The Geological Sciences Option is for students who expect to make geology an important component of their career, e.g., in engineering/environmental consulting, oil and gas exploration, mineral exploration and mining, and federal & state government; it also provides rigorous preparation for graduate study.
Declaration of the major in Earth & Planetary Sciences requires a grade of C or better in 01:460:101 Introductory Geology or 01:460:100 Planet Earth or equivalent or special permission of the Undergraduate Program Director. Course schedules for each semester should be approved by the Undergraduate Program Director or other faculty advisor prior to registration.
460-G: Geological Sciences Option (B.S.) [62 credits total]
Foundation Courses
- 01:160:161 General Chemistry (4)
- 01:640 CALC1 (4)
- One of the following: 01:640: CALC2 (4) or 01:960:379 Basic Probability Theory (3) or 01:960:401 Basic Statistics for Research (3)
- One of the following: 01:750:203 General Physics (3) (recommended) or 01:750:193 Physics for the Sciences (4) or 01:750:201 Extended General Physics (5)
Core Courses
- 01:460:101 Introductory Geology (4) [alternatively 01:460:100 Planet Earth (3) and 01:460:103 Introductory Geology Lab (1)]
- 01:460:300 Introduction to Sedimentary Geology (4)
- 01:460:301 Mineralogy (4)
- 01:460:302 Petrology (4)
- 01:460:303 Paleontology (4)
- 01:460:304 Introduction to Geochemistry (4)
- 01:460:306 Introduction to Geophysics (4)
- 01:460:407 Structural Geology & Geologic Maps (4)
- 01:460:410 Field Geology (3) or equivalent (see field requirement below)
- 01:460:480 Major Events in Earth History (3)
Elective Courses
Three 3-credit courses in 01:460 at the 300 level or higher. Note: 01:119:115, 116 General Biology, 01:160:162 General Chemistry, General Physics 2, CALC 3, CALC 4, and 01:355:302 Scientific & Technical Writing are acceptable electives. Other non-460 courses require permission of the Undergraduate Program Director. Undergraduate students may take graduate courses if they have a GPA of 3.0 or higher and/or with the permission of the instructor. Students may choose from the following specializations or create their own group of electives.
- Paleobiology and Paleoceanography: 01:460:305 Evolution & Geologic Time (3), 01:460:394 Geologic Context, 01:460:451 Marine Geology (3), 01:460:454 Micropaleontology (3), 01:460:476 History of the Earth System (3), 16:460:526 Paleoceanography (3), 16:460:552 Stable Isotopes in the Environment (3), 16:460:625 Seminar in Sequence Stratigraphy
- Tectonics, Geophysics, and Hydrology: 01:460:414 Hydrologic Processes, 01:460:428 Hydrogeology, 01:460:429 Tectonics & Regional Structural Geology, 01:460:441 Structure & Formation of Terrestrial Planets, 01:460:442 Dynamics of Planetary Interiors, 16:460:515 Advanced Tectonics, 16:460:528 Groundwater Modeling, 16:460:557 Seismic Acquisition & Processing (3)
- Geochemistry & Petrology: 01:460:396 Geochronology (3), 01:460:417 Environmental Geochemistry (3), 16:460:509 Meteoritics (3), 16:460:513 Volcanology (3), 16:460:551 Isotope Geochemistry (3), 16:460:617 Seminar in Geochronology (3), 16:460:631 Seminar in Petrology (3)
Outline of Geological Sciences Major Track Courses
| Geological Sciences Option | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cognate Courses |
Calc 1 & Calc 2 or Stats | 8 |
| General Chemistry 1 | 4 | |
| General Physics 1 | 3 | |
|
EPS |
Intro Geology or equiv. | 4 |
| Mineralogy (spring only course) | 4 | |
| Petrology (fall only course) | 4 | |
| Geochemistry (fall only course) | 4 | |
| Major Events in Earth History (spring only course) | 3 | |
| Sedimentary Geology (fall only course) | 4 | |
| Paleontology (spring only course) | 4 | |
| Structural Geology (spring only course) | 4 | |
| Geophysics (spring only course) | 4 | |
| Field Geology (taken outside of Rutgers during winter or summer) | 3 | |
|
Elective |
300+ level or approved elective | 3 |
| 300+ level or approved elective | 3 | |
| 300+ level or approved elective | 3 | |
| Subtotal | 9 | |
| TOTAL CREDITS: | 62 |
