Overview
Water is a critical factor in global public health and community development. Roughly one-third of the world’s population lacks access to safely managed drinking water systems, and about half the world’s population lacks access to safely managed sanitation systems.
The Water and International Development (WAID) graduate program provides students with a multi-disciplinary program of study in water engineering and management and their roles in community development and public health. The program includes studies on Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene and emphasizes integrated approaches (e.g., joint consideration of water, energy, and waste) and sustainability. Students gain a thorough understanding of water science along with a broad range of approaches for drinking water treatment and delivery, wastewater reuse and disposal, as well as irrigation and drainage systems. Students also explore the economic, sociological, and epidemiological aspects of development projects.
Degree + Certificate
Students in the WAID program earn both a graduate degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering as well as an International Development Studies (IDS) graduate certificate – typically without needing extra courses beyond the graduate degree!
Faculty
Courses
Courses are selected in consultation with a WAID faculty advisor to meet the requirements for a graduate degree and a International Development Studies graduate certificate simultaneously.
Students in the WAID program are required to take both core classes listed below if they have not already taken equivalent courses. Typical supporting engineering and non-engineering courses are also listed below.
Students who are admitted to the WAID program but do not have an undergraduate degree in engineering are required to take additional undergraduate courses to bring their engineering background up to the required entry level.
Core Courses
- CIVE 525 Water Engineering: International Development
- IE/ANTH 679 Applications of International Development
Supporting Civil and Environmental Engineering Courses
International Engineering
- CIVE 421 Global Water Challenges
Hydrology
- CIVE 531 Groundwater Hydrology
- CIVE 542 Water Quality Modeling
Measurement/Analysis Methods
- CIVE 521 Hydrometry
- CIVE 577 GIS in Civil and Environmental Engineering
- CIVE 547 Statistics for Environmental Monitoring
Water and Wastewater Treatment
- CIVE 539 Water and Wastewater Analysis
- CIVE 541 Physical Chemical Water Treatment Processes
- CIVE 540 Advanced Biological Wastewater Processing
- CIVE 575* Sustainable Water and Wastewater Management
Conveyance Systems
- CIVE 514 Hydraulic Structures/Systems
- CIVE 571 Pipeline Engineering and Hydraulics
- CIVE 572 Analysis of Urban Water Systems
- CIVE 573 Urban Stormwater Management
Irrigation and Drainage
- CIVE 512* Irrigation Systems Design
- CIVE 549 Drainage and Wetland Engineering
Utility Management
- CIVE 544* Water Resources Planning and Management
- CIVE 578* Infrastructure and Utility Management
* Approved as IDS supporting course
Supporting Non-Engineering Courses
Anthropology
- ANTH 505 Resilience, Well-Being, and Social Justice
- ANTH 520 Women, Health, and Culture
- ANTH 540 Medical Anthropology
- ANTH 571 Anthropology and Global Health
Agriculture and Resource Economics
- AREC 460 Ag- and Resource-Based Economic Development
Economics
- ECON 460 Economic Development
- ECON 760 Theories of Economic Development
International Education
- IE/PSY 517 Perspectives in Global Health
Language
- L*** Upper Division Foreign Language
Political Science
- POLS 433 International Organization
- POLS 444 Comparative African Politics
- POLS 445 Comparative Asian Politics
- POLS 446 Politics of South America
- POLS 447 Politics in Mexico, Central America, Caribbean
- POLS 541 Political Economy of Change and Development
- POLS 670 Politics of Environment and Sustainability
- POLS 739 International Environmental Politics
- POLS 749 Comparative Environmental Politics
Sociology
- SOC 660 Theories of Development and Social Change
- SOC 669 Global Inequality and Change
Communication Studies
- SPCM 634 Communication and Cultural Diversity
Watershed Science
- WR 510 Watershed Management in Developing Countries
Graduate Admission and Program Details
Prospective students can learn more about our requirements, objectives, and program details.
Apply Now
Start your graduate application today!
Advising and Graduate Student Resources
Current students can schedule an appointment with the graduate advisor and access tools to help plan their academic journey.