Geoscience Certificate
Announcement about the new Geoscience Certificate: Students can officially declare the Geoscience Certificate starting August 25, 2026. If you’d like to let the Department of Geoscience know that you’re interested in the certificate before then, please fill out this form. An advisor in the Department of Geoscience would be happy to chat with you about the certificate anytime and can help you prepare to declare the certificate.
Overview
Geoscience is the study of the Earth. It spans a broad range of interconnected fields, including natural hazards, climate change, the formation of Earth and other planets, the evolution of life, the hydrology of Earth’s surface and subsurface, and the evolution of mountains, continents, glaciers, and oceans.
The Geoscience certificate provides a flexible path for students seeking a broad introduction to geoscience as well as those interested in pursuing a targeted area within geoscience. Because geoscience draws on many other disciplines to investigate how the Earth works (e.g., physics, chemistry, biology, environmental science, civil engineering), the Geoscience certificate is a great fit for students in a wide range of majors.
Students in this certificate have an opportunity to gain skills and competencies in a variety of geoscience fields, including environmental geoscience, geology, geophysics, geochemistry, glaciology, paleoclimate, groundwater and surface water systems, and paleontology. These topics will help prepare students to understand and respond to geoscience issues, environmental risks, resource challenges, and climate-driven change in Wisconsin and beyond.
Please see the Geoscience certificate’s page in the Guide for details on course and credit requirements for the certificate.
Advising
Talk with a Geoscience academic advisor about course selection, questions about declaring, and more by sending an email to certificate_committee@geoscience.wisc.edu. Certificate advisors can help students identify topics of interest within Geoscience, craft pathways through the certificate, and offer guidance on post-graduate careers and graduate school opportunities.
How to declare this certificate
Students can officially declare the Geoscience certificate starting August 25, 2026. If you’d like to let the Department of Geoscience know that you’re interested in the certificate before then, please fill out this form. An advisor in the Department of Geoscience would be happy to chat with you about the certificate anytime and can help you prepare to declare the certificate.
Career opportunities
The Geoscience certificate offers a valuable pathway for students in a wide range of majors (e.g., science, engineering, social science) to broaden their training and open opportunities for careers or graduate study in a wide range of fields including environmental geoscience, geology, geophysics, glaciology, climate, paleontology, planetary geology. The demand for such degree professionals is reflected in the large number of university geoscience programs worldwide and in the growing demand in the workforce for graduates with geoscience training. Key employment sectors include geoscience consulting firms, government agencies, energy and resource management industries, climate science and sustainability initiatives, and hazard assessment/disaster response organizations.