Current Students & Alumni

Scholarships

The Department offers scholarships to students majoring in Geoscience and Earth and Space Science Education to reward them for their outstanding academic achievements.

Since 2005, The Department has distributed over $40,000 to dozens of our majors!

Student receiving a scholarship from donor Sandie MatherJacob Thompson, B.S. Geoscience Alumni, receiving scholarship from Sandie Mather, donor.

 

 Several undergraduate scholarships are offered each semester under the award names:

  • The Sandra Pritchard Mather Scholarship
  • The Herbert Beller Geology Scholarship
  • The Geology and Astronomy Alumni Scholarship
  • Travis Schaible Memorial Scholarship

Similarly, graduate students are offered one scholarship each academic year under the award name:

  • The Sandra Pritchard Mather Graduate Scholarship

Successful candidates will receive up to $1000. The scholarships are awarded to those who have: a) demonstrated academic achievement, b) provide a statement or trajectory of their academic and/or career goals, and c) articulated their financial needs most effectively.

Contact the Scholarship Committee Chair, Dr. Kim Yong Hoon (ykim@wcupa.edu), for more info.

Other awards offered by the Department include research and travel grants to present at local and national conferences.

 Donate to Travis Schaible Memorial Scholarship

 
 
NSE Logo

National Student Exchange (NSE) Program

As a WCU student, you are eligible to take geology-related courses that count toward your degree at a different University for a semester! For example, you can take courses that complement your research or general interest, such as:

  • Glacial Geomorphology
  • National Resource Management
  • Petroleum Geology

To find out what geology-related schools are available, go to: https://www.nse.org/exchange/find-campus/ and search "Geosciences" under "Find a Plan of Study."

Here is a sample of the some of the schools at which you can study:

  • University of Wyoming
  • University of Hawaii
  • University of Alaska
  • Colorado State University

Click HERE for more information on the NSE program.

Interested? Contact either Dr. Joby Hilliker or Daniele Clay (program coordinator). Deadline is February of each year.

Ask Maggie Ferry, B.S. Geoscience senior, who spent a semester at the University of Utah in Fall 2017:

Maggie Ferry

"NSE allowed me to travel and learn more about sedimentary rocks and their depositional environments in Utah's beautiful national parks. The University of Utah really made me strive to become a better geologist." - Maggie Ferry

Maggie Ferry
Maggie Ferry

Department Clubs

Sigma Gamma Epsilon (SGE) - National Geology Honor Society

Sigma Gamma Epsilon (SGE) was established to recognize scholarship and professionalism in the Earth Sciences. Its objectives are the scholastic, scientific, and professional development of its members who are devoted to the advancement of the Earth Sciences. Any person who has completed at least 10 semester hours in any of our programs, and maintained a minimum of 3.0 GPA in all Earth Science courses, is qualified for membership. If you qualify and wish to join, please contact any of the above officers, or

Dr. Joby Hilliker

and

Dr. Daria Nikitina

- advisers of the Zeta Beta Chapter at West Chester University. Initiation of new members is held both fall and spring semesters.

The Earth and Space Science Club (ESSC)

The Earth and Space Science Club enhances appreciation of the Earth and Space Sciences (e.g., Geology, Astronomy, Oceanography, Meteorology) through social activities, including trips to quarries, museums, and parks. Fundraising is done several times a year, including bake and t-shirt sales. ESSC is open to any student or faculty member on campus. Interested students should contact

Dr. Joby Hilliker

Sigma Gamma

Alumni

We are interested in keeping in touch with our past students and finding out what they are up to now. If you are an alumna/alumnus of the Department of Earth and Space Sciences (formerly the Department of Geology and Astronomy), please provide us with current contact information by filling out the short Alumni Distribution Form.

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