<p>I'm interested in majoring in English/Creative Writing in college, but am also considering going into Earth Science/Geology. What undergrad programs are strong in both fields?
My GPA isn't too high, unfortunately - it probably will be somewhere between a 3.6 and a 3.7 by the time I begin applying to colleges, but I got a 2180 on the Reasoning SAT. I know that many Ivy Leagues or top schools would automatically provide the best departments, but my chances of getting in are very slim; I come from a very competitive area as is, and my scores don't help.
Thanks for the advice!</p>
<p>Cost constraints, financial aid situation, state of residency?</p>
<p>I don’t face any financial or geographic restraints - I’d love to attend college in the northeast or northwest, but that’s more a matter of personal choice than need, and I’m already looking into several schools all over the country.</p>
<p>Graduate level rankings here:
[NRC</a> Rankings Overview: Earth Sciences - Faculty - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“NRC Rankings Overview: Earth Sciences”>NRC Rankings Overview: Earth Sciences)
[NRC</a> Rankings Overview: English Language and Literature - Faculty - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“NRC Rankings Overview: English Language and Literature”>NRC Rankings Overview: English Language and Literature)
give a first list of schools other than the “usual suspects” (the best regarded private schools and the best regarded state flagships) including the following:</p>
<p>Arizona State University
University of Arizona
University of California - Irvine
University of California - Santa Cruz
University of Illinois - Chicago
University of Maryland - College Park
University of New Hampshire
University of Rochester</p>
<p>Of course, there are additional criteria to consider as an undergraduate, such as instructional methodology, general degree requirements, etc… There may also be undergraduate-only or master’s schools that are good but are not captured in the usual graduate level rankings which are aimed at PhD programs.</p>
<p>Williams would be a bit of a reach but has good departments in both areas. Also Hamilton which is somewhat less selective. If you’re sure finances are covered you could apply ED.</p>
<p>Some strong extracurriculars, essays, recommendations may make the difference. Submit examples of your writing + a resume of any awards you’ve received. The combination of geology and writing would be a good essay topic and, I think, appealing to many LACs that like kids with diverse interests.</p>
<p>IMHO the NRC rankings are more important for geology than English, simply because most schools will have fairly robust English offerings, since it’s such a popular major. One thing that surprised me was that UT-Austin was ranked so poorly on the NRC’s rankings. I’m probably transferring for geology, and when I asked professional geophysicists and geologists which schools offered the best programs, UT came up EVERY time.</p>
<p>I’m surprised no one’s mentioned Carleton. Despite its small size, it has produced, in ABSOLUTE numbers, more Geology PhDs than any college OR university in the nation. It has a 900 acre arboretum adjoined at its hip that is a fantastic lab for majors. Certainly one of the few great places to study undergrad geology, anywhere.</p>
<p><a href=“https://apps.carleton.edu/curricular/geol/[/url]”>https://apps.carleton.edu/curricular/geol/</a></p>
<p>Bowdoin, Colby, and Bates.</p>
<p>Especially Bowdoin. One of the strongest English programs in the national, with Hawthorne and Longfellow as alumnus. Also, the Earth Sciences are particularly strong. That’s why I picked it, actually.</p>
<p>Tufts might also fit the bill.</p>
<p>If you’re interested in liberal arts colleges, consider schools in the Keck Geology Consortium.
[Keck</a> Research Opportunities for Undergraduates | Keck Geology Consortium](<a href=“http://keckgeology.org/]Keck”>http://keckgeology.org/)</p>
<p>Here are the top PhD-producing LACs in Earth Sciences for 2006-2010:</p>
<p>Carleton College … 33
Colorado College … 16
Oberlin College … 13
Williams College … 12
Macalester College … 11
Whitman College … 10
Colgate University … 9
Amherst College … 9
Smith College … 8
Bowdoin College … 7</p>
<p>Except for Bowdoin, these are all Keck Consortium colleges.
For comparison, here are the numbers for a few research universities:
Brown … 26
Berkeley … 25
CalTech … 21
Cornell … 19
UCLA … 19
Harvard … 16
Penn State . 16
UCSB … 16
Michigan … 16</p>
<p>Source: <a href=“https://webcaspar.nsf.gov%5B/url%5D”>https://webcaspar.nsf.gov</a></p>
<p>Carleton has a reputation for turning ordinary people into geology majors. Walter Alvarez, the nutcase who first suggested that an asteroid impact wiped out the dinosaurs, was a geology major at Carleton (only he’s not a nutcase any more).</p>
<p>At Texas, the Jackson School of Geosciences is its own college – Geology is not part of the College of Natural Sciences with those lowlife Bio, Chem, and Physics departments. UT is also renowned for Petroleum Engineering, but that’s a separate program in the Cockrell School of Engineering.</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback! These are all great schools that I’m keeping on my “reach” list - particularly Carleton, Hamilton, and Colby. I’m not sure what the probability of me getting into any of them is though - I come from a highly competitive area and an even more highly competitive school; it’s likely that many of my much more qualified classmates will also be applying to the same schools. Does anyone know the quality of programs at schools such as University of Washington or Wisconsin?</p>
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<p>So be a contrarian. Especially when you’re looking for “match” schools, look to the West and South for colleges that get fewer applications from your high school.</p>
<p>Here’s a USNWR ranking of graduate programs in Earth Sciences:
[Best</a> Earth Science Programs | Top Earth Science Schools | US News Best Graduate Schools](<a href=“http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-science-schools/earth-sciences-rankings]Best”>http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-science-schools/earth-sciences-rankings)</p>
<p>Here is the NRC graduate program ranking:
[NRC</a> Rankings Overview: Earth Sciences - Faculty - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“http://chronicle.com/article/NRC-Rankings-Overview-Earth/124722/]NRC”>http://chronicle.com/article/NRC-Rankings-Overview-Earth/124722/)</p>
<p>Presumably, graduate program quality will trickle down to the undergraduate level (especially, I would think, in a major that attracts relatively few undergraduates). Since field work is so important in geology, I’d look for evidence of small classes and strong faculty engagement. You’re sure to find that at a LAC.</p>