Faculty of Science Environmental Science

Offered As:	Major	Minor
URL:	https://webapp.science.hku.hk/sr4/servlet/enquiry?Type=Major&Code=MajorInEnvironmentalScience&AdmissionYear=2026	https://webapp.science.hku.hk/sr4/servlet/enquiry?Type=Minor&Code=MinorInEnvironmentalScience&AdmissionYear=2026
*Open to students of other Faculties:	Yes	Yes
Selection process required:	No	No
Credits:	96	42
What is it about?	The Major in Environmental Science aims to provide students with a robust scientific and technological foundation for understanding and addressing the environmental challenges faced by humanity, particularly through the lens of sustainable development. The program features a flexible teaching and learning approach, allowing students to explore environmental issues from multiple perspectives. Core courses emphasize essential knowledge in life sciences, the physical environment, sustainable practices, pollution management, and monitoring. Throughout the curriculum, students are encouraged to engage in independent study using primary and secondary sources, fostering critical thinking, field and laboratory work, and documentary research as integrated elements of their coursework. The Minor in Environmental Science aims to provide students with an introduction to some complex environmental issues. Students will gain ecological and physical knowledge of the environment, become literate in issues related to environmental sustainability, monitoring and management, and be able to explore interdisciplinary solutions to these problems. This training will help student understand certain aspects of the environment and possible ways to solving environmental problems which will be useful to students to enhance their career prospects.
Offering Faculty/ Department/ School/Institute	Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences

Pre-requisite requirements and/or other conditions for declaring the major/minor	Major/ Minor: Please refer to the course prerequisites of the required courses. For details, please check with the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.
Career opportunities	By completing the curriculum, students are expected to enhance their understanding of environmental science, improve their problem-solving abilities, and develop strong communication and social skills, all of which are essential for promoting sustainability. Based on student interest, the program will provide students with an adequate background to pursue graduate study in the field of environmental science or preparing them to work in industries and government agencies where they will help manage resources wisely. For details, please check with Faculty or CEDARS (Careers & Placement).
Further information	Major: https://webapp.science.hku.hk/sr4/servlet/enquiry?Type=Major&Code=MajorInEnvironmentalScience&AdmissionYear=2026 Minor: https://webapp.science.hku.hk/sr4/servlet/enquiry?Type=Minor&Code=MinorInEnvironmentalScience&AdmissionYear=2026
Contact	E: earthsci@hku.hk T: 3917 1084

* Note: Students pursuing curricula with major / minor programme(s) must complete at least one major programme from their home Faculties upon graduation. Disclaimer: The information is provided by the Faculties/Schools as of August 2026 and is subject to change by respective units. Students are advised to consult their Faculty/School Office(s) in case of doubt.