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Archived
November 26, 2014

 

Earth & Climate Sciences

 

College of Science and Engineering

Dean: Sheldon Axler

 

Department of Earth & Climate Sciences

509 Thornton Hall
Phone: 415-338-2061
Fax: 415-338-7705

Chair: David Dempsey

Graduate Coordinator: Karen Grove
Credential Advisor: David Dempsey

 

Faculty

Professors: Dempsey, Garcia, Grove, Monteverdi, Mustart, Sklar
Associate Professors: Caskey, Dekens, Leech
Assistant Professors: Gurdak, Stein
Adjunct Faculty: Garfield

 

Programs

B.A. in Earth Sciences

B.S. in Geology

B.S. in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

Minor in Earth Sciences

M.S. in Geosciences

Certificate in Weather Studies

 

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Affiliations

The Department of Earth & Climate Sciences is a University Corporation for Atmospheric Research affiliate.

 

Program Scope

The Department of Earth & Climate Sciences offers three undergraduate degree programs and a minor program spanning the geosciences (earth sciences), including geology, atmospheric sciences (including meteorology), and oceanography, as well as a graduate program leading to a Master of Science in Geosciences.

 

The Bachelor of Science in Geology provides rigorous professional education and training with a strong emphasis on investigations in the field (that is, outdoors). It also provides excellent preparation for graduate work in geology. The Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences program includes a concentration in meteorology that provides modern professional education and training in meteorology, including weather forecasting, and preparation for graduate work in atmospheric sciences. A concentration in oceanography provides analogous preparation in oceanography. The Bachelor of Arts in Earth Sciences program provides a broad, flexible, integrated background in the earth sciences. The Minor in Earth Sciences does the same on a smaller scale and can complement a variety of other majors. The Master of Science in Geosciences provides education and training in research in the geosciences in close collaboration with a faculty advisor.

 

Career Outlook

Geoscientific investigations provide the key to finding new sources of useful earth materials and to understanding fundamental earth processes. Geoscientists operate on the forefront of new developments and ideas in these fields and through dissemination of their work contribute to better solutions to geoscientific issues relevant to society, and the development of policy for resource management, environmental protection, and hazard assessment. Dwindling energy, mineral, and water resources, and increasing environmental concern about global issues such as climate variability and change, present challenges that will continue to create a demand for geoscientific expertise.

 

Graduates in geology, meteorology, and oceanography may pursue a wide range of careers in the earth sciences and related fields. For the next decade, geologists will find the greatest opportunities in the broad areas of environmental and engineering geology; for example, surface and groundwater hydrology studies aimed at characterizing water resources and remediating toxic sites, assessing earthquake and landslide hazards, developing restoration plans for river and coastal environments, and evaluating sites for urban planning or construction. There are also many positions available in the petroleum and mineral exploration industries. A shortage of certified high school and middle school science teachers has placed qualified teachers in high demand. Meteorologists will find opportunities in short and long-range weather forecasting, air pollution assessment, and global climate change research. Oceanographers are employed by government agencies that work on climate change and coastal management, or consulting firms specializing for instance in coastal dynamics, ocean observations, and/or alternative energy. Recent job trends suggest that the strongest candidates, regardless of the area of specialization, will have a master’s degree, several years of experience, and an interdisciplinary background with strong chemistry, physics, mathematics, and computer skills. Geologists, meteorologists, and oceanographers in the San Francisco Bay Area are employed by a very large number of government agencies, academic institutions and private firms. In addition to preparing students for advanced work as professional geologists, meteorologists, and oceanographers, the M.S. in Geosciences is an excellent preparation for a community college or high school teaching career, or for entry into a doctoral program leading to a career in university teaching and/or research.

 

The increased emphasis on science in high schools and the new California mandate for earth science education in the elementary science curriculum provide many opportunities for teachers trained in the geosciences.

 

Advising The department requires that declared majors consult with an advisor every semester, and prospective majors should consult with an advisor as early as possible, particularly about selecting courses in the General Education program that best fit the major program. Students will also be advised about completing basic science requirements before taking upper division courses in geosciences, and about the order in which required courses should best be taken. Students interested in preparing to teach high school or middle school earth sciences and integrated science should consult the department's credential advisor.

 

Every course counted toward major requirements must be completed with a letter grade (CR/NC is not acceptable.) No more than one course counted toward major requirements may be completed with a grade less than a C-. Course work used to satisfy major requirements must be completed with an overall point average of 2.0 or higher.

 

Bachelor of Arts in Earth Sciences

The Bachelor of Arts in Earth Sciences program builds a solid conceptual foundation of basic physical sciences, mathematics, and earth sciences (that is, geology, meteorology, and oceanography). It then helps students to integrate knowledge of these separate disciplines in ways needed to understand and help solve important interdisciplinary problems, such as slowing and adapting to climate change and managing conflicting demands that humans make on the natural environment. It also helps prepare students to advise and educate others about issues requiring knowledge of how the earth works.

 

Beyond the basic foundation, students have great flexibility to adapt the program to satisfy many possible interests in the earth sciences and prepare for any of a variety of careers where a background in the earth sciences would be beneficial. Some career possibilities include:

• High school and middle school science teaching.
• Technical support for firms engaged in environmental engineering, environmental monitoring and protection, natural resource analysis and management, hazardous materials and ecological remediation, computer mapping, etc.
• Technical support to city, county, state, and other governmental agencies charged with land use and other planning.
• Preparation for graduate education in such fields as resource management, environmental public policy, and environmental law.
• Science writing, editing, and librarianship.
• Interpretation for park systems, nature centers, museums, and other areas requiring natural science field skills and natural history communication skills.
• Business and entrepreneurism.

 

Prospective majors are encouraged to consult with a departmental advisor to learn about graduation requirements and to plan a program adapted to their particular interests.

 

Students interested in preparing to teach high school or middle school earth sciences and integrated science should consult the geosciences single-subject subject-matter advisor.

 

Complementary Studies

Bachelor of Arts students must complete at least twelve units of complementary studies outside of the primary prefix for the major. (Note: Students may not use an alternate prefix that is cross-listed with the primary prefix for the major.) Students who complete two majors or a major and a minor automatically complete the complementary studies requirement. For students in the earth sciences major, complementary studies units are included within the program. Students who complete the program will have met the Complementary Studies Requirement.

 

Transfer students who have earned AA-T or AS-T degrees and are pursuing a similar B.A. degree at SF State are required to fulfill Complementary Studies requirements for their major only if these courses are included in the minimum units required for the major. Students should consult with a major advisor.

 

Earth Sciences (B.A.) — 52 units

Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.

Note: A minimum of 40 upper division units must be completed for the degree (including upper division units required for the major, general education, electives, etc.). A student can complete this major yet not attain the necessary number of upper division units required for graduation. In this case additional upper division courses will be needed to reach the required total.

 

Bachelor of Science in Geology

The Bachelor of Science in Geology is designed for students intending to prepare for graduate school in geology or for direct entry into a career as a professional geologist in industry or government. The geology major provides students with a fundamental background in the physical sciences and many areas of geology necessary for an in-depth comprehension of the subject. Entry to the major presupposes prior course work comprising the high school equivalents of two years of algebra, one year of plane geometry, one-half year of trigonometry, and one year of physics and/or chemistry.

 

Geology (B.S.) — 69 units

Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.

 

Recommended Emphases

Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.

 

Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

The Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences program includes a concentration in meteorology and a concentration in oceanography. Both share a common, interdisciplinary core built on principles of mathematics, physics, chemistry, computer science, as well as fundamental concepts in meteorology and oceanography. The meteorology concentration adheres to guidelines for B.S. programs in meteorology issued by the American Meteorological Society. It prepares students for graduate education in meteorology and for a variety of careers, including weather forecasting for the National Weather Service or private industry, broadcast meteorology, and environmental analysis and consulting across a broad range of applications such as air quality, wind power, forensic meteorology, natural hazards, and climate change. Similarly, the oceanography concentration prepares students for graduate education in oceanography and for a variety of careers in oceanography.

 

For students interested in becoming a broadcast meteorologist, the B.S. in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, concentration in Meteorology satisfies one requirement of the American Meteorological Society’s Certified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM) program. (See http://www.ametsoc.org/amscert/ for more information about the CBM program.)

 

The concentration in meteorology covers core topics including the thermodynamics of air, cloud physics, atmospheric radiation, dynamic meteorology, the analysis and forecasting of weather, climate change, and weather instruments, as well as elective topics such as forecasting weather for the public, severe storms, numerical weather prediction, air-sea interactions such as the El Niño phenomenon, and advanced analysis and forecasting of weather, particularly on the West Coast. The concentration in oceanography covers core topics including physical oceanography, air-sea interactions, marine geology, and chemical oceanography, as well as elective topics in biological oceanography, meteorology, coastal processes, etc.

 

We encourage students to seek internship opportunities for which credit is granted through METR 694 “Cooperative Education in Meteorology”. We also recommend that students interested in preparing for graduate school complete 1 - 3 units of METR/OCN 697 (“Senior Project”) or METR/OCN 699 (“Special Study”) during the senior year, under the direction of a faculty advisor. (METR 694, METR/OCN 697 and METR/OCN 699 do not count toward degree requirements.)

 

Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (B.S.) — 69 units

Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.

Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (B.S.):
Concentration in Meteorology — 18 units

Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (B.S.):
Concentration in Oceanography — 18 units

 

Minor in Earth Sciences

The Minor in Earth Sciences program consists of 20 units, including GEOL 110 (Physical Geology), GEOL/METR/OCN 405 (Planetary Climate Change), and 12 units of geoscience electives. (See program requirements below for restrictions.) Students may complete one of the recommended focus areas listed below or create a coherent alternative designed to complement their major program (such as anthropology, art, biology, chemistry, civil engineering, environmental studies, geography, or physics). All students must meet with a departmental advisor to plan a course sequence and subsequently meet with an advisor each semester.

 

Earth Sciences, Minor — 20 units

Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.

 

Certificate in Weather Study

General Information

The Certificate in Weather Study program is offered for those interested in learning about meteorology and companion disciplines in some depth, but not at the major level. Students who complete the certificate will be able to read and interpret basic weather maps and make basic weather forecasts for themselves, and will be conversant on many weather and climate related topics of ongoing interest and importance, such as global climate change.

 

For advice about completing the certificate, consult with the certificate advisor, Dr. John Monteverdi. For information about applying to receive the certificate once the program requirements are met, see http://tornado.sfsu.edu/Programs/Weather_Study_Cert.html.

 

Weather Study, Certificate — 24 units

Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.

 

Master of Science in Geosciences

The Master of Science in Geosciences is an advanced, postgraduate degree that prepares students for careers in private industry, government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), teaching in high schools or community colleges, or for continuing postgraduate studies leading to a doctoral degree at another university. Although there are no formal concentrations within the program, students choose an area of research from within the geoscience disciplines and then select a faculty advisor and a course of study.

 

The Earth & Climate Sciences department includes faculty with expertise in geology, meteorology, and oceanography—fields that are critical to understanding fundamental earth processes and many environmental problems, such as air and water contamination, coastal erosion, and climate change. In addition to standard courses in the three subdisciplines, recent advanced-level courses have included Tectonic Geomorphology, Global Tectonics, Rock Mechanics in Geomorphology, Paleoceanography, Vadose Hydrogeology, Electron Microscopy, and Analysis and Prediction of Severe Storms.

 

All students take courses in their respective areas of emphasis plus a common core of three courses: GEOL/METR/OCN 700, a multidisciplinary seminar that exposes students to current geoscientific research and literature, and GEOL/METR/OCN 701 and 702, which prepare students for thesis research, quantitative analyses and scientific writing. Thesis projects are expected to have a rigorous base in a geoscience discipline; depending on the particular field and focus of study, these projects can involve laboratory research, field work, theory development, numerical simulations or model development.

 

Recent graduate research projects have focused on topics such as active faults in Death Valley, effects of climate change on regional aquifers, geomorphic controls on Bay Area streams, deformation associated with the San Andreas fault system, Pliocene–Pleistocene climate change, large-scale tectonic processes in the Himalayan Mountains, carbon cycling in the ocean, wave erosion at Ocean Beach, and characteristics of severe storms in California. We encourage students to work on interdisciplinary projects and develop interactions and collaborations with other departments in the University, other institutions and agencies, and private industry.

 

We strongly recommend that students plan a course of study before beginning the M.S. program, in consultation with a faculty advisor and the graduate coordinator.

 

Admission to the Program

To be considered for admission to the master's program as a classified graduate student, applicants must:

• Satisfy the University admission requirements.
• Have a bachelor's degree in one of the geosciences (geology, meteorology, or oceanography) or a related discipline.
• Have a 3.0 GPA in their earned undergraduate degree or last 60 semester (90 quarter) units completed.
• Satisfactorily complete the Graduate Record Examination general test.
• Provide letters of recommendation from at least two people familiar with the applicant’s previous academic work and/or professional accomplishments.
• Submit a statement of purpose.

 

Letters of recommendation and statement of purpose should be submitted directly to the department's graduate coordinator. Other materials should be submitted to the Graduate Studies Division of the University. Materials should be submitted by February 15 for admission the following fall semester and by November 1 for the following spring semester.

 

Applicants lacking the appropriate background may be admitted as conditionally classified graduate students. These students must complete additional course work that will not be counted toward the graduate requirements. Conditionally admitted students may take courses but cannot file an Advancement to Candidacy (ATC) form until all deficiencies have been satisfied.

 

Written English Proficiency Requirement

Each graduate student is required to demonstrate an acceptable level of written English proficiency on two levels:

 

Level One: Satisfied by obtaining a score of 4.0 or better on the analytical writing component of the GRE. If the score is 3.5 or less students will be required to take SCI 614 (Graduate Writing Skills) during their first semester of graduate studies.

Level Two: Satisfied by completion of a written thesis (GEOL/METR/OCN 898).

 

Advancement to Candidacy

To be advanced to candidacy, each student must:

• Satisfy level one of the written English proficiency requirement.
• Satisfy all course deficiencies stipulated upon entrance into the master's program.
• Choose a faculty advisor and complete a research proposal that has been approved by the student's thesis committee.
• File an Advancement to Candidacy (ATC) form.

 

Geosciences (M.S.) — Minimum 30 units

Courses are 3 units unless otherwise indicated.

All students must present an oral thesis defense to the Earth & Climate Sciences faculty and students.

 

Elective units are chosen from courses offered by the department or other University departments, and must be selected by students in consultation with their faculty advisors. At least 6 units must be courses numbered 700 or higher, and 6 units must be courses offered in the Earth & Climate Sciences department.

 

To help prepare for their careers, graduate students are expected to be a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) for at least one semester. GTAs are responsible for teaching introductory lab courses in geology (GEOL 104), meteorology (METR 104) and oceanography (OCN 104). As part of their employment, GTAs are required to enroll in a 1-unit professional-development course (GEOL/METR/OCN 792) that helps them to learn about innovative teaching techniques and improving student learning.

 

Students can receive their graduate degree when they complete all course requirements and their thesis committee approves the written thesis and oral thesis defense.