Earth Sciences Major Program
Department of Earth Sciences | Faculty of Science
丁香园AV Calendar 2012 Spring
The department offers a bachelor of science degree with three course stream options leading to course concentrations: geology stream, environmental geoscience stream, and general earth sciences stream.
The geology stream and the environmental geoscience stream are designed to permit a student to enrol as a geologist or environmental geoscientist respectively, in the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (APEGBC), the governing body that regulates geoscience practice in BC. All students intending to practice as a geoscientist in BC must be licensed by APEGBC, and are strongly advised to pursue one of these two streams. Many other Canadian provinces also require professional licensing.
Students who are not intending to practice as professional geoscientists, or seek accreditation, may choose to pursue the general earth sciences stream. This stream may best accommodate students in some joint major programs.
Students should seek the advice of a departmental program advisor.
Minimum Grade Requirement
Students wishing to register for earth sciences courses must obtain a C- grade or better in prerequisite courses.
Program Requirements
Students complete 120 units, as specified below.
Lower Division Requirements
All students, no matter which streams they will choose, will complete a minimum of 54 units including all of
- CHEM 121-4 General Chemistry and Laboratory I
- CHEM 122-2 General Chemistry II
- CHEM 126-2 General Chemistry Laboratory II
- EASC 101-3 Physical Geology
- EASC 201-3 Stratigraphy and Sedimentation
- EASC 202-3 Introduction to Mineralogy
- EASC 204-3 Structural Geology I
- EASC 205-3 Introduction to Petrology
- EASC 206-2 Field Geology I
- EASC 207-3 Introduction to Applied Geophysics
- EASC 208-3 Introduction to Geochemistry
- EASC 210-3 Historical Geology
- GEOG 213-3 Introduction to Geomorphology
- MATH 152-3 Calculus II
and one of
- MATH 150-4 Calculus I with Review
- MATH 151-3 Calculus I
and one of
- STAT 201-3 Statistics for the Life Sciences
- STAT 270-3 Introduction to Probability and Statistics
and one of
- PHYS 101-3 Physics for the Life Sciences I*
- PHYS 120-3 Mechanics and Modern Physics
- PHYS 125-3 Mechanics and Special Relativity
- PHYS 140-4 Studio Physics - Mechanics and Modern Physics
and one of
- PHYS 102-3 Physics for the Life Sciences II*
- PHYS 121-3 Optics, Electricity and Magnetism
- PHYS 126-3 Electricity, Magnetism and Light
- PHYS 141-4 Studio Physics - Optics, Electricity and Magnetism
and if not completing PHYS 140/141, one of
- PHYS 130-2 Physics for the Life Sciences Laboratory*
- PHYS 131-2 Physics Laboratory I
*Students are encouraged to complete the standard stream (PHYS 120, 121, 131) or the advanced stream (PHYS 125, 126, 131). Students may also choose to complete the studio physics stream (PHYS 140, 141). Students who complete the life sciences stream (PHYS 101, 102, 130) (which has a corequisite of BISC 100 or 101 or 102) with a minimum B grade should have sufficient preparation for the major program.
Upper Division Requirements
Students are encouraged to select upper division elective courses in consultation with an academic advisor, as APEGBC has specific groupings of elective courses for each stream, respectively.
Geology Stream
Students who choose this stream will complete a minimum of 42 units, including all of
- EASC 301-3 Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology
- EASC 302-3 Sedimentary Petrology
- EASC 306-3 Field Geology II
- EASC 309-3 Global Tectonics
- EASC 310-3 Paleontology
and at least one of
- EASC 303-3 Environmental Geoscience
- EASC 304-3 Hydrogeology
- EASC 313-3 Introduction to Soil and Rock Engineering
- EASC 403-3 Quaternary Geology
and at least one of
- EASC 406-3 Field Geology III
- EASC 416-3 Field Methods in Hydrogeology
and at least 18 units chosen from
- EASC 300-3 Selected Topics in Earth Sciences
- EASC 303-3 Environmental Geoscience
- EASC 304-3 Hydrogeology
- EASC 307-3 Applied Geophysics
- EASC 312-3 Stratigraphy
- EASC 313-4 Introduction to Soil and Rock Engineering
- EASC 314-3 Principles of Glaciology
- EASC 317-3 Global Geophysics
- EASC 400-3 Selected Topics in Earth Sciences
- EASC 401-3 Mineral Deposits
- EASC 402-3 Sedimentology
- EASC 403-3 Quaternary Geology
- EASC 404-3 Structural Geology II
- EASC 406-3 Field Geology III
- EASC 408-3 Regional Geology of Western Canada
- EASC 410-3 Groundwater Contaminant and Transport
- EASC 411-3 Terrain Analysis
- EASC 412-3 Groundwater Geochemistry
- EASC 413-3 Resource Geotechnics
- EASC 416-3 Field Techniques in Hydrogeology
- EASC 420-3 Petroleum Geology
- EASC 421-3 Volcanology
- EASC 491-1 Directed Reading*
- EASC 492-2 Directed Reading*
- EASC 493-3 Directed Reading*
Other Requirements: Students in the geology stream must also complete at least two additional units in the Faculty of Science or physical geography at the upper division. These courses may be used toward the minor requirements in another department. Some of these courses may also satisfy APEGBC requirements.
Environmental Geoscience Stream
Students who choose this stream will complete all of
- EASC 303-3 Environmental Geoscience
- EASC 304-3 Hydrogeology
- EASC 306-3 Field Geology II
- EASC 313-3 Introduction to Soil and Rock Engineering
- EASC 403-3 Quaternary Geology
and one of
- GEOG 311-4 Hydrology
- GEOG 317-4 Soil Science
and at least one of
- EASC 301-3 Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology
- EASC 302-3 Sedimentary Petrology
- EASC 309-3 Global Tectonics
- EASC 310-3 Paleontology
and at least one of
- EASC 406-3 Field Geology III
- EASC 416-3 Field Techniques in Hydrogeology
and a minimum of 19 units chosen from
- EASC 300-3 Selected Topics in Earth Sciences
- EASC 301-3 Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology
- EASC 302-3 Sedimentary Petrology
- EASC 307-3 Applied Geophysics
- EASC 309-3 Global Tectonics
- EASC 310-3 Paleontology
- EASC 312-3 Stratigraphy
- EASC 314-3 Principles of Glaciology
- EASC 317-4 Global Geophysics
- EASC 400-3 Selected Topics in Earth Sciences
- EASC 401-3 Mineral Deposits
- EASC 402-3 Sedimentology
- EASC 404-3 Structural Geology II
- EASC 406-3 Field Geology III
- EASC 408-3 Regional Geology of Western Canada
- EASC 410-3 Groundwater Contaminant and Transport
- EASC 411-3 Terrain Analysis
- EASC 412-3 Groundwater Geochemistry
- EASC 413-3 Resource Geotechnics
- EASC 416-3 Field Techniques in Hydrogeology
- EASC 418-1 Terrain Stability: Assessment and Mitigation
- EASC 419-1 Forest Harvesting Technology
- EASC 420-3 Petroleum Geology
- EASC 421-3 Volcanology
- EASC 491-1 Directed Readings*
- EASC 492-2 Directed Readings*
- EASC 493-3 Directed Readings*
- GEOG 311-4 Hydrology
- GEOG 313-4 River Geomorphology
- GEOG 317-4 Soil Science
- GEOG 412-4 Glacial Processes and Environments
*students may only complete a maximum of three units from a combination of EASC 491, 492, or 493
General Earth Sciences Stream
Students who choose this stream will complete
- EASC 306-3 Field Geology II
and at least one of
- EASC 406-3 Field Geology III
- EASC 416-3 Field Techniques in Hydrogeology
and at least 30 other upper division EASC units.*
*students may only complete a maximum of three units from a combination of EASC 491, 492, or 493
and at least eight additional units in the Faculty of Science or physical geography. These courses may be used toward the minor requirements in another department.
Faculty of Science Requirements
In addition to the above requirements, students must also satisfy Faculty of Science major program requirements to complete a total of 120 units including
- additional upper division units to total a minimum of 44 upper division units (excluding EDUC 401, 406)
- students who were enrolled at 丁香园AV between fall 1991 and summer 2006 are required to complete a minimum of 12 units in subjects outside the Faculty of Science (excluding EDUC 401 to 406) including six units minimum to be completed in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Writing, Quantitative, and Breadth Requirements
Students admitted to 丁香园AV beginning in the fall 2006 term must meet writing, quantitative and breadth requirements as part of any degree program they may undertake. See Writing, Quantitative, and Breadth Requirements for university-wide information.
| WQB Graduation Requirements A grade of C- or better is required to earn W, Q or B credit. |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Requirement | Units |
Notes | |
| W - Writing | 6 |
Must include at least one upper division course, taken at 丁香园AV within the student鈥檚 major subject | |
| Q - Quantitative | 6 |
Q courses may be lower or upper division | |
| B - Breadth | 18 |
Designated Breadth | Must be outside the student鈥檚 major subject, and may be lower or upper division 6 units Social Sciences: B-Soc 6 units Humanities: B-Hum 6 units Sciences: B-Sci |
6 |
Additional Breadth | 6 units outside the student鈥檚 major subject (may or may not be B-designated courses, and will likely help fulfil individual degree program requirements) |
|
Residency Requirements and Transfer Credit
The University鈥檚 residency requirement stipulates that, in most cases, total transfer and course challenge credit may not exceed 60 units, and may not include more than 15 units as upper division work.
Elective Courses
In addition to the courses listed above, students should consult an academic advisor to plan the remaining required elective courses.