2017-14

Arizona State University
University Senate

Senate Motion #2017-14

Motion Introduced by: Curriculum and Academic Programs Committee, Caroline Harrison, Chair

Date of First Reading: September 26, 2016

Date of Second Reading: October 31, 2016

Title of Motion: Request from the School of Sustainability– for the establishment of a graduate degree – PhD in Sustainable Energy

Action Requested: This curricular proposal has received all college, school, unit and university administrative approvals, and is being presented to the Senate for review and voting decision.   

Rationale: This proposed PhD in Sustainable Energy program, jump started by the NSF-funded IGERT SUN grant, is designed to do just that, i.e., to train doctoral students who can see beyond the boundaries of traditional methodologies and disciplinary viewpoints, and who can integrate scientific excellence with societal and policy insights. The required core curriculum of 18 credit hours engages the students to look at sustainable energy both from a transdisciplinary perspective and at different scales, from the lab to commercial application. This has been designed as a truly transdisciplinary degree that is not specific to any traditional program such as engineering, social sciences, etc.