B.S. in Meteorology

Graduates work to understand natural processes on Earth and other planets. They are able to apply their knowledge of forces and factors that shape the Earth to reconstruct the past and anticipate the future. Graduates provide essential information for solving problems for resource management, environmental protection, and public health, safety, and welfare. They work as consultants on engineering and environmental problems, explorers for new minerals and hydrocarbon resources, researchers, teachers, writers, editors, and museum curators. Graduates are able to integrate field and laboratory data and to prepare reports. They are able to make presentations that include maps and diagrams that illustrate the results of their studies. The study of Meteorology involves the description of the earth?s atmosphere and the processes responsible for its behavior. Students majoring in Meteorology earn the Bachelor of Science. The major satisfies guidelines specified by the American Meteorological Society and meets education requirements for employment with the National Weather Service and the World Meteorlogical Organization. Successful preparation for professional or graduate work in Meteorology requires that the student develop and integrate a diverse range of skills and knowledge bases. These include weather observing, the physics and dynamics of the global atmosphere, application of new weather technologies, advanced mathematical tools, computer programming and modeling, and effective oral and written communication. The faculty view the senior thesis (MTEOR 499 Senior Research), in particular, as a capstone experience in which students demonstrate they have achieved this integration. Also, contemporary meteorology is an earth-system science with ties to a variety of human experiences. The electives and general education requirements of the college are further experiences that the meteorology student must integrate with their core meteorology knowledge in order to function effectively in a globally-oriented profession.