---

environmental geosciences

Types of Degrees environmental geosciences Majors Are Earning

People majoring in environmental geosciences can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Bachelor’s Degree	86
Master’s Degree	10

What environmental geosciences Majors Need to Know

Studies in environmental geosciences emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that environmental geosciences graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in environmental geosciences emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Law and Government — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills developed in a environmental geosciences program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to environmental geosciences careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, environmental geosciences graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Working with Computers	4.3 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.3 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.1 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.0 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.0 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.0 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.0 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by environmental geosciences professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Microsoft SharePoint	Document management software	—
Database software	Data base user interface and query software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for environmental geosciences graduates include:

• Compliance Analyst
• Compliance Coordinator
• Regulatory Compliance Specialist
• Regulatory Analyst
• Educator
• College Professor
• Assistant Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Associate Professor
• Lecturer
• Professor
• College Faculty Member
• Instructor
• Adjunct Professor
• Environmental Protection Specialist

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to environmental geosciences graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	47.4%
Master’s degree	15.9%
Doctoral degree	6.7%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	6.7%
High school diploma or equivalent	5.4%
Post-doctoral training	4.3%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	4.2%
Some college courses	4.1%
Postsecondary certificate	3.4%
Post-master’s certificate	1.2%
First professional degree	0.5%
Less than a high school diploma	0.2%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in environmental geosciences?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 53.1% women and 46.9% men among environmental geosciences graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	51	53.1%
Men	45	46.9%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of environmental geosciences graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	64	66.7%
Asian	8	8.3%
Hispanic or Latino	16	16.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native	2	2.1%
Two or More Races	2	2.1%
Race Unknown	2	2.1%
International Students	2	2.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Multi Interdisciplinary Studies	30
Accounting and Computer Science	30.16
Anthrozoology	30.34
Behavioral Sciences	30.17
Biological and Physical Sciences	30.01
Biopsychology	30.10
Classical and Ancient Studies	30.22
Climate Science	30.35
Cognitive Science	30.25
Computational Science	30.30
Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature	30.36
Cultural Studies/Critical Theory and Analysis	30.26

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.