The Sustainable Craft Brewing program is an interdisciplinary 4-year curriculum that will help position students to enter the craft beer field in a variety of roles. The goal of this program is to educate students, who are intimately familiar with the technical features of brewing, have an appreciation for the rich landscape of an industry that has been part of human civilization for thousands of years, and can comprehend and address the environmental challenges faced by the industry in the 21st century. Required Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) courses will complement a slate of brewing-focused courses, while additional courses in sustainability and other elective fields will provide the breadth of knowledge sought in the industry. The program is supported and advised by an external advisory board with members from the top breweries in the state.

Program Objectives

• Understand the history and social forces that were cause and effect of brewing in human civilization.
• Gain first-hand experience going through the process of brewing, “grain to glass”.
• Develop a sensitivity for the ethic of sustainability that will inform decisions about energy demand, efficiency, water use, waste minimization, and local sourcing of materials.
• Make sense of the myriad choices of products in the market.
• Develop a solid foundation in the science that describes the biochemistry and microbiology involved in fermentation and aging.

Program Coordination

This interdisciplinary major housed in the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) is overseen by an interdisciplinary Program Coordinating Team consisting of representative faculty from the departments and programs with required courses included in the program, the CAS Office of Undergraduate Advising, and the CAS Dean’s Office. The Program Coordinating Team will be responsible for supervising and modifying curricula and for student advising.