Curriculum for the Geological Sciences

Students who wish to major or minor in Geology should contact Max Reams for additional information and advice.


Geological Sciences Major, B.S.:

Required Core: 39 hours
     GEOL 105 - Physical and Historical Geology
     GEOL 300 - Paleontology
     GEOL 302 - Earth Materials
     GEOL 321 - Geomorphology and Earth Hazards
     GEOL 330 - Hydrogeology
     GEOL 340 - Global Natural Resources and Environmental Issues
     GEOL 357 - Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology
     GEOL 360 - Geographic Information Systems and Global Positioning Systems
     GEOL 362 - Sedimentology and Stratigraphy
     GEOL 366 - Structural Geology and Field Methods
     GEOL 385 - Environmental Geochemistry
     GEOL 390 - Seminar
     GEOL 395 - Applied Geophysics

Plus 12 additional hours focused on the student's career interest, approved by department chair. Examples of possible interdisciplinary emphases might invovle courses related to Archeology, Art, Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Geography, Mathematics, Meteorology, Oceanography, Physics, Religion, Technical Missions, or other fields.

    Examples of concentrations:
        Chemistry
            CHEM 301 - Quantitative Analysis
            CHEM 382 - Physical Chemistry: Thermodynamics
            CHEM 410 - Instrumental Analysis
        Biology
            BIOL 126 - Biology II
            BIOL 360 - Invertebrate Zoology
            BIOL 361 - Comparative Anatomy
            BIOL 370 - Ecology
Required supporting courses for the Geology major:
     MATH 147 & 148 - Calculus I & II
     MATH 241 - Statistics
     CHEM 103 & 104 - General Chemistry I & II
     PHYS 201 & 202 - General Physics I & II
     BIOL 125 - Biology I
Recommended supporting courses include:
     CHEM 301 - Quantitative Analysis
     Additional math such as MATH 351 - Linear Algebra, 357 - Differential Equations, OR 361 - Calculus III

Geological Sciences Minor

Required: 16 hours of courses approved by the Department Chair in accordance with the student's needs.
Recommended:
     GEOL 105 - Physical & Historical Geology
     GEOL 302 - Earth Materials

Typical Courses for a Student Majoring in the Geological Sciences

Freshman Year
     Physical and Historical Geology
     General Chemistry
     Calculus
     Christian Formation
     College Writing
     Physical Education
Sophomore Year
     Earth Materials
     GIS/GPS
     General Physics
     Social Science/Fine Arts
     Christian Scriptures
     Hydrogeology


Tiers of Geoscience Courses

Tier I: Introductory courses
Courses with no prerequisite requirements. Ideal for beginning students and general education.
105 - Physical & Historical Geology
121 - Physical Geography
130 - Astronomy
140 - Earth & Space Science for Elementary Teachers

Tier II: Intermediate courses
Courses with minimal prerequisites. Ideal for students who have just taken an introductory course and are beginning to take upper division courses.
300 - Paleontology
302 - Earth Materials
310 - Earth's Weather
321 - Geomorphology
340 - Natural Resources
346 - Tools of Astronomy
360 - GIS/GPS
Tier IIb:
330 - Hydrogeology
362 - Sedimentology & Stratigraphy

Tier III: Advanced courses
Courses with multiple prerequirsite requirements. Ideal for advanced students.
357 - Igneous & Metamorphic Petrology
366 - Structural Geology & Field Methods
375 - Optical & Electron Microscopy
385 - Environmental Geochemistry
390 - Seminar
395 - Applied Geophysics
492 - Research

Rotating Schedule of Upper Level Courses

Because many of our upper level courses are only offered every other year, students need to plan ahead with their advisor when they will take required courses. The availability of these courses can affect students majoring in Geology, Geography, Environmental Science, Geological Engineering, and Secondary Science Education majors concentrating in Earth & Space Science. Courses offered every year are not listed in the table below. Although this is the typical pattern, changes do occur in some years. Academic year 2008-2009 will follow the schedule listed below under Year 1.
Year 1Year 2
Prof.FallSpringFallSpring
Brewer321 - Geomorph 395 - Geophysics330 - Hydro
Carrigan302 - Earth Materials
390 - Seminar
357 - Petro
385 - Env. Geochem.
375 - Microscopy366 - Structure
Reams 300 - Paleo362 - Sed/Strat