|
|
Fall 2025 Undergraduate Catalog
Geology, BS
|
|
 Return to: Majors
Department of Geosciences, College of Arts and Sciences
Degree Awarded: Bachelor of Science in Geology
Chair: Brian Phillips
Director of Undergraduate Studies: Hanna Nekvasil
Office: 255 Earth and Space Sciences
Phone: (631) 632-8200
Minors of particular interest to students majoring in Geology and Earth and Space Sciences: Environmental Studies (ENS), Marine Sciences(MAR), engineering minors
The Department of Geosciences offers two undergraduate programs: the Geology major, leading to a Bachelor of Science degree, and the Earth and Space Sciences major, leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree. Minimum course requirements for the B.S. program in Geology are detailed below. For requirements for the B.A. program in Earth and Space Sciences, see here . Upon declaring the major, the student is assigned a faculty advisor who will assist in the selection of a course sequence leading to the degree. Students should consult frequently with their faculty advisors regarding their progress and regarding appropriate science courses. Because the position of the scientist in society is responsible and complex, the student is cautioned to pay careful attention to general education in the arts, humanities, and social sciences.
Geology
The science of geology is focused on evaluation of the physical and chemical characteristics of the Earth and other planets and the processes that have controlled evolution of these characteristics over time. The B.S. program has built-in flexibility to allow majors to choose from a variety of electives in environmental geoscience, planetary geoscience, geophysics and geochemistry. This allows students to develop a major that best reflects their interests and career goals, by allowing students to build upon the core curriculum by selecting 19 credits of upper-level science/mathematics electives from both within and outside of the Geosciences. The major aims to provide the student with maximum preparation to carry out graduate and professional work in each of these fields. Students graduating with a B.S. in Geology typically go on to graduate school or obtain professional employment with environmental consulting firms or various government organizations.
|
Degree Requirements
The major in Geology leads to the Bachelor of Science degree. All courses offered for the major must be passed with a letter grade of C or higher. Completion of the major requires 63 to 66 credits. Required departmental courses
Required courses in the related sciences
Related science electives
A set of upper-division science courses, totaling 19 credits, that has been approved by the department. Upper-Division Writing and Speaking Requirement
Before graduation all students in the Geology major must register for the 1-credit GEO 496 WRTD course along with a 300-400 level GEO course. Completion of the WRTD requires that a 15-page paper written by the student receives a B or higher as determined by the instructor of the 300-400 level course. The SBC SPK requirement can be completed with GEO 497 with a grade of ‘S’. Suggested Clusters of Science Electives:
Students with interest in Geology:
Students with interest in Environmental Geoscience:
Students with interest in Geological Oceanography:
Geology Honors Program
To receive the Bachelor of Science in Geology with departmental honors, the student must satisfy all of the following, in addition to having completed all the degree requirements for the B.S. in Geology: - At least 3 credits of GEO 487 Senior Research in Geology , taken with Research Advisor.
- Prepare and submit a written thesis that is deemed satisfactory by the Research Advisor.
- Overall grade point average of at least 3.30 in all science courses numbered 300 or higher.
SBC Courses
This table illustrates major courses that can also be used to fulfill SBC requirements. (See Note 1 & Note 2) | SBC Category | Required Major Courses | Optional Major Courses (see Note 3) | | ARTS | | | | GLO | | | | HUM | | | | LANG (see Note 4) | | | | QPS | | AMS 151, AMS 161, MAT 123, MAT 125, MAT 126, MAT 127, MAT 131, MAT 132 | | SBS | | | | SNW | GEO 103, CHE 131, CHE 132 | GEO 102, GEO 122, GEO 303, PHY 125, PHY 126, PHY 131, PHY 141 | | TECH | GEO 366 | | | USA | | | | WRT | | | | STAS | | GEO 304, GEO 307, GEO 311, GSS 313, MAR 340 | | EXP+ | | GEO 305, GEO 444, GEO 467, GEO 475, GEO 476, GEO 487, GEO 488 | | HFA+ | | | | SBS+ | | | | STEM+ | GEO 407, GEO 467 | GEO 318, GEO 320, GEO 404, GEO 407, GEO 467, MAR 304 | | CER | GEO 497 | | | DIV (see Note 5) | | | | ESI | GEO 496 | GEO 330, GSS 313 | | SPK | GEO 497 | | | WRTD | GEO 496 | | Note 1: Some course information may be subject to change. Please contact your major advisor for additional consultation. Note 2: For majors that require study in a related area or completion of a minor, visit the respective program’s “Major SBC Courses” page to view expanded SBC options. Note 3: Denotes any course in which students can choose from more than one option. These may include, but are not limited to, major electives, concentration/track/specialization courses, or calculus/physics/chemistry sequences. Note 4: CEAS majors, the Athletic Training major, the Respiratory Care major, and the Clinical Laboratory Sciences major are exempt from the LANG learning objective. Students enrolled in the major in Social Work are exempt from the LANG learning objective, but are required to enroll in and pass with a letter grade of C or higher the first semester of an elementary foreign language course numbered 111, or satisfy through alternate methods. Note 5: Students are responsible for completing the general education requirements published in the Bulletin that was current as of the first semester of matriculation (or rematriculation). The following student groups must satisfy the DIV learning objective as part of their degree requirements: - Freshmen who matriculate in the Fall of 2019 or later
- Transfer students who matriculate in the Spring of 2020 or later
- Students who rematriculate in the Fall of 2019 or later
|
Return to: Majors
|
|