1996-1997 Undergraduate Catalog

 NMSU
GEOLOGICAL SCIENCES

Associate Professor Thomas H. Giordano, department head

Professors Mack, Seager; Associate Professors Lawton, McMillan; Assistant Professor Giles; Adjunct Professors Zellmer, Huff

(505) 646-2708

DEGREE: Bachelor of Science
MAJOR: Geology

In addition to the above degree, the Department of Geological Sciences cooperates with the Department of Civil, Agricultural, and Geological Engineering in offering a B.S. degree in geological engineering. Students who are interested in this degree should register in the College of Engineering. Requirements for the degree are listed in the "Department of Civil, Agricultural, and Geological Engineering" section of this catalog.

The requirements for teaching fields in earth sciences are listed in the "Department of Curriculum and Instruction" section.

MAJOR: Geology

The geology curriculum is broad in scope to prepare the student for employment by environmental and water resource companies; mineral and energy industries; federal, state, and local governments; and engineering and service companies involved with utilizing earth resources. Qualified students are also prepared for graduate study.

Nondepartmental Requirements (24 credits) (May not be taken S/U)
CHEM 111-112, General Chemistry I, II, or
CHEM 115-116, Principles of Chemistry I, II
 8
C S 157, FORTRAN Programming* 2
MATH 191-192, Calculus and Analytic Geometry I, II** 6
PHYS 211-212, General Physics I, II, or
PHYS 215-216, Engineering Physics I, II
 6
PHYS 211L-212L, General Physics Laboratory I, II, or
PHYS 215L-216L, Engineering Physics Laboratory I, II
 2

Departmental Requirements (33 credits)
GEOL 111G, Survey of Geology 4
GEOL 297, Historical Geology 3
GEOL 310, Mineralogy 3
GEOL 312, Optical Mineralogy 3
GEOL 330, Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology 3
GEOL 350, Invertebrate Paleontology 3
GEOL 360, General Geochemistry 3
GEOL 420, Sedimentation 3
GEOL 449, The Geological Profession 1
GEOL 470, Structural Geology 3
GEOL 490, Field Geology 4

Elective Requirements (12 credits)

Students must obtain a C or better in any four of the following courses:
SOIL 252, Soils 3
GEOL 353, Geomorphology 3
GEOL 421, Stratigraphy 3
GEOL 451, Subsurface Methods 3
GEOL 452, Geohydrology 3
GEOL 465, Introduction to Isotope Geology 3
GEOL 474, Gound Water Geology 3
GEOL 475, Metallic Deposits 3
GEOL 478, Petroleum Geology 3
GEOL 480, Seminar (with subtitle) 3
GPHY 451, Principles of Geophysics I 3
GPHY 452, Principles of Geophysics II 3

Other electives, including those selected to satisfy the college and university requirements, must bring the total credits to 128, of which 55 must be upper division (300 or above).

Students must work closely with their advisers in order to plan programs that allow them to meet all requirements and earn sufficient upper-division credit.

*Any other equivalent programming course (e.g., C or Pascal) may be substituted for C S 157.

**Students must enroll for a math course every semester (including summer sessions) during which they are registered for any courses, until MATH 192 is completed.



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