Minor in Geoscience

About the Minor

Geosciences are at the core of numerous problems facing the world today and impact the lives of communities across the planet. Climate change, natural disasters, access to mineral resources and clean water, and availability of energy all shape government policies and corporate strategies and are a cause of concern for society at large.

The Geoscience minor is designed to give students specializing in other fields the skills to understand and analyze these issues. It is a natural fit for environmental science majors who wish to understand how the physical world can impact biodiversity, ecological processes, and environmental impacts. For students majoring in fields such as business and engineering, the minor in Geoscience will provide them with the tools to make better decisions about products or projects related to natural hazards and their impact, cost and availability of natural resources, energy policy, space exploration, land use, and environmental justice. For students who are liberal arts majors, the minor in Geoscience offers the opportunity to explore earth science issues that shape the social, cultural, political and scientific debate, and to be prepared for issues they may encounter in their careers.

All prospective students should meet with an advisor from the College as soon as possible.

For more information about this minor, please visit the CoAS minors web page.

Program Requirements

Writing-Intensive Course Requirements

In order to graduate, all students must pass three writing-intensive courses after their freshman year. Two writing-intensive courses must be in a student's major. The third can be in any discipline. Students are advised to take one writing-intensive class each year, beginning with the sophomore year, and to avoid “clustering” these courses near the end of their matriculation. Transfer students need to meet with an academic advisor to review the number of writing-intensive courses required to graduate.

A "WI" next to a course in this catalog may indicate that this course can fulfill a writing-intensive requirement. For the most up-to-date list of writing-intensive courses being offered, students should check the Writing Intensive Course List at the University Writing Program. Students scheduling their courses can also conduct a search for courses with the attribute "WI" to bring up a list of all writing-intensive courses available that term.