Program Details | Courses 
 

Core Courses

Three core courses are required for the GC Minor:

GC 695G - Global Change Toolkit  (1 unit)  Spring semester

GC 578 - Global Change  (3 units)   Fall semester

GC 597A - Global Change Workshop (3 units)  Fall semester

 

Students who have previously taken one or more of these three core classes (e.g. as part of a major) must consult a Committee on Global Change faculty member of their PhD Minor Committee to identify appropriate substitute courses from the list of electives, and to receive formal approval from the minor representative(s). This arrangement is then formalized by a letter from the minor representative(s) to the Executive Committee.

 

Electives

Individuals are encouraged to choose classes that will help broaden their particular program of study. Students should consult with their minor representatives for advice in choosing their electives.

Two (2) approved elective courses are required for a total of six (6) units. The electives should be selected from the following list of courses with approval of the GC PhD Minor faculty on the student's committee. To encourage the broad environmental perspective that is intrinsic to the GC Minor, at least one elective class must come from a department and/or discipline that is distinctly different from the student’s major area of interest. Students in the natural sciences should take at least one environment-related elective in the social sciences or law school, and students in the social sciences should take at least one environment-related elective in the natural sciences.

The elective list is augmented with new courses on a periodic basis. If there is a demonstrated need, an alternative course may be substituted for one of the electives listed below. Students seeking a substitution for an elective course should contact the Chair of the Global Change GIDP well in advance of submitting their Plan of Study to the GC Chair for approval. Department graduate seminars on relevant topics are also eligible to be added as electives, provided they are approved in advance by a member of the GC executive committee.

Global Energy, Climate, and Water Dynamics
 

GC 530 - The Climate System (3 units)

 

ATMO 541A - Dynamic Meteorology (3 units)

 

ATMO 551A - Introduction to Physical Meteorology (3 units)

 

ATMO 595B - Global Climate Change (3 units)

 

ATMO 595C - General Circulation Observations and Modeling (1-3 units)

 

GEOG 531 - Global and Regional Climatology (3 units)

 

HWR 524 - Hydroclimatology (3 units)

 

Ecology and Biogeochemistry
 

GC 572 - Global Biogeochemical Cycles (3 units)

 

ATMO 569A - Air Pollution I: Gases (3 units)

 

ATMO 569B - Air Pollution II: Aerosols (3 units)

 

GEOS 530 - The Chemical Evolution of the Earth (3 units)

 

GEOS 588 - Soil Geochemistry (3 units)

 

Tools for Observing Earth
 

GEOG 516A - Computer Cartography (3 units)

 

REM 590 - Remote Sensing for the Study of Planet Earth (3 units)

 

RNR 517 - Geographic Information Systems for Natural and Social Sciences (3 units)

 

RNR 519 - Cartographic Modeling for Natural Resources (3 units)

 

SWES 553 - Remote Sensing of the Environment (3 units)

 

Past and Present Earth Processes
 

GEOS 562 - Introduction to Quaternary Ecology (3 units)

GEOS 582 - Paleoclimatology (3 units)

GEOS 595E - Topics in Dendroclimatology (1-4 units)

 

Environmental Variability and Adaptation
 

ANTH 631 - Anthropology and Development (3 units)

GEOG 561 - Resource Management (3 units)

 

Mitigation and Policy
 

POL 581 - Environmental Policy (3 units)