Building%20Strong%20Geoscience%20Departments%20for%20the%20Future

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• Building Strong Geoscience Departments for the
  Future

Cathy Manduca, Carol Ormand Carleton
College Heather Macdonald, Geoff Feiss, College
of William and Mary Randy Richardson, University
of Arizona Tim Bralower, Penn State Sponsored by
NAGT, GSA, AGI, and AGU With NSF
funding http//serc.carleton.edu/departments
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• Supporting individual departments
• Strengthening the geosciences as a whole

• Promoting communication and discussion
• Sharing information and resources
• Enabling collective action

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• Phase 1 Establishing Need and Priorities
• Phase 2 Priority Challenges/Opportunities
• Topical Workshops face to face venue for
  discussion and sharing
• Web Resources extending the discussion and
  resources to a broader audience

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• Guidance for undergraduate programs
• the curriculum and beyond

Where is our science going? Connecting Geoscience
Departments to the Future of Science New
Structures for Research and Curriculum Carleton
College, May 2007, 24 departments Where are our
students going? The Role of Geoscience
Departments in Preparing Students for
Professional Careers College of William and
Mary, January 2007, 26 departments

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Where is our Science Going? Connecting Geoscience
Departments to the Future of Science

• What are the major themes that are central to
  geoscience research in the next 25 years?
• What are the key elements of curricula that will
  prepare geoscience students for the future we
  envision?
• What types of programs and structures (within and
  beyond the department) are needed to support this
  research and education in the future?

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Where is our Science Going?

• An Increased Emphasis on Addressing Societal
  Grand Challenges
• Bounding likely scenarios for the future through
  an understanding of history, the Earth system and
  modeling
• Understanding More Completely System Behavior
• Geo-bio
• Earth and space
• Models as drivers of data collection and research
• Interdisciplinary Interactions and
  Cross-disciplinary Synthesis
• Collaborations on campus and beyond

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Directions for Undergraduate Programs

• Learning how to study the integrated Earth System
  
• Data, models, systems approach
• Interdisciplinary teams and collaborations
• Learning how geoscience contributes to solving
  grand societal challenges
• Problem based approaches in courses and
  undergraduate research
• Geoscience as a contributor, understanding
  context
• Preparation for a rapidly changing discipline
• Strong foundational skills (what are these?)
• Ability to use skills in a wide variety of
  problems/activities
• Learning to learn

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Implications for Geoscience Departments

• Developing Breadth of Expertise
• Curriculum based hiring not strategic
• Hire, grow or collaborate
• Being Recognized as a Player
• The contributions of geoscience
• Your place on campus
• Fostering Collaboration

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Where are our Students Going? The Role of
Departments in Preparing Future Geoscience
Professionals

• An Increasingly Wide Variety of Places
• Petroleum, Mining, Environment, Academia,
  Government
• 29 of students intend to look at
  non-traditional careers
• Most Require a Professional Attitude and Skills
• Responsible
• Running with an Assignment
• Teamwork, Writing
• Many Require Geoscience Skills
• Field
• Quantitative
• Many Require International Skills
• Language
• International comfort

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Key Themes From the Workshop

• Students need to know about the breadth of career
  opportunities available - keeping track of alumni
  can be a valuable resource here
• Courses and other departmental activities can
  come together in synergistic ways to support a
  diversity of career interests - course, field
  trips, leadership opportunities, real world
  experiences, networking can all be important
• Students often need help learning to recognize
  and articulate the skills that they have mastered
  - this skill is critical to flexibility in the
  job market
• Others on campus share your concern with
  developing successful professionals - seek out
  and use campus resources like the career center

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Sharing Resources and Strategies serc.carleton.edu
/departments

• Workshop Presentations and Discussions
• Curriculum and Program Profiles
• Profiles of New Kinds of Geoscience Faculty
• Courses Connecting to the Future of Geoscience
• Writings on Interdisciplinary Teaching and
  Learning
• Information on Internship Programs and their
  Design
• Interviews of Employers and Recent Hires
  Addressing Important Knowledge, Skills and
  Attitudes
• Career Profiles

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In Sum

• Our science is becoming more interdisciplinary,
  model driven and systems-based
• We have tremendous opportunities to contribute to
  societal grand challenges
• Our students have a wide variety of career needs
  and opportunities that are rapidly changing
• An emphasis on core skills, independent learning,
  and the ability to transfer knowledge to new
  settings
• Program flexibility/synergies
• Collaborations on campus and beyond for
  research/education/careers
• Departmental discussion and planning

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• Feedback

• Prior to November 8
• Requests for Website
• Requests for topical workshops
• Recommendations for other program elements
• Prior to December 15
• Website evaluation participants
• Contact Cathy Manduca or Ellen Iverson at SERC