Top Universities offering Graduate Programs in Geophysics and Seismology - Updated 2020

Earth science is one of the broadest and most interdisciplinary of all sciences. It involves the interaction of chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics and geology in the ongoing effort to explore Earth’s interior, atmosphere and oceans, and to understand the environment in which we live, the causes for global climate change, and the history of life and climate on Earth. The Graduate Program in Yale’s Geology Geophysics offers students the opportunity to study and do research in a wide range of cutting-edge and cross-disciplinary areas. The department accepts applications for Yale University Ph.D. program (note that we have no Masters program) from various fields and majors.

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Programs and Policies 2019–2020. Fields include geochemistry and petrology, geophysics, ice physics, mineral physics, seismology and geodynamics, structural geology and tectonics, paleontology and paleoecology, oceanography, meteorology, cryospheric dynamics, and climatology. The department welcomes applicants oriented toward the earth sciences who have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in such fields as biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics, meteorology, or physics, as well as those trained in geological, geophysical, and geochemical sciences. All applicants must submit scores from the General Test of the GRE.

Geophysicists study Earth processes through laboratory experiments, computational and theoretical modeling, remote imaging, and direct observation. At Stanford, Stanford University research has both fundamental and strategic elements. Students benefit from this breadth of exposure and are sought after for careers in academia, industry, and government. Using high precision imaging and data analysis, Stanford University teaching and research focus on earthquakes, volcanoes, environmental hazards, energy, freshwater resources, and Earth's structure and geodynamics.

The department offers a coterminal M.S. degree for students wishing to obtain more specialized training in Geophysics than is normally possible during study for the B.S. degree alone. A M.S. degree should be considered as the professional degree in Geophysics and is aimed at students wishing to work in a related industry, or students desiring a more focused academic study in the field than the B.S. program allows.

Johns Hopkins University Geophysics courses are aimed at students with a particular interest in physics and maths. Geophysicists use maths, physics and computer modelling to understand how the world works. The modular nature of the course enables you to gain a solid understanding of geosciences while tailoring your study programme to suit your interests. As the course progresses, you will be able to choose modules from specialist areas such as: surface processes, marine geophysics, volcanism, tectonics and geophysical techniques.

The Geophysics and Space Physics program offers study in Earth's interior (seismology, gravity, thermal regime, geomagnetism, tectonics), geophysical fluid dynamics (turbulence, rotating systems, stability, hydromagnetism), nonlinear dynamics, planetology (orbital dynamics, planetary interiors, surfaces and atmospheres, solar-system origin), and space physics (magnetosphere, radiation belts, solar wind, magnetic fields, cosmic rays). Many of University of California-Los Angeles faculty are interdisciplinary in their research.

Geophysics emphasizes the application of the general principles of mathematics and experimental physics to fundamental problems of the oceans, the atmosphere, the oceanic and continental lithosphere, the cryosphere, and the crust and deep interior of the Earth. There is no single course of study appropriate to the geophysics curriculum instead, the individual interests of the student will permit, in consultation with the first-year guidance committee, a choice of course work in seismology, geomagnetism, etc. The geophysics master’s degree provides a solid grounding in the fundamentals of geophysics for students intending to pursue professional positions in government, industry, or nonprofit organizations or to apply to PhD programs. Plan II—Comprehensive Exam.

San Diego State University and the University of California San Diego are accepting applications for the Joint Doctoral Program in Geophysics. Successful candidates must meet doctoral admissions requirements of both universities. To your program of interest at San Diego State University. You will be instructed to to UCSD after initial approval for the program at SDSU.

CASProgramsEarth EnvironmentBA in Geophysics Planetary Sciences. The major in Geophysics Planetary Sciences (G PS) provides students with broad knowledge of the principles of astronomy, together with geophysics and planetary sciences topics such as planetary geology, planetary atmospheres, and planetary interiors. Students learn to communicate astronomical information effectively to a variety of audiences using the spoken and written word. They learn to think critically and evaluate, interpret, and solve problems related to astronomy, geophysics, planetary sciences, and general scientific topics.

Purdue University-Main Campus geophysics faculty and students quantify the forces that currently shape the surface of Purdue University-Main Campus planet, from plate tectonics to mountain building, and the strength of the crust and mantle, from cold rocks that break as earthquakes to warm rocks that flow.

Work leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Geology is designed to give the candidate a thorough and comprehensive knowledge of his or her professional field and training in methods of research. The final basis for granting the degree shall be the candidate’s grasp of the subject matter of a broad field of study and a demonstrated ability to do independent research. In addition, the candidate must have acquired the ability to express thoughts clearly and forcefully in both oral and written languages.

Development of continuum mechanics and its application to rock deformation stress, strain, stress equilibrium, constitutive relations governing equations for elastic solids and viscous fluids formulated and used to solve elementary boundary-value problems which have application to structural geology and solid-state geophysics. Prerequisite:MATH 221 or equivalent. Results of laboratory testing of mechanical properties of rocks at high pressure and temperature interaction of theoretical, experimental, petrofabric and field studies of rock deformations as applied to problems in structural geology, seismology and engineering philosophy of experimentation, apparatus design, data interpretation and extrapolation. Prerequisite:GEOP 611 or GEOL 665 or approval of instructor.

The Geophysical Sciences Program is an interdepartmental degree program at the University of Colorado that offers students flexibility to choose courses that meet their scholarly interests. Students may conduct research at participating departments or at research institutes and centers under the Graduate School. In addition, graduate students enjoy a lifestyle unique to residents of Boulder.

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Program was approved by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education in 1973 as an interdepartmental degree program under the Graduate School of the University of Colorado at Boulder. The initial emphasis of the program was on Solid-earth Geophysics. In January 1993, the Graduate School approved the addition of an option in Hydrologic Sciencesunder the program, as the graduate-level course requirements for the two subfields of geophysics are different.