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Explore Your
World.

Our programs give students the chance to study complex geosystems and spatial patterns around the globe and in our backyard. From field geology to global climate change, our undergraduate and graduate programs in Geology, Geography and Environmental Geoscience offer countless opportunities to dig down deep or take you far across the planet.

UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS In SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainability Studies BA  Earth & Environmental Science BS

New degree programs in Sustainability are here! 

The Earth and Environmental Science BS degree covers core geological principles with applications in sustainability.

The Sustainability Studies BA degree covers core geographical principles with applications in sustainability. 

Email Tara Robbins for details ( tara.robbins@mail.wvu.edu).



Old Degree Programs

Geology Geography Environmental Geoscience

*Geology, Geography, and Environmental Geoscience programs are not admitting any new majors. The links above for these majors are for current students only. Read the FAQs

GRADUATE PROGRAMS in Geology & Geography

Geology Geography GIS and Spatial Analysis

Department News

Academic Transformation FAQs

The Department of Geology and Geography started two new degrees as part of the first round of Academic Transformation in 2021. The two new degrees are a BA in Sustainability Studies and a BS in Earth and Environmental Science.

Current students in the Geology, Geography, and Environmental Geoscience programs can stay in their current major or they can choose to move into one of these new degrees. For more information, read our Frequently Asked Questions.

Academic Transformation FAQs for Current Students

Help Support our Geology Field Camp

We need your help to lessen the financial burden of attending field camp for five geology students. Field camp provides an incredible opportunity for our students and creates meaningful hands-on experiences that will last a lifetime.

Dan and Pat Billman have launched a challenge to support Geology field camp: “As geologists we know, the best geologists see the most rocks. Future WVU geologists need our support now. Please join us in championing WVU Geology’s field camp and courses.” - Dan Billman (1989 MS Geology) and Pam Billman (1988 MS Geology)

Department Research Spotlight

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Mapping West Virginia

New research from  West Virginia University is transforming understanding of the Mountain State’s famous landscape – and identifying ways to preserve it.  

As WVU’s latest NSF CAREER Award winner, Assistant Professor of Geography  Aaron Maxwell will use big data to map what the surface of West Virginia looked like over the last 60 years. The funding includes $636,785 over five years.

Learn more about his research.

elmes

Mapping a Legacy: New Geography Endowment

After a 35-year career in the   Department of Geology and Geography, Professor Emeritus   Gregory Elmes aspires to give back to the university that has given him so much.

He and wife Jeanne (MM Music Performance, 1999) have established a planned gift, the Dr. Gregory and Mrs. Jeanne Elmes Geography Endowment, to support undergraduate geography students in their research endeavors.

virtual lab
 

WVU Geology Faculty Develops Virtual Lab

When the coronavirus began to spread around the world in early 2020,  West Virginia University Department of Geology and Geography's Graham Andrews knew he needed to act fast. He already had 3D photography software and a drone on hand for a volcanology research project. But with some quick thinking and the help of five students, an idea was born -- a virtual geology lab. 

Read more in Eberly Magazine.

Student Spotlight

Hutchison and Wells: The Listening Project

listeningproject

West Virginia University  geography students, in collaboration with community leaders, are responding. 

The Listening Project is a partnership between WVU’s Center for Resilient Communities and West Virginia organizers, Amy Jo Hutchison and Jennifer Wells, that gathers stories of strength and struggle as West Virginians seek to find solidarity in uncertain times.

Read more about the project.

Dina Hornbaker : The Culture of Cooperation

Hornbaker

Dina Hornbaker a farm manager for New Roots Community Farm in Fayetteville, West Virginia talks about the life changing impact of geography. "I majored in multidisciplinary studies in geography, Spanish and communication studies. I have always enjoyed studying the relationships among areas, natural systems, cultural activities and the interdependence of all of these throughout the Earth." 

Read about her experience.

Valerie Slone: Turning a Corner on Food Insecurity

slone

Turnrow Appalachian Farm Collective is a food hub that aggregates, sells and distributes locally grown and produced products across West Virginia. It is an initiative in WVU’s  Center for Resilient Communities , which conducts community-based action research addressing Appalachia’s most pressing challenges.

As a graduate research assistant with Turnrow and online farms market manager for Sprouting Farms, geography master’s student Valerie Slone is putting her research into action.

Read more about the initiative. 

Get involved

Student Organizations

We offer several student organizations to help you make the most of of your education.

Check out our student organizations

Internships

Summer Undergraduate Research Experience

Selected students are awarded a $3,500 stipend for eight weeks of mentored research. An additional $2,000 is available for travel to a professional conference or for supplies.

Explore internship opportunities

Field Camp

Field camp is a three-week course worth three-semester credits. The course emphasizes field mapping with stratigraphy, structural geology, regional geology, and surface geology. 

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