REQUIREMENTS
Starting with the Class of 2024, students wishing to complete the Energy Studies Interdisciplinary Certificate are required to complete two course credits in each of the three tracks of Energy Studies:
(1) Energy Science & Technology,
(2) Energy & Environment,
(3) Energy & Society.
One of the six courses can be taken Credit/D/Fail or Pass/Fail.
ENRG 300, Multidisciplinary Topics in World Energy, is normally required as one of the six course credits and normally counts toward the Energy & Society track (exceptions can be granted by the Certificate director). ENRG 300 should be taken during the junior or senior year.
A capstone project is no longer required to complete the Energy Studies certificate.
ENRG 400, Capstone Seminar, is still offered to students wishing to undertake a special energy-related project in senior year. ENRG 400 can count toward the six required course credits in any one of the 3 tracks, depending on the project’s topic.
Starting with the Fall 2023 term, courses approved for Energy Studies are searchable in Yale Course Search using the following course attributes accessible in the dropdown menu under ADVANCED SEARCH:
- YC ENRG: Energy Science & Tech
- YC ENRG: Energy & Environment
- YC ENRG: Energy & Society
COURSE INFORMATION returned by Yale Course Search for any course counting towards Energy Studies (again, going forward from the Fall 2023 term) should include one or more of the attributes listed above. Notify the Energy Studies director by email (michael.oristaglio@yale.edu) if you believe that a course listing should include one of the ENRG attributes but currently does not.
RESTRICTIONS ON COURSE OVERLAPS AND DOUBLE COUNTING
No more than two course credits fulfilling the requirements of the Energy Studies certificate may overlap with a major, a simultaneous degree, a multidisciplinary academic program, or another certificate. Additionally, no course credit may be applied toward the requirements of more than two curricular programs. For example, the same course credit may not be used to fulfill the requirements of two certificates and a major.
Courses taken as pre-requisites for a major do NOT come under these restrictions.
RECOMMENDED INTRODUCTORY COURSES IN ENERGY STUDIES TRACKS
The following courses, which are normally part of the regular curriculum in their respective departments but are not offered every year, are recommended as introductory courses in the three tracks of Energy Studies:
TRACK 1 - Energy Science & Technology
APHY 100, Energy Technology and Society
EPS 274, Fossil Fuels and World Energy
TRACK 2 - Energy & Environment
ENVE 120, Introduction to Environmental Engineering
EPS 101, Climate Change
EPS 140, Atmosphere, Ocean, and Climate Change
TRACK 3 - Energy & Society
EVST 123, You, Your Planet, and a Sustainable Future
EVST 212, Democracy and Sustainability
Students or faculty members wishing to have a particular course approved for Energy Studies should send an e-mail to the director (michael.oristaglio@yale.edu), ideally with a copy of the course syllabus.
COURSES WITH ENRG CLASSIFICATION
Energy Studies offers two seminars for students enrolled in Energy Studies. ENR 300 is normally required to complete the program and can be taken in either junior or senior year. This requirement can be waived by the program director at the request of the student, if there are conflicts with a student’s major.
- ENRG 300, Multidisciplinary Topics in World Energy, which is taught in the Fall semester, is normally required to complete Energy Studies (exceptions can be granted by the Certificate director). ENRG 300 takes a multidisciplinary took at a series of international, regional, and local topics related to the world’s energy transition and normally counts toward the Energy & Society track.
- Seniors are encouraged to take ENRG 400, Senior Capstone Project, which is taught in the Spring semester. ENRG 400 is a convenient vehicle for seniors to complete an energy-related project in a credited Yale College Course. ENRG 400 can count as one of the six course credits required for the Interdisiplinary Certificate, in any one of the three tracks of Energy Studies, depending on the project’s topics. See the program’s home page for a list of projects completed by the Class of 2024. ENRG 400 also features guest lectures from energy and climate experts around the world with an emphasis on sustainable finance.
More information about both courses can be found on Yale COURSE SEARCH and on CANVAS.
A new course was added to the ENRG classification in the 2021-22 Academic Year and will continue going forward.
- MENG 320/ENVE 320/ENRG 320, Energy, Engines, and Climate. The course aims to cover the fundamentals of a field central to the future of the world, emphasizing fundamentals from a physics perspective. Topics include key concepts of climate change; a shift in energy supply and technologies to wean humanity off fossil fuels; and carbon-free energy sources, with primary focus on solar, wind and associated needs for energy storage and grid upgrades.
PROVISIONAL AND SUMMER COURSES
Many courses with broad themes touching on science, technology, and society can count in Energy Studies, provided that the student does substantive work in the course on energy-related topics. “Substantive work” generally means assignments counting for at least 50% of the course’s standard requirements, such as in-term essays or problem sets or a final essay or presentation. Students are normally required to notify the director in advance of their intention to use a provisional course for Energy Studies and receive approval.
Courses taken outside of Yale College—for example, in summer schools or during a year abroad—and accepted by Yale College for full course credit towards a degree can count towards satisfying Energy Studies requirements. All such courses are considered provisional and acceptance for credit in Energy Studies should be approved in advance by the program director. Approved courses taken in the Yale College Summer Term count for Energy Studies.
COURSES IN THE GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL SCHOOLS
Many courses in the graduate and professional schools (500 level or higher) qualify for Energy Studies, provided that the course is accepted for full course credit in Yale College. Questions about whether a course’s content qualifies for Energy Studies can be submitted via e-mail to the program director, ideally with a copy of the course syllabus.