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California State University, Long Beach
Geological Sciences

Master's Student Learning Outcomes

By obtaining M.S. degrees from the Department of Geological Sciences, students will:

  1. Find peer-reviewed articles, maps, government reports and/or data sets
    • Concept Introduced in Geol 500
    • Evaluated in GEOL 695, Geol 537, Thesis and one of the following: Geol 531, Geol 555, Geol 577, Geol 570: IBA
  2. Read, digest, and distill ideas from the published literature
    • Concept Introduced in Geol 500
    • Evaluated in GEOL 695, Geol 537, and Advancement Proposal
  3. Identify and clearly articulate a specific research question
    • Concept Introduced in Geol 500
    • Evaluated in Geol 697, Advancement Proposal and Thesis
  4. Formulate multiple working hypotheses
    • Concept Introduced in Geol 500
    • Evaluated in Geol 697, Advancement Proposal and Thesis
  5. Identify and/or develop process(es) or means to answer a specific research question
    • Concept Introduced in Geol 500
    • Evaluated in Geol 697 and one of the following (Geol 531, Geol 555, Geol 577, Geol 570: IBA), Advancement Proposal and Thesis
  6. Work and be able to and problem-solve independently in the lab and/or field
    • Evaluated in Geol 697 and Thesis
  7. Create publication quality figures (maps, line drawings, etc).
    • Evaluated in Advancement Proposal and Thesis and one of the following (Geol 531, Geol 555, Geol 577, Geol 570: IBA)
  8. Write a comprehensive analysis of a geological problem placing it into the context of past research and including background, methods, data analysis and discussion
    • Evaluated in Thesis
  9. Present original research, methods, and outcomes to an audience of peers
    • Concept Introduced in Geol 500
    • Evaluated in one of the following (Geol 531, Geol 555, Geol 570: IBA), Advancement Proposal and Thesis