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Undergraduate

Postgraduate
 

Geosciences

Requirements

Handbook entry

Objectives

Upon completion of the Major Sequence in Geosciences, the student will have gained a basic understanding and appreciation of the major disciplines in Earth Sciences, including: plate tectonics and mountain building; erosion, weathering and sedimentation; igneous and metamorphic processes; palaeontology and biostratigraphy; hydrogeology; environmental geosciences; geophysics; radiometric dating; and the composition and origins of the solar system. In addition the students will gain a detailed understanding of:

  1. the main geological processes, and how they have controlled the evolution of the Earth’s core, mantle, crust, landforms, biosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere throughout its history
  2. geological timescales, and the various rates at which natural processes operate
  3. the major geological hazards (volcanoes, earthquakes, mass wasting) and the nature and limitations of hazard prediction and monitoring
  4. the Earth’s natural resources (minerals, fossil fuels, water), their nature and origin and techniques for exploration
  5. physical and chemical hydrogeology in both natural and impacted groundwater systems
  6. how the fossil record helps constrain major past environmental changes
  7. natural vs anthropogenic impacts to climate and the global environment
  8. the applications geophysics, remote sensing, and GIS techniques to mineral exploration, environmental change, and hazard monitoring

Fieldwork is a key part of this sequence. Most units incorporate some fieldwork and it is a significant component of ESC2111, ESC2122, ESC2192, ESC3170 and ESC3180. The field component leads to a direct understanding of the workings of the Earth, and how different processes (e.g. tectonics, volcanology, sedimentation, and environmental change) are all linked.

The course will include lecture, practical, and field-based teaching and the student will also gain training in a number of generic skills such as:

  1. researching topics and presenting data / arguments in oral and written form
  2. integration of lecture material with laboratory and field data
  3. group learning
  4. objectivity in analysis, and separating science from politics in addressing contentious issues
  5. integration of research and teaching in the curriculum
  6. generic field-based observational skills

The course will prepare students for both post-graduate studies and employment in earth science or related science fields