To many, the department of geosciences is a mystery with several aspects that the average student does not know about. In geosciences, the study of the Earth, there are three areas of emphasis: geography, geology and meteorology, each having many similarities to each other, but very different job expectations.
Meteorology, the leading area of emphasis with about 75 percent of the geosciences students, explores the weather. Students involved in the meteorology program usually go on to broadcast the weather on television. Many others work with the National Weather Service or private forecasting companies.
Broadcast meteorology students regularly participate in radio shows, Weather Line, daily Web casts and Bulldog Weather.
Geosciences major Matthew Neumann said that the “high percentage of job placement and geared broadcast aspect” of the geosciences program brought him to MSU to pursue a career in broadcast meteorology.
“I have always been interested in being involved with the media, and when I took an earth and space science course, I decided that the best way to incorporate the two is through broadcast meteorology,” Amanda Glenn, broadcast meteorology student, said.
In the area of geology, under which two degree tracks fall, students prepare for jobs of exploration. The first track is professional geology, in which students find jobs working for oil, mining and gas companies. The other track is environmental geosciences, dealing with the preservation of natural resources.
Students with an emphasis in geography seek professions that deal with answering questions. Geography students learn to answer why things are located where they are, how to react to changes in the environment and many other questions of location. Many find jobs in mapping and remote sensing with state and federal government agencies.
Aside from an exciting career market, there are many interesting perks to the geosciences department. A climate lab, museum, storm chasing team and work experience in the Bahamas are some of the advantages of being affiliated with MSU’s geosciences department.
The climate lab, located in Hilbun Hall, has many of the tools that are used in the television weather industry.
“The climate lab is much like a television station. We practice television weather casts and are equipped to make daily webcasts,” Mark Binkley, head of the geosciences department, said.
Binkley said the Dunn-Seiler Museum, founded in 1947, is “designed to be a place where MSU students and the general public can see fossils, minerals and rocks.”
The museum is temporarily closed due to its recent move into Hilbun Hall and will re-open this fall. The museum will feature a cast of a triceratops head, approximately 6 feet long and 3 feet wide, and interactive displays that give a tour through Earth’s history.
Students also have the opportunity to visit other places and research. At the end of each spring semester, geoscience majors can travel to the central United States and chase storms for two weeks. Also, for two weeks during Christmas vacation or summer vacation, students can do geological and meteorological research in San Salvador.
The department recently added a broadcast studio where students gain valuable experience, and the deptartment is adding a new program in Geographic Information Systems.
Binkley said that a job in GIS is almost guaranteed because most state and city governments employ GIS workers to create maps showing where soil, water lines, sewer lines, electrical lines and gas lines are located.