The Environmental Earth Science degree is geared toward students who plan to enter the environmental and geotechnical fields upon graduation. It includes a combination of traditional geology topics such as field methods and sedimentology, as well as more applied topics such as hydrogeology, geospatial information, and environmental geochemistry).
The BA degree requires 27 credits in the Earth Sciences curriculum. This includes one introductory level GG course with a lab, seven non-introductory GG courses, a two-credit research seminar, and at least 15 credits of approved upper division electives in GG or other departments. With the advice and consent of an undergraduate advisor, courses in other natural sciences, mathematics, or engineering may be substituted as electives. A mainland summer field course is an elective that students are strongly encouraged to take. Required support classes include physics, chemistry, biological sciences, and one semester of college calculus; these total 23-24 credits and should be taken as early as possible. A minimum grade of C (not C-) must be achieved in all major and support classes.
The Earth Science Education track is for students who want to become top-quality middle-school and high-school Earth Science teachers. The curriculum includes all required topical coursework for Earth Sciences certification by the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education, including courses in meteorology and oceanography. If students in the Earth Science Education pathway enroll in the College of Education's Post-Baccalaureate certificate program after they earn the BA, they will be certified as Earth Science teachers in Hawaiʻi.
This BA track requires 39 credits in the Earth Sciences, oceanography, and meteorology curriculum, including introductory level ERTH and MET courses with labs, seven non-introductory ERTH, MET, and OCN courses, a two-credit research seminar, an upper-division teacher-education course, and at least 30 credits of approved upper division electives. With the advice and consent of an undergraduate advisor, courses in other natural sciences, mathematics, or engineering may be substituted as electives. A mainland summer field course is an elective that students are strongly encouraged to take. Required support classes include physics, chemistry, biological sciences, and one semester of college calculus; these total 23-24 credits and should be taken as early as possible. A minimum grade of C (not C-) must be achieved in all major and support classes.
