2026-2027 Undergraduate & Graduate Catalog [In Progress]
Climate Science Minor
The climate science minor provides students with a solid foundation in the science of climate change and the processes, rates, interactions, and feedbacks among numerous components of Earth's climate system. Upon completion of the minor, students will become scientifically literate citizens who can guide other professionals about climate change issues - such as journalists, educators, lawyers, industrial or other engineers, health professionals - in a world where climate is changing swiftly and dangerously. Similarly, a student majoring in a related field may add the climate science minor as an extra credential to broaden their job prospects - majors such as (but not limited to) environmental and sustainability studies, natural resource management, geography, biology, chemistry, communications, and geology. A geology major with a climate science minor may be more attractive to oil companies than geology majors without the minor because oil companies are now investing in alternative energy sources. Other examples may be that a climate science minor adds to the job prospects of an environmental studies and sustainability major by developing the student's quantitative and scientific skills. A communications major minoring in climate science may pursue a career as a climate journalist or spokesperson. www.gvsu.edu/geology
Participating Programs
Geology, physics, chemistry, and statistics.
Requirements for a Minor in Climate Science (29 credits)
A climate science minor requires 29 credits including the following courses (substitutions must be approved by the geology department chair).
Core Courses:
- GEO 107 - Climate Change: A Hot Science (3 credits) OR other 100-level GEO Gen Ed course except GEO 107
- GEO 112 - Earth History (4 credits)
- PHY 110 - The Physics of Climate Change (3 credits)
- GEO 175 - Research Tools for Geosciences (1 credit)
- GEO 203 - Weather and Climate (3 credits)
- CHM 125 - Principles of Chemistry I Lecture (3 credits) AND CHM 126 - Principles of Chemistry I Lab (1 credit)
- GEO 220 - Earth Surface Materials and Systems (4 credits)
- STA 215 - Introductory Applied Statistics (3 credits) OR STA 312 - Probability and Statistics (3 credits)
- GEO 330 - Data Analysis for Earth Scientists (3 credits)
- GEO 484 - Geology Reading Seminar (1 credit)
*Students minoring in climate science must focus their GEO 484 Seminar research topic specifically on climate science.
Electives
No electives are required for the climate science minor except for geology or geology-chemistry majors or those minoring in both geology and climate science.
Students who are minoring or majoring in geology or geology-chemistry must choose 9 to 11 credits of coursework from the list below to compensate for course overlap. These electives may not double count in meeting the requirements of both the geology programs and the climate science minor.