BSc in Renewable Natural Resources

Introduction

The Renewable Natural Resources (RNR) program is a new international, science-based undergraduate program designed to cultivate future leaders capable of addressing today’s global environmental challenges. The program adopts a cross-disciplinary approach, integrating physical, chemical, and biological processes while emphasizing the interactions among them and their role in shaping life on Earth.

The curriculum provides a strong academic foundation for students interested in pursuing advanced studies across the natural sciences, particularly for those seeking a comprehensive understanding of global and local ecosystems and the contemporary environmental crisis.

Graduates of the program will be well positioned to pursue careers in both the public and private sectors, including government ministries, local authorities, environmental consulting firms, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), environmental entrepreneurship ventures, and private corporations. Career opportunities include roles such as regulatory advisors, environmental managers, pollution prevention specialists, and sustainability professionals.

*The program is pending final approval by the Israeli Council for Higher Education.

Program Specializations

During the third year of the program, students choose from three specializations:

Environmental Agrobiology: plant sciences, biodiversity, nature conservation, and the interactions between the physical and biotic habitat.
Environmental science: environmental physics and chemistry, climate, sustainability, and natural resources.
Environmental technologies: sustainable solutions in water treatments, renewable energy, food security, environmental entrepreneurship, and desert-tech.

Mandatory University Courses

Ben-Gurion University requires students to successfully complete the following courses as a requirement for graduation:

English, course number 153-1-1051– Students who did not receive an English exemption upon admission to the University are required to complete the Advanced English B course by the end of their second year of studies.
Training in Chemical & Biological Safety, course number 900-5-2002 – Students are required to successfully complete this online training during the first two weeks of the first semester of their first year of studies.
Prevention of Sexual Harassment: The Israeli Law and the University Regulations, course number 900-5-5001 – Students are required to successfully complete this online tutorial during the first two weeks of the first semester of their first year of studies.

Degree Requirements

To be eligible for a bachelor's degree, students must successfully complete the required number of credit points in accordance with the program requirements outlined in Table 1. A recommended semester-by-semester study plan is provided for full-time students.

Important Notes

Completion of the program requires a minimum of 123 credit points (CPT). Of these, 76 CPT are allocated to mandatory core courses, including the bachelor's degree project, and 47 CPT are allocated to category and specialization courses.
Students are required to successfully complete all mandatory courses in the program.
During the second year of studies, students must complete at least one introductory course from each category.
During the third year of studies, students must select one of the program's three specializations and complete the required courses in accordance with the chosen specialization and the program's credit requirements. Students are advised to select their specialization during the second year of studies and plan their course registration accordingly.
A change of specialization after completion of the required specialization courses is subject to approval by the Teaching Committee.
Full tuition covers courses totaling 123 CPT. Enrolment in additional credit-bearing courses beyond this requirement may incur additional tuition fees.
Students are required to register in accordance with the University's tuition fee regulations, as detailed here.

Academic program and requirements

	Year 1		Year 2		Year 3		Total
	Semester 1	Semester 2	Semester 3	Semester 4	Semester 5	Semester 6	Total
Mandatory core courses	22.5 CPT	23 CPT	14.5 CPT	9 CPT	5 CPT	2 CPT	76 CPT
Category courses	-	-	7-9 CPT	12-14 CPT			47 CPT
specialization courses					10-16 CPT	12-16 CPT	47 CPT
						Total	123 CPT

CPT	Course	Course Number	Semester	Year
5.00	Calculus1	214-1-9141	1	First Year
5.50	General and analytical chemistry	204-1-5100
3.00	Introduction to statistics and experimental design	6-1-3000
3.00	Introduction to scientific computing with Python	6-1-5000
3.00	Cell and its environment	6-1-3001
3.00	Introduction to environmental geology	6-1-5001
0	Training in Chemical & Biological Safety	900-5-2002
0	Prevention of Sexual Harassment: The Israeli Law and the University Regulations	900-5-5001
5.00	Calculus2	214-1-9151	2
3.50	Physics 1	203-1-1391
2.00	General chemistry - lab	204-1-1543
3.50	Introduction to organic chemistry	204-1-1721
3.00	Introduction to physical chemistry 1	204-1-1621
3.00	The organism and its environment	6-1-3002
3.00	Society and the environment	TBD
3.50	Physics 2	203-1-1491	3	Second Year
3.00	Genetics and Evolution	6-1-3003
2.00	Introduction to Ecology	6-1-3004
2.00	Introduction to physics of the atmosphere and oceans	6-1-4000
2.00	Data processing and analysis for environmental sciences	6-1-5002
2.00	Introduction to Environmental ethics	6-1-3005
3.00	Water & the environment (MOOC)	001-2-5069	4
3.00	Renewable & sustainable energy sources	6-1-4003
3.00	Introduction to environmental policy	TBD
2.00	Bachelor’s Degree Project	6-1-1110	5	Third Year
3.00	Environmental Economics	TBD	5
2.00	Bachelor’s Degree Project	6-1-1111	6
76	Total

CPT	Course	Course Number	Semester	Category
2.00	Geography of desertification	6-1-4001	3	Current Environmental Crises
2.00	The history of land use, agriculture and domestication	6-1-2003	3
2.00	Global processes and the biodiversity crisis	6-1-3009	4
3.00	The global water crisis: causes and impacts	6-1-5005	4
2.25	Plant physiology	6-1-2002	3	Environmental Biology
3.00	Agroecology	6-1-3006	4
3.00	Introduction to microorganisms in the environment	6-1-5004	4
4.00	Conservation Ecology	6-1-3007	4
3.00	Plant ecology	6-1-3008	4
2.75	Nature & Technology Feedbacks: The benefits and risks of environmental technology	6-1-3010	4	Environmental Technologies
3.50	Plant Molecular physiology in the postgenomic era	6-1-2007	4
3.00	Sustainable fertigation technologies	6-1-2008	4
2.75	Water & wastewater treatment	6-1-5006	4
4.00	Introduction to remote sensing	6-1-2004	3	Spatiotemporal Analysis Tools
3.00	Hands-on Image Analysis and Video without Coding: From Acquisition to Quantification	6-1-4002	3
3.00	Envirotech - do it yourself sensors for environmental research	6-1-5007	4
3.00	Introduction to environmental modelling	6-1-4004	4
3.00	Theory and application of Geographic Information Systems	6-1-2009	4
3.00	Hydrometeorology	6-1-2000	3	The Physical Environment
2.00	Introduction to hydrology	6-1-5003	3
3.00	Terrestrial biogeochemistry	6-1-2001	3
3.00	Introduction to environmental oceanography	6-1-2005	4
3.00	Soil Physics	6-1-2006	4

CPT	Course	Course Number	Semester	Specialization
3.00	Adsorption and Reactivity of Chemicals in Soils	6-1-2010	5	Environmental Agrobiology
3.00	Biology and Biotechnology of Microalgae	6-1-2011	5
3.00	Introduction to Aquaculture	6-1-2012	5
2.00	Medicinal plants and sustainable human health	6-1-2013	5
3.00	Plant reproduction	6-1-2014	5
3.00	Remote sensing for agriculture, rangeland & Forestry	6-1-2015	5
3.00	Image processing and analysis	6-1-2017	6
3.00	Molecular mechanisms of plant-insect interaction	6-1-2019	6
5.00	Faunistics	6-1-3013	6
2.00	Soil microbial ecology	6-1-5018	6
3.00	Crop Irrigation regimes	6-1-2018	6
3.50	Plant world	6-1-3016	6
3.00	The Ecology of Plant Animal Interaction	6-1-3017	6
3.00	Adsorption and Reactivity of Chemicals in Soils	6-1-2010	5	Environmental Science
3.00	Microbial ecology of water bodies	6-1-5008	5
4.00	Evolutionary Ecology	6-1-3011	5
2.50	Groundwater Hydrology	6-1-5009	5
3.00	Science and art: bridge between two split cultures	365-1-4008	5
3.00	Agricultural and Environmental Aspects in Soil Sciences	6-1-2016	6
3.00	Image processing and analysis	6-1-2017	6
3.00	Animal behaviour & Nature conservation	6-1-3012	6
3.00	Introduction to Biofilms	6-1-5014	6
3.00	Biogeochemical Processes in surface water systems	6-1-5015	6
5.00	Faunistics	6-1-3013	6
3.00	Introduction to conservation genetics	6-1-3014	6
3.00	Introduction to Contaminant Hydrology	6-1-5016	6
2.00	Macroecology	6-1-3015	6
2.50	Vadose Zone Hydrology	6-1-5017	6
3.50	Plant world	6-1-3016	6
3.00	The Ecology of Plant Animal Interaction	6-1-3017	6
3.00	Environmental applications of membrane separation	6-1-5010	5	Environmental Technology
3.50	Environmental Transport Processes	6-1-5011	5
2.00	Introduction to photovoltaic conversion of solar energy	6-1-4005	5
2.00	Physiochemical technologies for water treatment	6-1-5012	5
3.00	Polymer science and polymeric membranes	6-1-5013	5
3.00	Image processing and analysis	6-1-2017	6
3.00	Crop Irrigation regimes	6-1-2018	6
4	Water Chemistry	6-1-5019	6
3.00	Water-energy nexus	6-1-5020	6

Academic program and requirements

Table 1 – Program Credit Point (CPT) Plan

Table 2- Full Program Mandatory Core Courses

Table 3 - Second Year Elective Courses according to Category

Table 4 - Third Year specialization elective courses