Earth and Planetary Sciences Major
Students in the undergraduate major build knowledge and skills relevant to further studies of, and/or careers in, geology and geophysics as well as environmental science, with specific emphasis on areas of relevance to humans such as climate change, sustainability, geohazards, and renewable energy. It is ideal for the undergraduate who is interested in highly interdisciplinary science addressing many of the most profound issues facing the world in the 21st century.
The Earth and Planetary Sciences major and minor are offered by the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences (DEEPS), which also offers the Environmental Science major, described elsewhere in this catalog. Earth and Planetary Sciences majors are involved in the full spectrum of departmental activities beyond coursework, including research, seminars, field trips, and social functions. Many do research projects with faculty and graduate students that lead to honors theses and scientific publications. For more information see About Earth and Planetary Sciences in this catalog and also the website for the department.
Many of the STEM Related Courses are prerequisites for advanced courses and should be completed as soon as possible. Students are encouraged to take the 200-level Core Courses as early as possible in their studies, beginning with EARTH 210-0 Earth Systems Science and Climate Change and EARTH 211-0 Data Analysis in Earth and Environmental Sciences.
Students planning to attend graduate school are strongly encouraged to conduct independent study (EARTH 399-0).
Students must also complete the Undergraduate Registration Requirement and the degree requirements of their home school.
NOTE: This Catalog describes Weinberg College BA requirements that pertain to students who matriculated at Northwestern after spring quarter 2023. Refer to the Archives if you are following BA requirements described in the 2018-2019 through 2022-2023 editions.
Major Requirements: Department Courses (12 Units)
4 Core EARTH Courses (4 units)
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 210-0 | Earth Systems Science and Climate Change 1 |
| EARTH 211-0 | Data Analysis in Earth and Environmental Sciences |
| EARTH 214-0 | Physical Earth Science 2 |
| EARTH 215-0 | Physics of the Earth's Interior 3 |
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EARTH 210-0 is equivalent to EARTH 203 (Earth System History) taught prior to academic year 2025-26.
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EARTH 214-0 is equivalent to EARTH 201 (Earth Systems Revealed) taught prior to academic year 2025-26.
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EARTH 215-0 is equivalent to EARTH 202 (Earth's Interior) taught prior to academic year 2025-26.
8 Advanced Studies EARTH Courses (8 units)
Any 300-level EARTH course may be applied towards the Advanced Studies requirement, but no more than one unit of Independent Study (EARTH 399-0). One 400-level course credit may be approved by the Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS).
Within the Advanced Studies requirement, students must also complete the Sub-Discipline requirement and the Skills Areas requirement. Eligible courses are allowed to count towards both a Sub-Discipline and a Skills Area at the same time.
Sub-Discipline Requirement (4 courses)
Students must take at least one course from four of the following seven sub-disciplines. A course may not be applied to more than one sub-discipline at the same time. Some topic offerings of EARTH 390-0 may be applied to a Sub-Discipline area with department approval, and new courses not yet in this Catalog edition may also be eligible. Refer to Earth and Planetary Science webpage for updates. Recent EARTH 390-0 classes that qualify includes Paleobiology (Geobiology Sub-Discipline).
Earth Materials
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 300-0 | Earth and Planetary Materials |
| EARTH 301-0 | Petrology: Evolution of Crustal and Mantle Rocks |
Geochemistry
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 310-0 | Aqueous Geochemistry |
| EARTH 312-0 | Stable Isotope Geochemistry |
| EARTH 313-0 | Radiogenic Isotope Geochemistry |
| EARTH 314-0 | Organic Geochemistry |
Seismology
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 323-0 | Seismology and Earth Structure |
| EARTH 324-0 | Earthquakes and Tectonics |
| EARTH 327-0 | Geophysical Time Series Analysis |
Sedimentation and Stratigraphy
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 330-0 | Sedimentary Geology |
| EARTH 331-0 | Field Problems in Sedimentary Geology |
Climate/Paleoclimate
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 340-0 | Physics of Weather & Climate |
| EARTH 341-0 | Quaternary Climate Change: Ice Ages to the Age of Oil |
| EARTH 342-0 | Contemporary Energy and Climate Change |
| EARTH 343-0 | Earth System Modeling |
| EARTH 344-0 | The Scientific Foundations of Decarbonization |
Geophysics
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 350-0 | Physics of the Earth for ISP |
| EARTH 353-0 | Mathematical Inverse Methods in Earth and Environmental Sciences |
| EARTH 354-0 | Physics of Rock Deformation in Planetary Interiors |
Geobiology
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 370-0 | Geobiology |
| EARTH 371-0 | Biogeochemistry |
| EARTH 373-0 | Microbial Ecology |
Skills Areas Requirement (3 courses)
Students must take at least one course from three of the following four Skills Areas. No course may be counted for more than one Skills Area at the same time. Some topic offerings of EARTH 390-0 may be applied to a Skill Area with department approval, and new courses not yet in this Catalog edition may also be eligible. Refer to Earth and Planetary Science webpage for updates. Recent EARTH 390-0 classes that qualify include: GIS Level 1 & GIS Level 2 (Spatial Reasoning), R Data Science (Computing), and Analytical Techniques in Geochemistry (Analytical/Instrumentation/Field).
Computing
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 361-0 | Scientific Programming in Python |
Quantitative
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 310-0 | Aqueous Geochemistry |
| EARTH 327-0 | Geophysical Time Series Analysis |
| EARTH 340-0 | Physics of Weather & Climate |
| EARTH 343-0 | Earth System Modeling |
| EARTH 353-0 | Mathematical Inverse Methods in Earth and Environmental Sciences |
| EARTH 354-0 | Physics of Rock Deformation in Planetary Interiors |
Spatial Reasoning
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 300-0 | Earth and Planetary Materials |
| EARTH 330-0 | Sedimentary Geology |
Analytical/Instrumentation/Field
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| EARTH 331-0 | Field Problems in Sedimentary Geology |
| EARTH 360-0 | Instrumentation and Field Methods |
Major Requirements: Related Courses (9.34-12.04 Units)
Math Courses (3-4 courses)
Students must take the following math requirements, for a total of three units if the MATH 220 sequence is completed, or a total of four units if the MATH 218 sequence is completed.
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| MATH 220-1 & MATH 220-2 | Single-Variable Differential Calculus and Single-Variable Integral Calculus |
| or MATH 218-1 & MATH 218-2 & MATH 218-3 | Single-Variable Calculus with Precalculus and Single-Variable Calculus with Precalculus and Single-Variable Calculus with Precalculus |
| MATH 226-0 | Sequences and Series |
| or MATH 230-1 | Multivariable Differential Calculus |
| or MATH 228-1 | Multivariable Differential Calculus for Engineering |
| or MATH 230-2 | Multivariable Integral Calculus |
| or MATH 228-2 | Multivariable Integral Calculus for Engineering |
| or equivalent | |
6 Additional Related Math and Science Courses
Students must take six courses (and their associated lab, if applicable) from the following options, with maximum three in any one subject.1
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| BIOL_SCI 201-0 | Molecular Biology |
| or BIOL_SCI 239-0 | Fundamentals of Biological Mechanisms |
| BIOL_SCI 202-0 & BIOL_SCI 232-0 | Cell Biology and Molecular and Cellular Processes Laboratory |
| BIOL_SCI 203-0 & BIOL_SCI 233-0 | Genetics and Evolution and Genetics and Molecular Processes Laboratory |
| CHEM 131-0 & CHEM 141-0 | Fundamentals of Chemistry I and Fundamentals of Chemistry Laboratory I |
| CHEM 132-0 & CHEM 142-0 | Fundamentals of Chemistry II and Fundamentals of Chemistry Laboratory II |
| CHEM 151-0 & CHEM 161-0 | General Chemistry I and General Chemistry Laboratory I |
| CHEM 152-0 & CHEM 162-0 | General Chemistry II and General Chemistry Laboratory II |
| CHEM 171-0 & CHEM 181-0 | Advanced General Inorganic Chemistry and Advanced General Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory |
| CHEM 172-0 & CHEM 182-0 | Advanced General Physical Chemistry and Advanced General Physical Chemistry Laboratory |
| CHEM 215-1 & CHEM 235-1 | Organic Chemistry I and Organic Chemistry Lab I |
| CHEM 215-2 & CHEM 235-2 | Organic Chemistry II and Organic Chemistry Lab II |
| CHEM 215-3 & CHEM 235-3 | Organic Chemistry III and Organic Chemistry Lab III |
| CHEM 220-0 | Introductory Instrumental Analysis |
| MATH 230-1 | Multivariable Differential Calculus |
| MATH 230-2 | Multivariable Integral Calculus |
| or MATH 228-2 | Multivariable Integral Calculus for Engineering |
| MATH 240-0 | Linear Algebra |
| MATH 250-0 | Elementary Differential Equations |
| PHYSICS 135-1 & PHYSICS 136-1 | General Physics and General Physics Laboratory |
| PHYSICS 135-2 & PHYSICS 136-2 | General Physics and General Physics Laboratory |
| PHYSICS 135-3 & PHYSICS 136-3 | General Physics and General Physics Laboratory |
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Note: Introductory Chemistry, Physics, Biology, and Math courses may be offered in parallel tracks. Consistent with restrictions at the University level, a student cannot receive credit for some course sequences if credit has already been awarded for an equivalent course. See Chemistry, Physics, Biology, and Math sections of this Catalog for details.
Dual Major in Earth and Planetary Sciences & Environmental Sciences
Students wishing to major in both Earth and Planetary Sciences and Environmental Sciences will take all 6 core 200-level EARTH courses (EARTH 210-0, EARTH 211-0, EARTH 212-0, EARTH 213-0, EARTH 214-0, and EARTH 215-0). Students will also be required to take the 8 Advanced Studies courses for each major. Dual majors will also take ONE additional Advanced Studies or other EARTH 300- or 400- level offering to apply to one major to make up one of the two double counted credits from the 200-level sequence. Courses for Advanced Studies and Skills Areas must not be double counted across majors.
Honors in Earth and Planetary Sciences
Majors with strong academic records and an interest in pursuing honors should discuss possible research projects with a faculty member and/or the director of undergraduate studies (DUS) early in their undergraduate career, but no later than spring quarter of their junior year. After the faculty mentor approves a proposed project, research is conducted and students must complete at least two credits of EARTH 399-0 Independent Study with the academic advisor of their project; only one EARTH 399-0 credit may count towards major requirements. To earn the honors distinction, students must complete a thesis following the guidelines published on the department webpage.
Students whose grades, research, and written thesis meet departmental criteria are recommended to the college for graduation with honors. For more information, students should consult the director of undergraduate studies and see Honors in the Major.