Water Resources (Hydrogeology), SUNY College at Oneonta
Program Design & Assessment
Overview
The Water Resources major at SUNY Oneonta is an undergraduate program that emphasizes all aspects of the hydrologic cycle, with particular emphasis on geochemistry of natural and polluted waters. This is one of five curricula available to undergraduates in the Earth Sciences Department.
Strengths of this program
This program was designed to prepare graduates for careers in envirnomental consulting and government regulatory agencies. The program is frequently modified based on suggestions from alumni in these career areas.
Types of students served
Program Goals
The goals of this program are as follows:
The major goals of this curriculum are to prepare students for careers in environmental hydrogeology. The emphasis on water geochemistry, coupled with a strong foundation in classical geology, enables students to solve complex environmental problems.
The learning goals were informed by the following resources:
How program goals are assessed
The goals of this curriculum are assessed through periodic program evaluations, feedback from alumni and locally developed assessment instruments.
Design features that allow goals to be met
Alumni Careers
Graduation rate
Careers pursued by our alumni
Graduates of this program have competed successfully in the job market with graduates of masters programs.
Courses and Sequencing
Diagram of course sequencing and requirements
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Entry into the program
- Introduction to Geology
- Water and the Blue Planet
- Science of Natural Disasters
- Introduction to Forensic Geology
Core courses
- Introduction to Meteorology
- Earth History and the Fossil Record (Prerequisite: any 100 level geology course with lab)
- Geologic Data and Analysis (Prerequisite: Earth History and the Fossil Record)
- Introduction to Hydrogeology (Prerequisite: any 100 level geology course with lab)
- Geomorphology (Prerequisite: Earth History and the Fossil Record)
- Glaciology and Glacial Geology (Prerequisite: Geomorphology)
- Watershed Management (Prerequisite: Introduction to Hydrogeology)
- Geochemistry of Natural Waters (Prerequisites: any 100 level geology course with lab and two semesters of chemistry)
- Applied Hydrology (Prerequisites: Introduction to Hydrogeology and one semester of calculus)
- Groundwater Modeling (Prerequisites: Introduction to Hydrogeology and one semester of calculus)
Electives
Students are required to take 6-7 credits (2 courses) of electives, selected from:
- Limnology or Stream Ecology (Prerequisite: Introduction to Hydrogeology)
- Waste Management (Prerequisite: any 100 level geology course with lab)
- Engineering Geology (Prerequisites: Earth History and the Fossil Record and one semester of physics)
- Sedimentary Geology (Prerequisite: Earth History and the Fossil Record)
- Environmental Geophysics (Prerequisites: any 100 level geology course with lab, one semester of calculus and one semester of physics)
Other required courses
- Two semesters of introductory chemistry
- Environmental Chemistry
- Two semesters of physics
- Two semesters of calculus or one semester of calculus and one semester of statistics