Water Science & Policy - PhD

Water is a valuable resource that is critical for the health, vitality, and long-term sustainability of all natural ecosystems. For humans, water plays an essential role in food and energy production, transportation, and recreation.

Worldwide, however, water resources are at a risk. Unsustainable population growth, land-use changes, pollution, and global climate change all threaten the distribution, quantity, and quality of the water on which all life depends.

Protecting and preserving our water resources requires that we take a “big picture” approach that addresses where water comes from, where it goes, how it travels, how it is used by living things, what’s in it, and how to remediate problems and develop policies to protect water.

Our interdisciplinary program capitalizes on existing strengths of University of Delaware faculty from many departments across four colleges:

• College of Agriculture and Natural Resources
• College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment
• College of Engineering
• College of Arts and Sciences

As a student in the program, you may be advised by any of the faculty affiliated with the program. Upon completing the program, your degree will be granted by the college in which your adviser is housed.

The Water Science & Policy Program offers three degree options:

• A Ph.D. with a water science concentration (36 credits),
• A Ph.D. with a water policy concentration (36 credits), and
• A Master of Science with thesis (30 credits)