Advisors: See Faculty of Science academic advisors.
Geophysics is a broad field where mathematics and physics are combined to study the many phenomena that happen inside, on the surface, and in the atmosphere of the Earth and other planets. In addition to mineral and energy exploration, geophysicists are involved in evaluating earthquake and volcano hazards, monitoring nuclear weapons treaties, assisting in managing and protecting groundwater resources and studying geomagnetic phenomenon, such as the Aurora Borealis. Students in the geophysics program acquire a wide range of quantitative skills from their studies of earth sciences, mathematics, and physics. Geophysicists are in demand by employers in all areas of earth sciences from oil, gas, and base metal exploration to environmental monitoring and management, in both the public and private sectors.
Continuing in Honours Co-operative Earth Sciences, Geophysics Specialization, requires a cumulative overall average of 60% and a cumulative average of 60% in all EARTH courses.
Successful completion of this program requires:
- 21.75 units that include:
- 9.25 EARTH units: EARTH 121, EARTH 121L, EARTH 122, EARTH 122L, EARTH 123, EARTH 221, EARTH 223, EARTH 231, EARTH 232, EARTH 235, EARTH 238, EARTH 260, EARTH 333, EARTH 358, EARTH 390, EARTH 458, EARTH 458L, EARTH 460, EARTH 461, and EARTH 471
- 1.0 EARTH unit: EARTH 436A and EARTH 436B; or EARTH 499 and one EARTH elective at 300-level or higher
- 2.5 EARTH elective units with the following conditions:
- 0.5 unit must be 200-level or higher
- 2.0 units must be 300-level or higher
- 1.5 CHEM units: CHEM 120, CHEM 120L, CHEM 123, and CHEM 123L
- 1.5 PHYS units: PHYS 121, PHYS 121L, PHYS 122, and PHYS 122L
- 2.5 MATH units: MATH 114; MATH 127 and MATH 128; MATH 227 or CIVE 221; MATH 228 or CIVE 222 or ENVE 223
- 0.5 STAT unit: STAT 202
- 2.0 program elective units chosen from any 200-level or higher BIOL, CHEM, PHYS, MATH, AMATH course or chosen from BIOL 120, BIOL 130, BIOL 150, CS 115, or CS 116
- 0.5 SCCOM unit: SCCOM 100
- 0.5 elective unit chosen from any 0.5 unit lecture course
- Co-operative education requirements that include:
- A minimum of four work terms
- Four WatPD (professional development) courses that must include PD 1, PD 11, and two PD elective courses
- Four work-term reports:
Notes
- EARTH 342 and EARTH 440 are recommended EARTH electives.
- SCI and EARTH courses may not be counted as program electives.
- A maximum of 1.5 SCI units may be counted as electives.
- Students will need enrolment permission for required courses offered through Engineering.
- Additional co-op program information is located in the Co-operative Education and Career Action (CECA) section of this Calendar and in the Science Faculty work-term report guidelines.
Recommended Course Sequence
Year One
Fall
CHEM 120/CHEM 120L Physical and Chemical Properties of Matter/Laboratory
EARTH 121/EARTH 121L Introductory Earth Sciences/Laboratory
MATH 127 Calculus 1 for the Sciences
PHYS 121/PHYS 121L Mechanics/Laboratory
SCCOM 100 Communication in the Sciences
Winter
CHEM 123/CHEM 123L Chemical Reactions, Equilibria and Kinetics/Laboratory
EARTH 122/EARTH 122L Introductory Environmental Sciences/Laboratory
MATH 114 Applied Algebra for Sciences
MATH 128 Calculus 2 for the Sciences
PHYS 122/PHYS 122L Waves, Electricity and Magnetism/Laboratory
Year Two
Fall
EARTH 123 Introductory Hydrology
EARTH 231 Mineralogy
EARTH 235 Stratigraphic Approaches to Understanding Earth's History
EARTH 260 Applied Geophysics 1
MATH 227 Calculus 3 for Honours Physics
or CIVE 221 Advanced Calculus
Spring
EARTH 221 Geochemistry
EARTH 232 Petrography
MATH 228 Differential Equations for Physics and Chemistry
or CIVE 222 Differential Equations
One program elective (0.5 unit)
One elective (0.5 unit)
Year Three
Winter
EARTH 238 Introductory Structural Geology
EARTH 333 Introductory Sedimentology
EARTH 358 Earth System Science
EARTH 390 Methods in Geological Mapping
EARTH 460 Applied Geophysics 2
One program elective (0.5 unit)
Fall
EARTH 223 Field Methods in Hydrology
STAT 202 Introductory Statistics for Scientists
Two program electives (1.0 unit)
One EARTH elective 300-level or higher (0.5 unit)
Year Four
Fall
EARTH 436A Honours Thesis
or EARTH 499 Research Project
EARTH 458/EARTH 458L Physical Hydrogeology/Field Methods in Hydrogeology
EARTH 461 Applied Geophysics 3
Two EARTH electives 300-level or higher (1.0 unit)
Winter
EARTH 436B Honours Thesis
or one EARTH elective 300-level or higher (0.5 unit)
EARTH 471 Mineral Deposits
One EARTH elective 200-level or higher (0.5 unit)
One EARTH elective 300-level or higher (0.5 unit)