Water Science Certificate

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Return to: 3290 Department of Geosciences

A strong demand exists in the public and private sectors for understanding of aquatic systems, hydrological processes, and water resources. The undergraduate certificate in water sciences is designed to provide students with a working knowledge of the quality, quantity, storage, and flow of water in diverse environments; techniques to assess, model, and remediate aquatic environmental problems; and paradigms for understanding the social contexts and implications of water governance.

The certificate program consists of five courses with a total of 15-18 credit hours, and is an excellent complement to undergraduates pursuing careers in natural resources, environmental fields, or graduate degree opportunities in the department focused on the study of water science.

Certificate Requirements (15-19 Hours)

Students interested in this certificate should contact the Undergraduate Director in Geosciences to enroll in the program. Courses that apply to a degree program in Geosciences also may be used in support of the certificate; however, only one course can be applied to two different certificates.

Group I: Fundamentals

Choose two of the following three courses (6-7 Hours)

GEOG 4646 - Water Resources 3 Credit Hours
GEOG 4650 - Surface Water Hydrology 3 Credit Hours
GEOL 4002 - Hydrogeology 4 Credit Hours

Group II: Electives

Select three courses from the following options (9-12 Hours)

GEOG 4642 - Advanced Weather and Climate 3 Credit Hours
GEOG 4650 - Surface Water Hydrology 3 Credit Hours (if not taken in Group I)
GEOG 4451 - Aquatic Pollution and Toxicology 4 Credit Hours
GEOG 4460 - Water, Food, & Waste Systems 3 Credit Hours
GEOG 4550 - Field School in the Geosciences 3 to 9 Credit Hours (if related to water)
or
GEOL 4550 - Field School in the Geosciences 3 to 9 Credit Hours (if related to water)
GEOG 4646 - Water Resources 3 Credit Hours (if not taken in Group I)
GEOG 4680 - Oceanography & Climate Change 3 Credit Hours
GEOG 4784 - Global Climate Change 3 Credit Hours
GEOG 4800 - Environmental Justice 3 Credit Hours
GEOL 4002 - Hydrogeology 4 Credit Hours (if not taken in Group I)
GEOL 4003 - Principles and Applications of Environmental Geochemistry 3 Credit Hours
GEOL 4008 - Rock Fracture and Fluid Flow 3 Credit Hours
GEOL 4010 - Groundwater Hydrology 3 Credit Hours
GEOL 4017 - Environmental Geology 3 Credit Hours
GEOL 4042 - Environmental Instrumentations I: Aqueous Media 4 Credit Hours
GEOL 4121 - Applied Field Methods in Environmental Geosciences 3 to 4 Credit Hours
GEOL 4235 - Water, Wastewater, and the Environment 3 Credit Hours
GEOL 4245 - Urban Hydrology 3 Credit Hours