Bachelor of Arts in Geology
The B.A. in Geology, General Geology Concentration is recommended for students planning a career in public service and education (e.g. government agencies, park rangers and K-12 science teaching), non-profit or non-governmental environmental organizations, or pre-environmental law. This Concentration has maximum elective flexibility to produce an experience tailored to the needs of the student.
The B.A. in Geology, Field and Applied Geology Concentration is recommended for students planning to become professional geologists employed by environmental and geo-technical firms, governmental agencies, oil and mining companies, and for those students planning to pursue a graduate degree in geology. Emphasizing field and applied geology courses, and experiential learning, this program is designed to permit students to meet existing requirements for Professional Licensing.
Geology majors must earn a grade of "C-" (1.7) or better in all required geology courses for those courses to satisfy the degree requirements for a B.A. degree in Geology. No more than 3 units of elective may be from supervision courses. At least 3 units of elective must be from GEOL courses. Students may not earn credit for both concentrations.
Requirements (69-75 units)
Total units required for graduation: 120
Requirements for the B.A. in Geology
| Lower-division requirements (22-25) | ||
| Choose one of the following courses, with laboratory | 4-5 | |
| Survey of General Chemistry | ||
| Survey of General Chemistry Laboratory | ||
| General Chemistry I | ||
| General Chemistry I Laboratory | ||
| Choose one from the following (fulfills GE category B4) | 3-4 | |
| Accelerated Preparation for Calculus | ||
| Modeling with Calculus | ||
| Calculus I | ||
| Choose one of the following courses, with laboratory | 4-5 | |
| Physics in the Modern World and Physics in the Modern World Lab | ||
| Introduction to Physics I and Introduction to Physics I Lab | ||
| General Physics I and General Physics I Lab | ||
| Choose one of the following courses: | 3 | |
| Introductory Geology | ||
| Plate Tectonics: Key to Understanding Earthquakes, Volcanoes and Tsunami | ||
| Environmental Geology and Geological Hazards | ||
| Choose one of the following laboratories: | 1 | |
| Introductory Geology Laboratory | ||
| Environmental Geology and Geological Hazards Laboratory | ||
| GEOL 2000 | Interpreting Earth Systems History: Stories from an Ancient Planet | 4 |
| GEOL 2500 | Geology of California | 3 |
| Upper-division requirements (34) | ||
| GEOL 3100 | Introduction to Geologic Mapping | 3 |
| GEOL 3200 | Mineralogy | 5 |
| GEOL 3220 | Introduction to Geochemistry | 4 |
| GEOL 3240 | Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology | 4 |
| GEOL 3300 | Sedimentary Geology: Principles and Applications | 4 |
| GEOL 3600 | Structural Geology | 4 |
| GEOL 3700 | Groundwater Hydrology | 3 |
| GEOL 3990 | Geological Research Design | 3 |
| GEOL 4000 | Undergraduate Geological Research | 2 |
| GEOL 4900 | Senior Seminar | 2 |
| Concentration (13-16) | ||
| Students must satisfy the requirements of one of the concentrations listed below. | 13-16 | |
| Total Units | 69-75 | |
Concentrations (13-16 units)
General Geology Concentration (13 units)
(Program Code GEOL)
| Requirements (13) | ||
| A minimum of 13 units chosen from the following (no more than 3 units from supervision courses): | 13 | |
3100-level or above GEOL courses not previously used for the degree | ||
2000-level and higher courses in MATH, BIOL, CHEM, or PHYS not previously used for the degree, up to 6 units | ||
| Introduction to Geographic Information Systems and Cartography | ||
GEOG 3710 Advanced Geographic Information Systems | ||
| Statistics with Applications | ||
| Watershed Hydrology and Management | ||
| Geomorphology | ||
| Solid and Hazardous Waste Management | ||
| Total Units | 13 | |
Field and Applied Geology Concentration (16 units)
(Program Code: GEFA)
| Requirements (16) | ||
| GEOL 4100 | Engineering Geology | 4 |
| Six units chosen from: | 6 | |
| Advanced Field Geology (2) | ||
| Advanced Field Geology (3) | ||
| Advanced Field Geology (4) | ||
| Advanced Field Geology (6) | ||
| Digital Mapping and GIS for Scientists (3) | ||
| A minimum of 6 units chosen from: | 6 | |
| Geomorphology (3) | ||
| Earth Resources (4) | ||
| Introduction to Geographic Information Systems and Cartography | ||
| Field Methods in Hydrology (3) | ||
| Topics in Applied Geology (3) | ||
| Laboratory for Topics in Applied Geology (1) | ||
| Neotectonics and Seismic Hazard Analysis (4) | ||
| Environmental Hydrology (3) | ||
| Site Investigation, Siting, and Case Histories in Engineering Geology (4) | ||
| Total Units | 16 | |