Advisors: See Faculty of Science, academic advisors.
Geology is the study of the Earth, its structure and composition, and the physical, chemical, and biological processes that have affected and continue to shape this planet over a variety of time scales. Training in geology leads to numerous challenging career paths such as exploration for natural resources (minerals, oil, and gas), environmental protection, identifying geological hazards, and understanding global climate change. Graduates are in demand in a variety of employment sectors that include the exploration industry, mining, government, education, and consulting.
Continuing in Honours Earth Sciences, Geology Specialization requires a cumulative overall average of 60% and a cumulative average of 60% in all EARTH courses.
Successful completion of this program requires:
21.5 units that include:
- 9.0 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 331, EARTH 332, EARTH 333, EARTH 342, EARTH 358, EARTH 390, and EARTH 471
- 1.0 EARTH unit: EARTH 436A and EARTH 436B or EARTH 499 and one EARTH elective at 300-level or higher
- 3.0 EARTH elective units with the following conditions:
- 0.5 unit must be 200-level or higher
- 2.5 unit must be 300-level or higher
- 1.5 CHEM units: CHEM 120, CHEM 120L, CHEM 123, and CHEM 123L
- 1.5 PHYS units: PHYS 111 and PHYS 111L or PHYS 121 and PHYS 121L; PHYS 112 and PHYS 112L or PHYS 122 and PHYS 122L
- 1.5 MATH units: MATH 106 or MATH 114; MATH 127 and MATH 128
- 0.5 STAT unit: STAT 202
- 1.0 program elective unit chosen from any 200-level or higher BIOL, CHEM, PHYS, MATH, or AMATH course, or chosen from BIOL 120, BIOL 130, BIOL 150, CS 115, or CS 116
- 0.5 ENGL unit: ENGL 193/SPCOM 193
- 2.0 elective units; must be 0.5 unit lecture courses
Notes
- SCI and EARTH courses may not be counted as program electives.
- A maximum of 1.5 SCI units may be counted as electives.
Recommended Course Sequence
Year One
Fall
CHEM 120/CHEM 120L Physical and Chemical Properties of Matter/Chemical Reaction Laboratory 1
EARTH 121/EARTH 121L Introductory Earth Sciences/Introductory Earth Sciences Laboratory
EARTH 123 Introductory Hydrology
MATH 127 Calculus 1 for the Sciences
PHYS 111/PHYS 111L Physics 1/Physics 1 Laboratory
or PHYS 121/PHYS 121L Mechanics/Mechanics Laboratory
Winter
CHEM 123/CHEM 123L Chemical Reactions, Equilibria and Kinetics/Chemical Reaction Laboratory 2
EARTH 122/EARTH 122L Introductory Environmental Sciences/Introductory Environmental Sciences Laboratory
MATH 128 Calculus 2 for the Sciences
PHYS 112/PHYS 112L Physics 2/Physics Laboratory 2
or PHYS 122/PHYS 122L Waves, Electricity and Magnetism/Waves, Electricity and Magnetism Laboratory
One of ENGL 193/SPCOM 193 Communication in the Sciences
Year Two
Fall
EARTH 223 Field Methods in Hydrology
EARTH 231 Mineralogy
EARTH 235 Stratigraphic Approaches to Understanding Earth's History
EARTH 260 Applied Geophysics 1
MATH 106 Applied Linear Algebra 1
or MATH 114 Linear Algebra for Science
Winter
EARTH 221 Geochemistry 1
EARTH 232 Petrography
EARTH 238 Introductory Structural Geology
Two electives (1.0 unit)
Year Three
Fall
EARTH 331 Volcanology and Igneous Petrology
EARTH 342 Geomorphology and GIS Applications
STAT 202 Introductory Statistics for Scientists
Two EARTH electives 300-level or higher (1.0 unit)
Winter
EARTH 333 Introductory Sedimentology
EARTH 358 Earth System Science
EARTH 390 Methods in Geological Mapping
Two program electives (1.0 unit)
One elective (0.5 unit)
Year Four
Fall
EARTH 436A Honours Thesis
or EARTH 499 Research Project
Three EARTH electives 300-level or higher (1.5 units)
One elective (0.5 unit)
Winter
EARTH 332 Metamorphic Petrology
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)