 - 3 cr
  • OLPD 5611 | Facilitation and Meeting Skills | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 1 cr 

Course Subjects P through W

  • PA 5002 | Introduction to Policy Analysis | Every Fall and Spring | 1.5 cr
  • PA 5011 | Management of Organizations | Every Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • PA 5021 | Microeconomics for Policy Analysis | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • PA 5022 | Applications of Economics for Policy Analysis | Every Spring | 1.5 - 3 cr
  • PA 5031 | Statistics for Public Affairs | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • PA 5035 | Survey Research and Data Collection | Every Spring | 1.5 cr
  • PA 5041 | Qualitative Methods for Policy Analysts | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • PA 5101 | Management and Governance of Nonprofit Organizations | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • PA 5122 | Law and Public Affairs | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • PA 5242 | Environmental Planning, Policy, and Decision Making | Periodic in Spring | 3 cr
  • PA 5251 | Strategic Planning and Management | Periodic in Spring | 3 cr
  • PA 5253 | Designing Planning and Participation Processes | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • PA 5271 | GIS | Applications in Planning and Policy Analysis | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • PA 5311 | Program Evaluation | Periodic in Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • PA 5501 | Theories and Policies of Development | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • PA 5503 | Economics of Development | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • PA 5721 | Energy Systems and Policy | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • PA 5722 | Economics of Natural Resource and Environmental Policy | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • PA 5741 | Risk, Resilience and Decision Making | Every Spring | 1.5 cr
  • PA 5790 | Topics in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy | Periodic in Fall and Spring | 1.5 - 3 cr
  • PA 5890 | Topics in Foreign Policy and International Affairs | Periodic in Fall and Spring | 1.5 - 5 cr
  • PA 5920 | Skills Workshop | Every Fall and Spring | .5 - 4 cr
  • PA 8790 | Advanced Topics in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy | Periodic in Fall and Spring | 1 - 3 cr
  • POL 5315 | State Governments | Laboratories of Democracy | Every Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • POL 8126 | Qualitative Methods | Fall in Even Years, Spring in Odd Years | 3 cr
  • PSY 5202 | Attitudes and Social Behavior | Periodic in Spring | 3 cr
  • PSY 5960 | Topics in Psychology | Periodic in Fall, Spring, & Summer | 1 - 4 cr
  • PUBH 7250 | Designing and Conducting Focus Group Interviews | Every Spring and Summer | 1 cr
  • PUBH 7407 | Analysis of Categorical Data | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • SCO 8735 | Supply Chain Management | Periodic in Spring | 3 cr
  • SOC 5811 | Social Statistics for Graduate Students | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • SOC 8701 | Sociological Theory | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • SOC 8801 | Sociological Research Methods | Periodic in Fall and Spring | 4 cr
  • SOC 8811 | Advanced Social Statistics | Every Fall and Spring | 4 cr
  • SOIL 5611 | Soil Biology and Fertility | Every Fall | 4 cr
  • STAT 5021 | Statistical Analysis | Every Fall and Spring | 4 cr
  • STAT 5201 | Sampling Methodology in Finite Populations | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • STAT 5302 | Applied Regression Analysis | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 4 cr
  • STAT 5303 | Designing Experiments | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 4 cr
  • STAT 5401 | Applied Multivariate Methods | Periodic in Fall | 4 cr
  • STAT 5421 | Analysis of Categorical Data | Every Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • STAT 5601 | Nonparametric Methods | Every Fall and Spring | 3 cr
  • STAT 8051 | Advanced Regression Techniques: Linear, Nonlinear and Nonparametric Methods | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • STAT 8052 | Applied Statistical Methods 2: Design of Experiments and Mixed-Effects Modeling | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • STAT 8053 | Applied Statistical Methods 3: Multivariate Analysis and Advanced Regression | Every Fall | 3 cr
  • STAT 8054 | Statistical Methods 4: Advanced Statistical Computing | Every Spring | 3 cr
  • WRIT 5051 | Graduate Research Writing for International Students | Every Fall, Spring, and Summer | 3 cr 
  • WRS 5101 | Water Policy | Every Spring | 3 cr