N-WRM-MEM - Master of Environmental Management - Water Resources Management

The Program in Water Resources Management (WRM) enables students to understand the physical, chemical, and biological processes—as well as the social contexts—affecting freshwater environments. The program concentrates on problems that span the natural divisions of the biosphere, soil, plants, lakes, watersheds, groundwater, and the atmosphere, and teaches quantitative techniques, including measurement and modeling methods used by environmental managers.

The core coursework and training in the WRM Program cover basic physical, chemical, and biological processes relevant to hydrologic sciences, methods of quantitative and statistical analysis, and methods of management and decision-making. Quantitative analysis techniques include mathematical and statistical methods, probabilistic and deterministic models, spatial analysis and modeling, and optimization and simulation methods. Methods for assessing human beliefs, attitudes and behavior, including survey design and analysis, and qualitative methods for analyzing documents and interview transcripts are also useful for water resources management.

Graduates of the program will acquire the skills required to practice as analysts, consultants, regulators, or entrepreneurs concerned with the management and protection of water resources. These employers include government agencies, public utilities, consulting firms, fuel and resource extraction companies, and hydrologic, atmospheric, or environmental research centers, and not-for-profit organizations. Within the WRM Program, students can use their course selection to develop expertise toward a career in: Water Science, Water Management, and International Water.

Prerequisites: calculus and statistics required; microeconomics (not required for WRM but required for ENVIRON 520: Resource and Environmental Economics, a popular course for WRM students); introductory physics and chemistry recommended.

For more detailed information about this program, including specific prerequisites and degree requirements, see nicholas.duke.edu/academics/masters-programs/master-environmental-management/water-resources-management.