Geology, B.S.
Learn more about the Bachelor of Science in Geology.
The B.S. program prepares students for immediate entry into a career in geology or for graduate studies. Career opportunities for geologists in industry and government include environmental and geohazard assessment, evaluation of waste disposal sites, groundwater modeling, and exploration for natural resources. The B.S. program is excellent preparation for graduate study and ultimately for a career in research, teaching, industry, or government.
The B.S. program includes an intensive 4-6 week summer course in Field Geology, typically taken in the summer following the Junior or Senior year.
Undergraduate Contact Information:
Dr. Nicholas Davatzes, Chair
Beury Hall, Room 307
215-204-2319
davatzes@temple.edu
Dr. Allison Tumarkin-Deratzian, Vice Chair and Faculty Advisor
Beury Hall, Room 308
215-204-2321
altd@temple.edu
Dr. Ilya Buynevich, Faculty Advisor, Geology
Beury Hall, Room 313
215-204-3635
coast@temple.edu
Dr. David Grandstaff, Faculty Advisor, Environmental Science
Beury Hall, Room 322B
215-204-8228
grand@temple.edu
Bachelor of Science
Summary of Requirements for the Degree
- University Requirements (123 total s.h.)
- Students must complete all University requirements including those listed below.
- All Temple students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses at Temple as part of their major. The specific writing-intensive course options for this major are:
Course List Code Title Credit Hours EES 2096 Climate Change: Oceans To Atmosphere 4 EES 2097 Process Geomorphology 4 EES 4696 Vertebrate Paleontology and Taphonomy 3 EES 4796 Soils and Paleosols 4 EES 4896 Planetary Geology 4 - Students must complete the General Education (GenEd) requirements.
- See the General Education section of the Undergraduate Bulletin for the GenEd curriculum.
- Students who complete CST majors receive a waiver for 2 Science & Technology (GS) and 1 Quantitative Literacy (GQ) GenEd courses.
- Students must satisfy general Temple University residency requirements.
- College Requirements
- 45 Upper Level (2000+) credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST), the College of Liberal Arts (CLA), or the College of Engineering (ENG).
- 90 credits within the College of Science & Technology (CST), the College of Liberal Arts (CLA), or the College of Engineering (ENG).
- All students in the College of Science and Technology are required to take a one credit first year seminar. SCTC 1001 CST First Year Seminar is the appropriate course option for every entering first year CST major. Transfer students should use SCTC 2001 CST Transfer Seminar to fulfill this requirement. Other courses that fulfill this requirement may be found on the CST College Requirements page.
- Major Requirements for Bachelor of Science (70-74 s.h.)
At least 9 courses required for the major must be completed at Temple. At least 6 courses from EES 2002+, BIOL 2112/2912, CHEM 2201 & 2203 / CHEM 2211 & 2213 / CHEM 2921 & 2923, MATH 2043/2943 must be completed at Temple.Course List Code Title Credit Hours Chemistry Select one of the following: 4 General Chemistry I
and General Chemistry Laboratory IHonors General Chemical Science I
and Honors Chemical Science Laboratory I (F)Mathematics MATH 1041 Calculus I 4 or MATH 1941 Honors Calculus I Select one of the following: 4 Introduction to Probability and Statistics for the Life Sciences Calculus II Honors Calculus II Physics Select one of the following: 4 Elementary Classical Physics I Honors Elementary Classical Physics I (F) General Physics I Honors General Physics I (F) Science Foundation Electives (SFE) 1 Select two of the following: 8 Introduction to Organismal Biology or BIOL 1911Honors Introduction to Organismal Biology Introduction to Biomolecules, Cells and Genomes or BIOL 1912Honors Introduction to Biomolecules, Cells and Genomes or BIOL 2112Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology or BIOL 2912Honors Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology General Chemistry II
and General Chemistry Laboratory IIHonors General Chemical Science II
and Honors Chemical Science Laboratory IIOrganic Chemistry I
and Organic Chemistry Laboratory IOrganic Chemistry for Honors I
and Organic Honors Laboratory IElementary Classical Physics II or PHYS 1962Honors Elementary Classical Physics II or PHYS 2022General Physics II or PHYS 2922Honors General Physics II Earth & Environmental Science EES 2001 Physical Geology 4 EES 2011 Mineralogy I (F) 4 Two EES courses between 2020-2029 8 Sedimentary Environments Paleontology and Stratigraphy (S) EES 3001 Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology (F) 4 One EES course between 3020-3025 4 Groundwater Hydrology (S) Physical Hydrology (F) One EES course between 4101-4109 4 Structural Geology (S) EES 4589 Field Geology 2 6 Two Upper-Level (2002+) Writing-Intensive EES electives 3 6-8 Science Upper Level Electives (SUE) 1,3 Select two of the following: 6-8 EES 2002 or higher (excluding required courses)EES 2002 or higher (excluding required courses)Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology (or higher) or BIOL 2912Honors Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Biology Organic Chemistry I
and Organic Chemistry Laboratory I (or higher)Organic Chemistry for Honors I
and Organic Honors Laboratory ICalculus III (or higher) or MATH 2943Honors Calculus III Total Credit Hours 70-74 Course List Code Title Credit Hours (F) - Fall only course (S) - Spring only course 1 Science Foundation Electives (SFE) and Science Upper-Level Electives (SUE) courses cannot be double-counted. Students may also select the honors versions of the courses listed.
2 Summer field camp is required of all B.S. geology majors and is usually taken in the summer following the junior or senior year. Students choose summer field camps at other institutions which are typically 4-6 weeks in length with tuition typically ranging from $2,000 to $4,000. The Earth & Environmental Science Department holds fundraisers throughout the year to help defray the costs. Students may also apply for research scholarships at CST and at the university. The Earth & Environmental Science undergraduate advisor must approve the choice of field camp.
3 Elective courses must be 3 or 4 credits. At most, one of the EES electives or SUEs may be a graduate-level course with permission of the faculty advisor.
Calculation of Major GPA
Courses listed under the major requirements for the degree will be included in the calculation of the major GPA. Courses that could not apply toward the major as an elective or required course would not be counted in the calculation of the major GPA. This would include CHEM 1027, for example.
Senior Research Project
Students whose cumulative GPA is at least 3.25 at the end of the first semester of their junior year are eligible to undertake a senior research project. In the second semester of their junior year, students must select a faculty research advisor and, with the advisor, prepare a written research proposal. After the research advisor and the undergraduate Earth & Environmental Science advisor approve the proposal, the student may register for up to four (4) hours of EES 4082 Individual Study Program for a grade. Additional credits may be offered in subsequent semesters, but only for Credit/No-Credit (CR/NC), to carry out the research project. Normally, the project will involve field or laboratory work in the summer between the junior and senior years and lead to presentation of the results at a departmental seminar.
Distinction in Major
To graduate with distinction in the major, students are required to achieve a 3.5 GPA in EES and Upper Level Science Electives for the major. In addition, a student graduating with distinction has no grade below C in the remaining courses required for the major.
Suggested Academic Plan
Bachelor of Science in Geology
Requirements for New Students starting in the 2022-2023 Academic Year
| Year 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| EES 2001 | Physical Geology | 4 |
| MATH 1041 or 1941 | Calculus I | 4 |
| SCTC 1001 | CST First Year Seminar | 1 |
| ENG 0802, 0812, or 0902 | Analytical Reading and Writing [GW] | 4 |
| Elective | 2 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| Select one of the following: | 4 | |
| General Chemistry I | ||
| Honors General Chemical Science I (F) | ||
| EES 2020-2029 Facies Models (or Similar) | 4 | |
| Sedimentary Environments | ||
| IH 0851 or 0951 | Intellectual Heritage I: The Good Life [GY] | 3 |
| Elective | 4 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Year 2 | ||
| Fall | ||
| EES 2011 | Mineralogy I (F) | 4 |
| Select one of the following: | 4 | |
| Calculus II | ||
| Honors Calculus II | ||
| Introduction to Probability and Statistics for the Life Sciences | ||
| IH 0852 or 0952 | Intellectual Heritage II: The Common Good [GZ] | 3 |
| GenEd Breadth Course | 3 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 14 | |
| Spring | ||
| EES 2020-2029 Paleontology & Stratigraphy (or Similar) | 4 | |
| Paleontology and Stratigraphy (S) | ||
| EES 3020-3025 Hydrology (or Similar) | 4 | |
| Groundwater Hydrology (S) | ||
| Physical Hydrology (F)1 | ||
| Science Foundation Elective2 | 4 | |
| GenEd Breadth Course | 3 | |
| Elective | 1 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Year 3 | ||
| Fall | ||
| EES 3001 | Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology (F) | 4 |
| 2002+ EES Elective [WI] | 3-4 | |
| Select one of the following: | 4 | |
| Elementary Classical Physics I | ||
| Honors Elementary Classical Physics I (F) | ||
| General Physics I | ||
| Honors General Physics I (F) | ||
| Elective | 3-2 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 14 | |
| Spring | ||
| EES 4101-4109 Structural Geology (or Similar) | 4 | |
| Structural Geology (S) | ||
| Science Foundation Elective2 | 4 | |
| GenEd Breadth Course | 3-4 | |
| Elective | 3-2 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 14 | |
| Summer | ||
| EES 4589 | Field Geology (see Requirements page and Advisor) (SS) | 6 |
| Term Credit Hours | 6 | |
| Year 4 | ||
| Fall | ||
| 2002+ EES Elective or Science Upper-Level Elective3 | 3-4 | |
| GenEd Breadth Course | 3 | |
| Elective | 8-7 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 14 | |
| Spring | ||
| 2002+ EES Elective [WI] | 3-4 | |
| 2002+ EES Elective or Science Upper-Level Elective3 | 3-4 | |
| GenEd Breadth Course | 3 | |
| Elective | 6-4 | |
| Term Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Total Credit Hours: | 123 | |
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| (F) - Fall only course | ||
| (S) - Spring only course | ||
| (SS) - Summer Session | ||
| 1 | This is a Fall only course. If EES 3025 is taken instead of EES 3021, it is recommended in Year 3 Fall. |
| 2 | Select from the Science Foundation Electives list under Requirements. |
| 3 | Select from the Earth & Environmental Science or Science Upper-Level Electives lists under Requirements. |