Applied Environmental Geoscience - MS
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About this Degree
Program Contacts:
Tammy Rittenour, PhD
Professor, Graduate Director
Kelly Bradbury, PhD, PEG
Professional Practice Associate Professor, Graduate Program Coordinator
The department offers advanced study leading to the MS-B degree in Applied Environmental Geoscience. This terminal degree program requires a combination of advanced courses selected from Geology offerings, as well as additional courses from other units on campus, such as Civil and Environmental Engineering; Plants, Soils, and Climate; Biology; Chemistry and Biochemistry; Mathematics and Statistics; and other departments in the Quinney College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Admission Requirements for this Program
Only the Plan B non-thesis option is allowed for the MS degree in Applied Environmental Geoscience.
The Plan B option requires the production of a report. At least 2 credits of thesis research are required, but no more than 3 credits of thesis credit can be included on the Program of Study. Exceptions to this policy may be based on recommendations by the Graduate Director and GPC to the Department Head.
The Plan B report is usually a review of literature, with conclusions drawn after conceptualizing an area of inquiry, planning a systematic search, and analyzing and critiquing the acquired information. The summary and conclusions developed should enhance knowledge in the discipline. Plan B reports should follow the same format specifications as theses and dissertations.
Plan B reports are defended but are not reviewed by the School of Graduate Studies and a Title Page is not required.
Plan B reports must be submitted to the Merrill-Cazier Library to be uploaded to Digital Commons.
Students may need to complete specific undergraduate coursework to prepare them for their graduate program. Seven preparatory core undergraduate courses are recommended by the Department of Geosciences: Physical Geology, Minerals and Rocks (Earth Materials, Mineralogy), Earth through Time (Historical Geology), Sedimentation and Stratigraphy, Geomorphology, Structural Geology, and Field Methods or experience. Graduate students are generally expected to have taken a minimum of four of the seven core courses, including a field course; however, this depends on each student’s background and planned research topic.
Decisions about any exceptions to these potential prerequisites in a student’s graduate program are made by a student's Advisory Committee in their first meeting, and in consultation with the Graduate Director.
Students are expected to be admitted to the Graduate program as matriculated students before taking coursework leading to the degree.
Admission requirements can be found on the USU School of Graduate Studies website (gradschool.usu.edu/admissions/policies) and the Department of Geosciences ‘Apply to our Program’ page: https://qanr.usu.edu/geo/graduate-program/future-graduates
Additional information about the MS-AEG Geoscience graduate program may be obtained by contacting the Department of Geosciences or by visiting the program website at https://qanr.usu.edu/geo/graduate-program/degree-and-information.
