A New Experience-based Applied Geology Degree at Metropolitan State University of Denver Accelerates Students’ Entry into the Geosciences
Uwe Kackstaetter, Ph.D., MEM-2437 Barbara EchoHawk, Ph.D., Earth & Atmospheric Sciences Dept, Metropolitan State University of Denver, 890 Auraria Pkwy, Denver, CO 80204
Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver) is a predomi- nantly liberal arts teaching institution of higher education nestled within Denver’s downtown district. It is one of the larg- est baccalaureate- granting institutions in the nation with over 20,000 students and was given university status in 2012. Until recently, geoscience programs were housed under concentrations in Land Use and Environmental Sciences. While a stand-alone Geology degree was often discussed, developing such a pro- gram was daunting, given existing geol- ogy offerings by two neighboring major research institutions. MSU Denver set out to develop a unique degree to occupy a niche not filled by existing offerings at neighboring schools, relying on the unique strengths of MSU Denver’s fac- ulty and facilities resources and taking into account the demographics of our student population.
Unlike R1 schools, where the majority of students attend directly out of high school without much in the way of work or family obligations, MSU Denver’s clientele is a diverse group of non- traditional students who typically are older, many with previous degrees, many with family, most who have military or other work experience, and most who are currently employed. The university is a commuter school with very limited student housing, which creates its own set of challenges. Exit demographics of MSU graduates show that 60-70% of baccalaureate degree earners seek or
continue current employment for a time before continuing to graduate school.
MSU Denver students taking a lunch break at Six-Mile, Boulder County, CO.
The new B.S. degree in Applied Geology at MSU Denver takes into account the special characteristics of our student clientele, as well as the strengths of our faculty and institutional resources. In addition to emphasizing core knowledge and academic rigor, the degree program focuses on real-life, hands-on experience and practical problem solving in the lab, the field, and in oral and written commu- nication. Important field experiences are divided into smaller, manageable units, thus allowing our working clientele and those with family to experience a field education equivalent to that provided by other schools with longer duration field camps. By design, every geology course incorporates field components; several courses are specifically designed around field experiences. Several shorter trips explore various geologic aspects within Colorado’s greater Front Range, south- ern Wyoming, and the Colorado Western Slope. Longer duration field experi-
ences, lasting from 3 to 17 consecutive days, take our students to the Colorado Plateau, and from northern Utah to Arizona to the volcanics of the West Coast and beyond. Our students also have access to international geologic field experience through a traditional field camp in Ireland, in collaboration with the National University of Ireland in Galway and the Burren Geologic Field School, as well as our own MSU Denver field trips to explore the European Alps and the geology and mining history of Germany. Future endeavors will give students the rare opportunity to study active volcanism in Italy and to witness actual volcanic eruptions.
MSU Denver students in the Cripple Creek- Victor mine pit.
We also have notable research facili- ties for student use, including the portable XRF (X-ray fluorescence), XRD (X-ray diffraction), ICP-MS (Inductively Coupled Plasma – Mass Spectrometer), AAS (Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy), anion and carbon analyz- ers, and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with EDS (Energy Dispersive
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