Major Requirements

All students who major in Geosciences must complete at least 15 credits in Geosciences courses at the advanced level (numbered 300 or above) in residence at 51ÁÔÆæ as part of the 36 advanced-level credits required for the L&S degree. The College requires that students attain at least a 2.0 GPA on all credits in the major attempted at 51ÁÔÆæ. In addition, students must attain a 2.0 GPA on all major credits attempted, including any transfer work.

¹

is required but not offered at 51ÁÔÆæ. Students must enroll in a field course at another university to satisfy the requirement.

We recommend that students begin exploring career options when they declare their geosciences major or in their sophomore year, whichever comes first. So, what should you do to start planning for your career?

Major Requirements

All students who major in Geosciences must complete at least 15 credits in Geosciences courses at the advanced level (numbered 300 or above) in residence at 51ÁÔÆæ as part of the 36 advanced-level credits required for the L&S degree. The College requires that students attain at least a 2.0 GPA on all credits in the major attempted at 51ÁÔÆæ. In addition, students must attain a 2.0 GPA on all major credits attempted, including any transfer work.

¹

is required but not offered at 51ÁÔÆæ. Students must enroll in a field course at another university to satisfy the requirement.

Students are advised strongly to increase their scholastic breadth by selecting courses from among several subdisciplines of the geosciences, in consultation with Geosciences Department faculty.

Students who are interested in general geology are encouraged to include courses from among the following:

Students who are interested in environmental geology or hydrogeology are encouraged to include courses from among the following:

We recommend that students begin exploring career options when they declare their geosciences major or in their sophomore year, whichever comes first. So, what should you do to start planning for your career?

Requirements

The minor consists of a minimum of 18 credits in Geosciences courses, including six credits in and . The remaining 12 credits must be at the 200 level or above, with at least 9 of them at the 300 level or higher taken in residence at 51ÁÔÆæ. Waiver or substitution in any of these categories may be approved, in some circumstances, by the assistant to the chair for undergraduate affairs in consultation with the student’s advisor.

The College of Letters and Science requires that students attain at least a 2.0 GPA on all credits in the minor attempted at 51ÁÔÆæ. In addition, students must attain a 2.0 GPA on all minor credits attempted, including any transfer work. 

Minors will work directly with their faculty advisor to receive guidance on course selection and requirements. Declare your minor using the Declare a Minor button on the program’s website, following the instructions to select a faculty advisor if indicated that you should do so.

Students who already have an L&S college advisor because their major is also in L&S can discuss the minor with their college advisor as well. Students whose major is outside of the College of Letters & Science will not have an L&S a college advisor and can work solely with the faculty advisor in the minor to address any questions related to the minor.

Credits and Courses

Minimum degree requirement is 30 graduate credits, at least 24 of which must be earned in formal course credits and up to 6 of which may be earned through an acceptable thesis.

*

Only 6 credits of ³Ò·¡°¿Ìý³§°ä±õÌý990 may be counted toward the 30-credit requirement, though a student may enroll in the course more than twice and may take more than 6 credits.

Additional Requirements

All students in their second or later year are required to present a public progress report annually to the Department.

Major Professor as Advisor

The student must have a major professor to advise and supervise the student’s studies as specified in Graduate School regulations. The student is assigned a preliminary advisor at the time of initial enrollment based on the student’s expressed research interests. 

Proposal for Thesis

Prior to the formal undertaking of thesis research, the student must prepare a written proposal for the thesis problem including an estimate of costs to be incurred. Copies of the proposal are to be distributed to the faculty advisor and the Department reading file. One copy is to be placed in the student’s permanent Department file. An abstract of the proposal is to be distributed to each Department faculty member for comment and critique.

Thesis

The student must write an acceptable thesis embodying the results of original research completed under the direction of the advisor. The thesis must be approved by the student’s examining committee, consisting of the research advisor plus two other PhD-holding scientists, one of which may be outside of 51ÁÔÆæ.

Comprehensive Examination

The student must pass a final oral examination in defense of the thesis. At the discretion of the examining committee, this examination may include topics in addition to the thesis. The first part of this examination will be a public presentation of the thesis. Immediately after the presentation, the thesis must be orally defended before the entire examining committee in a closed session.

Admission ¸é±ð±ç³Ü¾±°ù±ð³¾±ð²Ô³Ù²õÌý

Application Deadlines

Application deadlines vary by program, please review the for specific programs. Other important dates and deadlines can be found by using the One Stop calendars.

Admission

An applicant must meet  plus the following departmental requirements to be considered for admission to the program:

1. Hold a bachelor’s degree in one of the natural sciences, engineering, or mathematics.
2. Have an appropriate background in aspects of the geosciences relevant the intended field of study.
3. Provide the names of at least three (3) people who can submit letters of recommendation speaking to your research skills and ability to succeed in a research-based MS program.

4. Provide a reason statement.

Applicants may be admitted with specific program-defined course deficiencies provided that the deficiencies amount to no more than two courses.

The student is expected to satisfy deficiency requirements within three enrolled semesters. No course credits earned in making up deficiencies may be counted as program credits required for the degree. A geology student who lacks field training must acquire the training not later than the summer following initial enrollment.

Application to all graduate programs are completed through the 51ÁÔÆæ Graduate School. Please see their website for detailed information about the application process and contact them with questions.

We also have provided information about applying to one of the Geosciences graduate programs and our admissions criteria:

How to apply for the MS in Geosciences

Teaching and Research Assistantships are a primary form of financial support for geosciences graduate students. These positions provide a salary and tuition remission. Some scholarship funding is also available particularly for research projects or field work. Click below for more details.

Credits and Courses

Doctoral students must earn 54 credits beyond the bachelor’s degree, of which 24 credits may be taken from formal coursework completed as part of the master’s study. At least 18 graduate credits beyond the master’s degree must be earned in formal coursework.

Each student must prepare a formal Program of Study to be submitted to the Geosciences Department within the first semester in the program. Courses are selected in consultation with the student’s advisor and with approval from the Doctoral Committee. Students are strongly advised to take courses from each of their committee members prior to taking the doctoral preliminary examination. For full time students, coursework should be completed within 4 semesters after admission to the Ph.D. program. In unusual situations, this timetable may be extended beyond 4 semesters. A timetable for coursework completion for part time students will be established on an individual basis.

Additional Requirements

Residency Requirement

The Graduate School requires satisfaction of a residency requirement. This involves completing at least 8 graduate credits in 2 consecutive semesters or 6 graduate credits in 3 consecutive semesters (including summer sessions) while in full doctoral status at 51ÁÔÆæ. In addition, at least half of the graduate credits required for the Ph.D. must be earned at 51ÁÔÆæ.

Quantitative Skill

A working knowledge of computer programming, statistics, numerical methods, or GIS appropriate to the student’s field of study is required. Standards for this requirement will be established by the student’s Doctoral Committee. Undergraduate courses taken to meet this requirement do not apply to the course requirements for the Ph.D.

Doctoral Committee

The membership of the Doctoral Committee will be established in the student’s first semester. The Committee must consist of the following: the doctoral student’s advisor as chair (or co-advisors as co-chairs) and least three additional graduate faculty, one of whom may be external to 51ÁÔÆæ. The student is required to arrange a meeting with the Doctoral Committee at least once each year.

The student may request a change of advisor if another faculty member is available, willing, and able to assume that role. If this change involves a significant modification of the area of specialization or research, the student’s record will be reexamined to determine whether the student’s background is sufficient for the new specialty. If it is not, it may be necessary for the student to withdraw from the program and reapply in the new specialty. Normally such a change of direction will not be allowed once the dissertation proposal has been defended.

Doctoral Preliminary Examination

Advancement to dissertator status requires that students 1) submit and successfully defend a dissertation proposal and 2) pass a doctoral preliminary examination. The doctoral preliminary examination consists of a set of written exams from the Doctoral Committee and a follow-up oral examination. The structure of the written examination will be established by the student’s Doctoral Committee, and the student must demonstrate knowledge in the fields of geology and related sciences as defined by the Doctoral Committee. As part of the oral examination, the student must successfully defend their dissertation proposal, which must be approved by the doctoral committee. The dissertation proposal should be in an NSF-style format and should provide an overview of and approach to the problem being addressed, a budget, and appropriate bibliographic references. For full-time students, these examinations must be passed prior to the start of the 5^th semester and after the residency requirement is fulfilled.

Annual Presentation of Results

All students beyond their first year of study are required to present a public progress report annually to the Department.

Dissertation

The candidate must present a written dissertation reporting the results of independent, original research carried out under the direction of the major professor. Prior to a defense, the dissertation must be reviewed by the entire Doctoral Committee.  

Dissertation Defense

The student first will give a presentation of their research results in a public forum. The dissertation must then be orally defended in a closed session before the entire Doctoral Committee. The defense may include questions related to any of the dissertator’s fields of study. If the dissertation is defended and the oral examination is passed to the satisfaction of a majority of the Doctoral Committee, the candidate is passed and recommended for the degree.

Time Limit

All degree requirements must be completed within ten years from the date of initial enrollment in the doctoral program.

Admission ¸é±ð±ç³Ü¾±°ù±ð³¾±ð²Ô³Ù²õÌý

Application Deadlines

Application deadlines vary by program, please review the for specific programs. Other important dates and deadlines can be found by using the One Stop calendars.

Admission

To be considered for admission to the program, an applicant must meet  plus the following program requirements:

1. Hold a master’s degree in one of the natural sciences, engineering, or mathematics or have equivalent experience.
2. Have an appropriate background in aspects of the geosciences relevant to the intended field of study.
3. Provide the names of at least three (3) people who can submit letters of recommendation speaking to your research skills and ability to succeed in a PhD program.
4. Provide a reason statement.

Exceptional students without a M.S. degree may be considered for admission. A student who holds a master’s degree from 51ÁÔÆæ must formally reapply for admission to the Graduate School before continuing studies toward the Ph.D.

Application to all graduate programs are completed through the 51ÁÔÆæ Graduate School. Please see their website for detailed information about the application process and contact them with questions.

We also have provided information about applying to one of the Geosciences graduate programs and our admissions criteria:

How to apply for the PhD in Geosciences

Teaching and Research Assistantships are a primary form of financial support for geosciences graduate students. These positions provide a salary and tuition remission. Some scholarship funding is also available particularly for research projects or field work. Click below for more details.