Columbia University in the City of New York

Date: Dec 31 1969
Major: Public Policy (This Major's Salary over time)
If you are interested in environmental issues and the political context in which they are famed and you want to actually further your understanding of them. By all means go to an environmental policy program but DO NOT go to Columbia's Environmental Science and Policy program. After spending a year in this program I look back and have a hard time justifying the time effort and money I spent on the program.

For one, its not really about policy, there is only one policy course and its a joke. You do get a fair amount of Env Science but essentially it is into to XYZ (Toxicology, Ecology, Hydrology, etc.) while these courses where fun and interesting and the professors (who are essentially moonlighting from there real work at the Earth Inst.) are great, there is no way that you cal learn enough in one semester to actually use the information properly, its like you learn just enough to make you dangerous. The rest of the program is filled in with courses in management, finance, econ, etc. all in a similar vain, give you just enough information to be able to pick up on a couple buzz words.

Looking back on it I think that the programs problems stem from its facilitators. They strike me as a bunch of snake oil salesmen who are truly think that the way to form the environmental leaders of the future is to make sure they dress well, know enough buzz words to slink by in meetings, and… thats it. That all the world needs is a few more consultants.

The program was a joke. DO NOT GO. A waste of time and money.