Welcome to the Geosciences Department!
Why geology is the best science elective
What is geoscience?
Geoscience is the study of planet Earth, its materials, the processes that act upon them,and the history of the planet, and its life forms since its origin. The mission of Skidmore's geosciences program is to apply the understanding of Earth processes to contemporary issues such as Earth resources, land-use planning, and global change. For more information, check out our Mission Statement page here.
Thinking about a geoscience major or minor? Great!
Click here for the Skidmore declaration of major form. Directions for declaring a major can be found here.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about becoming a geoscience major or minor. In the mean time, read this and this! And check out Geoscience alum Cynthia Blum Carroll's ('78) feature in the Fall 2009 Scope magazine!
Geoscience majors and employment
Recession? Geoscientist are in demand! According to the U.S. Department of Labor 2010–2011 Occupational Outlook Handbook, "Employment of geoscientists and hydrologists is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations" over the next eight years. In 2010, the average salary for geoscientists with 0–2 years experience (entry-level) was $93,000." (American Association of Petroleum Geologists).
Click here to see additional new and exciting Geosciences News! Here are a few items:
Congratulations to our senior class of 2016!
- This year’s Roy T. Abbott III Memorial Prize in Geosciences goes to: Emma McCully
- Ben Freiberg won the department’s Mente et Malleo Research Grant for his project “soil erosion rates in Saratoga County”
- Candace Wygel is heading back to school at Lehigh University’s graduate program in Geology, with full funding and a teaching assistantship!
- Richard (Alex) Ng-Yow was the project manager for Dana Science Center’s new Augmented Reality sandbox installation. Visit the Atrium to try it yourself, or check out Alex’s time-lapse video!
Geo Summertime!
Juniors
- Evan Nitkin criss-crossed the Atlantic this summer studying the coastal ocean/human interface.
- Terra Begley is splitting her summer between Saratoga Springs and her home on the San Andreas. Neither one is her fault, really!
- Anne LeClair is taking a break from fossil-hunting to pursue e-sports. AnneDroid Rocks!
- Taimur Khan spent the summer in Europe as a research assistant investigating landscape change in the field
Sophomores
- Eric Deutsch landed a summer internship with NASA, doing hyperspectral imaging of algal blooms in the Great Lakes. Optical!
- Ann Hill headed down under for Field Camp in New Zealand. Field Camp is an intensive 4-6-week long course in field geology techniques: mapping, observational skills, 4-D data interpretation, and linking small points together to see the big picture. And, hiking around the great outdoors in amazing places!
- Sam spent the summer on the Cape, as a research assistant at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
Alumni Spotlight
- Francisco “Frankie” Perez ‘13 is doing an M.S. degree in social geosciences at Michigan Tech, and has just left for a tour with the Peace Corps volunteering in Senegal to support urban agriculture and study groundwater resources. Wish him luck!
- Katherine Kuklewicz ’15 and Shanna Williamson ’14 have started master’s programs at Kansas University and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
- Coco Loehr ’12 is leading an exciting outdoor education program at the boarding school Phillips Andover Academy in Massachusetts.
- Congrats to our GeoCorps interns: Sarah Turner and Rachel Comp ’15 worked for the Bureau of Land Management (Washington, D.C.) and National Parks Service (Grand Canyon).
- Check out the latest article on the new blockbuster film The Martian by geo alumn science writer Alex Kasprak ’08.
We’d love to hear from you! Send your updates to afrappie@skidmore.edu or your favorite Skidmore GeoProfessor!
Living the Liberal Arts: Geosciences
Alumnus Matt Shrensel '09 offers advice and insights