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:
Best wishes to our '18 Seniors:
- Majors - Eric Deutsch '18, Ann Hill '18, and Sam Hudziak '18!
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Minors - James Calzolaio '18, Connor Christofferson '18, Jennifer Cristiano '18, Ann Hill '18, Karen Nolan '18, and Yuruo (Euphie) Zhang '18!
- This year’s Roy T. Abbott III Memorial Prize in Geosciences goes to: Sam Hudziak ’18
- Ann Hill ‘18 won the department’s Mente et Malleo Research Grant (aka the Mind and Hammer Award) for her research on glacier geophysics in Alaska through the Juneau Icefield Research Program. Thanks to our generous alumni for funding student research in Geosciences!
Congratulations, Ann and Sam!
Geo Summertime!
- There’s still time to enroll in our 2018 summer classes – GE112: Oceanography in Session 1, and GE101: Earth Systems Science in Session 2!
- Geo majors Nate Smail ‘20, Telly Olsen ’20, Tess Drauschak ’20, are funded by the Student-Faculty Summer Research Program for their summer research projects on Northeastern geology and tectonics with Prof. Guevara. We hear a trip to Maine is in the works… Congrats Tess, Telly, and Nate!
- Meanwhile, Rachel Adamsky ’20 and Brigid Ferris ’19 are preparing to head to the Ring of Fire for a semester of Skidmore in New Zealand / NZ geology Field Camp! Have a blast!
Alumni Spotlight
- Congratulations to Melanie Feen '16, who was awarded a 3-year NASA Earth and Space Fellowship to support her PhD in Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island, Graduated School of Oceanography. Her project title is: Net Community Production Across Scales: From Autonomous Profiling to Ocean Color Remote Sensing.
- Patrick Thieringer ’16, landed a highly competitive NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, funding his PhD research in geomicrobiology. Congratulations Patrick!
- National Park Ranger Megan Killeen ’14, will be in Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park in Alaska this summer, then starting her Master’s program at Boston University. Happy Trails, Megan!
- In January, Emma McCully ’16 started a fully-funded graduate program in Geosciences at Boise State in Idaho, with a focus in what else? Marine sciences. Way to make waves, Emma!
- Candace Wygel ’16, defended her MS thesis at Lehigh University's Earth and Environmental Sciences program, and has a job waiting for her in Environmental Consulting on Long Island. Way to go Candace!
- Sarah Turner ’15 defended her MS thesis at University of New Hampshire’s Earth Sciences Department. Congrats Sarah!
- Taimur Khan ’15, is now a Junior Resaerch Fellow at IAESTE in Germany. Rock on, Taimur! IAESTE, or the International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience, is a great resource for international students looking to study and gain science and engineering skills in 85 member countries.
- Katherine Kuklewicz ’15 finished her MS in sedimentary geology at University of Kansas last Spring, and moved to Houston to work at Exxon Mobil’s Exploration division just in time for Hurricane Harvey!
- Ben Freiberg ’16 started a fully-funded MS in Geology at Oregon State University, concentrating in paleoclimate and geomagnetism. Rock on, Ben!
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