Minor in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
The School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences offers a minor with seven different tracks. These specific tracks are designed to give non-majors a background in the environmental and global change issues that face the world. This background both allows a broader exposure and gives a strategic background for many careers. The seven tracks are:
- Climate Change
- Earth System Physics
- Environmental Chemistry
- Environmental Science
- Geophysics
- Meteorology
- Ocean Sciences
Program of Study - Climate Change Track
The EAS minor with a Climate Change track is for students in majors outside of EAS who have an interest in understanding Climate Change and Issues surrounding it. Prerequisites required for some of the classes listed below. This minor must comprise at least 15 credit hours, of which at least 9 credit hours are upper-division coursework (numbered 3000 or above).
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| EAS 2750 | Physics of the Weather | 3 |
| EAS 4410 | Climate and Global Change | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select three electives with a minimum of 3 credit hours from each of the following areas: | 9 | |
EAS Electives | ||
Electives | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
EAS Electives
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| EAS 3110 | Energy, Environment, and Society | 3 |
| EAS 3620 | Geochemistry | 4 |
| EAS 4350 | Paleoclimatology and Paleoceanography | 3 |
| EAS 4655 | Atmospheric Dynamics | 3 |
| EAS 4656 | Atmospheric Dynamics Practicum | 1 |
| EAS 4670 | Atmospheric Dynamics II | 3 |
| EAS 4699 | Undergraduate Research 1 | 3 |
| EAS 4740 | Atmospheric Chemistry Laboratory | 3 |
| 1 | A maximum of 3 credit hours of EAS 4699 may be included in the EAS minor program. |
Approved Electives
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ECON 2101 | The Global Economy | 3 |
| ECON 4440 | Economics of Natural Resources and the Environment | 3 |
| PUBP 3315 | Environmental Policy and Politics | 3 |
Program of Study - Earth System Physics
The EAS minor with an Earth System Physics track is for students in majors outside of EAS interested in applying physical and mathematical principles to environmental problems. Prerequisites required for some of the classes listed below. This minor must comprise at least 15 semester hours, of which at least 9 semester hours are upper-division coursework (numbered 3000 or above).
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| EAS 3610 | Introduction to Geophysics | 3 |
| EAS 4655 | Atmospheric Dynamics | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select three of the following: | 9 | |
| Physics of the Weather | ||
| Thermodynamics of Earth Systems | ||
| Geodynamics | ||
| Physical Volcanology | ||
| Space Physics and Space Instrumentation | ||
| Physics of Planets | ||
| Climate and Global Change | ||
| Synoptic Meteorology | ||
| Large-scale Atmospheric Circulations | ||
| Undergraduate Research 1 | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
| 1 | A maximum of 3 credit hours of EAS 4699 may be included in the EAS minor program. |
Program of Study - Environmental Chemistry
The EAS minor with an Environmental Chemistry track is for students in majors outside of EAS that seek to understand and address environmental problems within the context of chemical systems. Prerequisites required for some of the classes listed below. This minor must comprise at least 15 credit hours, of which at least 9 credit hours are upper-division coursework (numbered 3000 or above).
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| EAS 3620 | Geochemistry | 4 |
| EAS 4740 | Atmospheric Chemistry Laboratory | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select 8 credit hours from the following: | 8 | |
| Energy, Environment, and Society | ||
| Environmental Field Methods | ||
| Biogeochemical Cycles | ||
| Earth System Modeling | ||
| Undergraduate Research 1 | ||
| Groundwater Hydrology | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
| 1 | A maximum of 3 credit hours of EAS 4699 may be included in the EAS minor program. |
Program of Study - Environmental Science
The EAS minor with an Environmental Science track is for students in majors outside of EAS who have an interest in understanding the Environment and Issues surrounding it. Prerequisites required for some of the classes listed below. This minor must comprise at least 15 credit hours, of which at least 9 credit hours are upper-division coursework (numbered 3000 or above).
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Course | ||
| EAS 1600 | Introduction to Environmental Science | 4 |
| or EAS 1601 | Habitable Planet | |
| Electives | ||
| Select 11 credit hours from the following: | 11 | |
| Earth Processes | ||
| Physics of the Weather | ||
| Energy, Environment, and Society | ||
| Geochemistry | ||
| Climate and Global Change | ||
| Environmental Field Methods | ||
| Introduction to Physical and Chemical Oceanography | ||
| Paleoclimatology and Paleoceanography | ||
| Undergraduate Research 1 | ||
| Atmospheric Chemistry Laboratory | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
| 1 | A maximum of 3 credit hours of EAS 4699 may be included in the EAS minor program. |
Program of Study - Geophysics
The EAS minor with a Geophysics track is for students in majors outside of EAS majoring in science and engineering. Prerequisites required for some of the classes listed below. This minor must comprise at least 15 credit hours, of which at least 9 credit hours are upper-division coursework (numbered 3000 or above).
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| EAS 2600 | Earth Processes | 4 |
| EAS 3610 | Introduction to Geophysics | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select 8 credit hours from the following: | 8 | |
| Geodynamics | ||
| Seismology | ||
| Physical Volcanology | ||
| Space Physics and Space Instrumentation | ||
| Physics of Planets | ||
| Undergraduate Research 1 | ||
| Groundwater Hydrology | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
| 1 | A maximum of 3 credit hours of EAS 4699 may be included in the EAS minor program. |
Program of Study - Meteorology
The EAS minor with a Meteorology track is for students in majors outside of EAS majoring in science and engineering. Prerequisites required for some of the classes listed below. This minor must comprise at least 15 credit hours, of which at least 9 credit hours are upper-division coursework (numbered 3000 or above).
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| EAS 2551 | Introduction to Meteorological Analysis | 1 |
| EAS 2750 | Physics of the Weather | 3 |
| EAS 4655 | Atmospheric Dynamics | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select 8 credit hours from the following: | 8 | |
| Thermodynamics of Earth Systems | ||
| Climate and Global Change | ||
| Synoptic Meteorology | ||
| Satellite and Radar Meteorology | ||
| Large-scale Atmospheric Circulations | ||
| Environmental Data Analysis | ||
| Earth System Modeling | ||
| Atmospheric Dynamics Practicum | ||
| Atmospheric Dynamics II | ||
| Undergraduate Research 1 | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
| 1 | A maximum of 3 credit hours of EAS 4699 may be included in the EAS minor program. |
Program of Study - Ocean Sciences
The EAS minor with an Ocean Sciences track is for students in majors outside of EAS majoring in Biology, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. Prerequisites required for some of the classes listed below. This minor must comprise at least 15 credit hours, of which at least 9 credit hours are upper-division coursework (numbered 3000 or above).
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| EAS 4300 | Introduction to Physical and Chemical Oceanography | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 4 | |
| Introduction to Environmental Science | ||
| Habitable Planet | ||
| Earth Processes | ||
| Electives | ||
| Select 8 credit hours from the following: | 8 | |
| Geochemistry | ||
| Paleoclimatology and Paleoceanography | ||
| Climate and Global Change | ||
| Environmental Field Methods | ||
| Environmental Data Analysis | ||
| Earth System Modeling | ||
| Atmospheric Dynamics | ||
| Undergraduate Research 1 | ||
| Biological Oceanography | ||
| Marine Ecology | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
| 1 | A maximum of 3 credit hours of EAS 4699 may be included in the EAS minor program. |
- All courses counting toward the minor must be taken on a letter-grade basis and must be completed with a grade of C (2.00) or better.
- A maximum of 3 credit hours of transfer credit may be used to satisfy the course requirements for a minor. This includes courses taken at another institution or credit earned through the AP or IB program, assuming the scores meet Georgia Tech minimum standards.
- It is the major advisor’s responsibility to verify that students are using only courses from the designated block(s) from the student’s major field of study that are allowed to satisfy a minor program, that they are not using any Core Area A-E courses (including humanities and social sciences), and that they are not using any courses for more than one minor or certificate. Any free elective course used to satisfy the course requirements of the student’s major degree program may also be used to satisfy the course requirements for a minor.