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Nov 21, 2024
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CURRENT 2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog
Geology, BS
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Total number of hours for the program: 120.
A geology degree offers a rich, diverse educational experience while opening doors for meaningful careers in earth and environmental science. Geologists meaningfully contribute to solutions to many societal problems, such as finding new and useful earth resources, minimizing earth hazards such as landslides, securing clean water resources, restoring degraded streams and wetlands, learning how and why the climate is changing today and in the past, investigating major extinctions in the past and present, recreating past tectonic events to gain insights on mountain belts and hazards today, and even looking beyond earth to study planetary bodies.
At Western, our students get experience actually doing geology and are supported by faculty and fellow students in the classroom and lab, at our on-campus hydrological research station, and on many outdoor field trips. All geology majors get an internship-like research experience to solve a real-world geological problem and communicate their results to the professional community. Most alumni pursue geosciences careers, such as work in environmental fields, for government agencies, in K-12 education, and in energy resources. About one-quarter of alumni go on to graduate school for advanced degrees in geosciences or in other professional programs.
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Major Requirements
The major requires 64 hours, including 24 hours in core courses and 40 hours in a concentration. Concentrations - Choose one (40 hours)
Environmental Hydrology Concentration
Geology Coursework (7-8 hours)
Take two courses from the list below that do not duplicate a course taken to satisfy the core requirement.
Foundation Sciences and Math (18-20 hours)
Upper-Level Science and Math Electives (12-15 hours)
Upper-level electives in geology, other sciences, or mathematics chosen in consult with advisor. Potential courses are listed below.
Solid Earth Concentration
Geology Coursework (7-8 hours)
Take two courses from the list below that do not duplicate a course taken to satisfy the core requirement.
Foundation Sciences and Math (18-20 hours)
Upper Level Math and Science Electives (12-15 hours)
Upper-level electives in geology, other sciences, or mathematics chosen in consult with advisor.
Interdisciplinary Concentration
Geology Coursework (7 hours)
Take 7 hours of upper-level geology courses that do not duplicate a course used to satisfy the core requirement.
Foundation Sciences and Math (15-16 hours)
Upper Level Math and Science Electives (17-18 hours)
Upper-level electives in geology, other sciences, or mathematics chosen in consult with advisor. At least nine hours must from an approved set of coherent courses outside of geology.
General Electives (14-23 hours)
Take 14-23 hours of general electives depending on the number of hours taken in the major that also meet liberal studies requirements.
Additional Requirements
To meet one of the general university degree requirements, at least 30 hours of the courses taken at WCU must be at the junior/senior level.
Note: Students planning to pursue graduate work are strongly urged to consult with their advisor to learn of courses that may be required for their area of interest. Some geology graduate programs may require additional coursework in math, chemistry, or physics, and some may require field camp.
Additional Information
Visit the geology program’s website at geology.wcu.edu.
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