Geology

The Geology program at Kutztown is a small, close-knit community in which each faculty member knows every geology major personally.  

Classes taught in the Geology program include Paleontology, Environmental Geology, Geophysics, Structural Geology, Historical Geology and Hydrology. The requirements for Geology are designed to help students excel in either graduate school or in a career; these requirements were chosen to satisfy the subjects on the Professional Geologist licensing exam. Courses offer numerous opportunities for field work. In addition, students are encouraged to conduct undergraduate research projects and internships.  

The Geology program at Kutztown is offered as both a major and as a minor.

Research Opportunities
Our faculty believe that involving undergraduate students in research helps students build a more permanent and thorough understanding of geologic concepts and reasoning. Research projects require students to pull together knowledge from many different courses, resulting in a more comprehensive view of our world. Kutztown University does not have a graduate program in geology. Undergraduate students are our only focus.

Some of the benefits of participating in undergraduate research include:

• becoming more independence in the laboratory by formulating and testing hypotheses, and interpreting results
• developing problem-solving skills
• learning by doing
• one-on-one instruction
• communication of research results through presentations or publications

Field Work Opportunities
Geology courses at Kutztown University seek to make opportunities to get out and explore.

Additionally, there is an active Geology Club that travels a lot. There are frequent trips to fossil localities, mineral collecting quarries, and museums. The club has traveled to Costa Rica and Peru to see volcanoes and beaches; to West Virginia to go white water rafting, to Arizona to see the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, and to Kentucky for caving.  

Career Opportunities
Geology affords many career options in government, industry, research and education. There are ample job opportunities performing environmental assessments, water assessments/protection, or mineral and energy production. Students also may choose to pursue graduate education to gain credentials for teaching or advanced-level research.