Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

College of Science and Engineering Undergraduate Programs

The emphases include several developing areas of employment (applied meteorology, applied oceanography and physical oceanography) as well as the traditional areas of preparation for careers in the National Weather Service and for admission to graduate school. The Climate Change emphasis is common to both the meteorology and oceanography concentrations. It provides sufficient training to allow students to study in depth certain natural hazards (e.g., El Niño-related changes in the atmosphere and ocean) and to evaluate environmental hazards and their repercussions on ecosystems.

The American Meteorological Society (AMS) has drafted a list of criteria to which major programs in atmospheric sciences must adhere in order to meet academic requirements. The curriculum for the meteorology concentration was developed on the bases of these criteria.

Students should consult with an adviser before enrolling in the major and before planning a course of study. The adviser helps the student select the emphasis which best meets the employment and career goals of the student.

Facilities

The core facility serving the meteorology program, used in every course in the curriculum, is the Weather Graphics Acquisition and Simulation Laboratory (WGSL). This lab, which consists of six networked UNIX workstations and five microcomputers, receives a continuous stream of current weather data through the Internet, including weather and radar observations, satellite imagery, and numerical model forecasts. Students use the WGSL to analyze weather data and display it as single images or loops as part of course assignments, and in some courses use of the lab is organized to mimic operations at National Weather Service Forecast Offices. Faculty members also use the lab to model atmospheric behavior for teaching and research purposes.

The Romberg Tiburon Center (RTC) for Environmental Studies, an off-campus facility yet within easy driving distance of campus, is central to the Oceanography Curriculum. The RTC is the only academic research facility situated on San Francisco Bay, the largest estuary on the west coast of the United States. The Center's mission is to perform basic scientific research and educate and train the next generation of scientists. RTC scientists/faculty pursue their research related to physical, geological and biological marine sciences in their RTC laboratories, at field sites around the world, and through collaborations with colleagues at other universities and institutions. Not only are undergraduate and graduate courses offered at RTC, but students have the opportunity to participate on research programs through the individual scientist's research laboratories.

Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences:

Concentrations in Meteorology and Oceanography

The undergraduate program in meteorology and oceanography at San Francisco State University (SFSU) is administered by the Department of Geosciences. The BS in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences is unique among atmospheric and oceanic science degrees across the country in that students in both concentrations take a common 25-unit core of coursework designed to investigate the interactions between the atmosphere and oceans. The degree has six emphases within the two concentrations with specific course groupings for students interested in either meteorology or oceanography.

The emphases include several developing areas of employment (applied meteorology, applied oceanography and physical oceanography) as well as the traditional areas of preparation for careers in the National Weather Service and for admission to graduate school. The Climate Change emphasis is common to both the meteorology and oceanography concentrations. It provides sufficient training to allow students to study in depth certain natural hazards (e.g., El Niño-related changes in the atmosphere and ocean) and to evaluate environmental hazards and their repercussions on ecosystems.

The American Meteorological Society (AMS) has drafted a list of criteria to which major programs in atmospheric sciences must adhere in order to meet academic requirements. The curriculum for the meteorology concentration was developed on the bases of these criteria.

Students should consult with an adviser before enrolling in the major and before planning a course of study. The adviser helps the student select the emphasis which best meets the employment and career goals of the student.

Certificate in Meteorology for Broadcasters

Important Note on new Certfied Broadcast Meteorologist Program

Background

The purpose of the program is to provide certification that students interested in making weathercasting a career have completed the academic coursework mandated by the American Meteorological Society's (AMS) Board of Broadcast Meteorology. Successful completion of these courses is a partial requirement for applicants seeking the coveted AMS Broadcast Seal for Radio and Television. Note that persons seeking the Broadcast Seal for Radio and Television must also be members of the AMS (note: by taking the courses listed below, seekers of the Certificate will automatically be qualified for AMS membership).The Broadcast Seal is widely-sought by those in the profession of broadcast meteorology, both in the radio and television venues.

The Seal represents an external certification of the on-air meteorologist's qualifications and competence and is often required of applicants for on-air media positions. Please note that students striving to meet the academic requirements for the Broadcast Seal are not required to have the Certificate, but are REQUIRED to have courses comparable to those in the list. The Department of Geosciences has created the Certificate Program to package these courses in a convenient listing and to provide students with certification of completion of the academic requirements.

Students entering SFSU from other programs may substitute courses they have taken elsewhere if they can show that such courses have (nearly) identical titles, philosophy, format and content. Requests for such "articulation" will be evaluated by the three members of the meteorology staff at SFSU. The reason for this is that several of the courses in the program were specifically tailored to meet the criteria set by the AMS for the academic needs of the Broadcast Seal. General, non-majors meteorology courses do NOT meet these needs. For example, Metr 200, 201 comprise a two-course 8 unit sequence in introductory physical, dynamic and synoptic meteorology and oceanography for majors. Lower division survey courses in non-majors meteorology (such as our own Metr 100 and 102) cannot be used to substitute for these courses.

Other Requirements for Broadcast Seal Independent of Course Requirement

Students should be aware that the AMS will evaluate the degree to which the academic requirements (as outlined below) are completed. If the academic requirements are met, the AMS will then require submission of three video- or audiotape examples of the student's broadcast work. Students are strongly encouraged to contact the Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts Department regarding career preparation for this additional requirement for the Broadcast Seal.

Course Requirements for Certificate as they Relate to AMS Curriculum Titles

The academic requirements for the Seal include at least 20 units (semester hours) of college coursework in the atmospheric and other earth sciences including a requirement of 12 units in the atmospheric, oceanic and/or hydrologic sciences.

At least 12 of the 20 semester units must be in four of the following five areas*, with at least 2 units in each of those four:

• Atmospheric or oceanographic dynamics;
• Atmospheric or oceanographic thermodynamics;
• Physical meteorology or physical oceanography;
• Synoptic meteorology (or weather systems) or synoptic oceanography;
• Hydrology

*Courses must be specifically designed to cover these areas. Generally speaking, such courses should have the subject areas included in the title of the course. The purpose of this is to make sure that non-major survey courses in which tacit coverage of these topics is given are NOT used to meet these requirements.

The course requirements for SFSU's Certificate Program were designed not only to meet the basic requirements of the AMS, but also to provide students in the program with more general interdisciplinary information on earth systems. Several courses explore the current understanding of the answers to some key questions on the interactions of the atmosphere, oceans, solid earth, and living organisms. Those interactions are crucial to shaping Earth's climate and hold the key to predicting future climate, a matter of great topical interest to weathercasters.There are two ways for students to receive the Certificate if they complete the required list of courses. Regularly enrolled students should indicate that they are seeking the Certificate by listing it in the "Minor" section on the Graduation Petition. Click here to see course requirements.

Students external to SFSUor students already having completed a baccalaureate degree must enroll as "Post-Baccalaureate Students" and indicate the Certificate Program in the "Minor" section on the Graduation Petition.

Government

How to apply
You may pick up an undergraduate application from any California State University campus, community college, or high school. You may have one sent to you by calling 415/338-7238.

Reaching SFSU by mail
To reach any SFSU department or program by mail, write to the specific office, followed by:
San Francisco State University
1600 Holloway Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94132

By phone
University Information
415/338-1111

Admissions Office
415/338-1634 or 6486
E-mail: ugadmit@sfsu.edu

SFSU on the Internet

• University Bulletin (catalog)
• Class Schedule
• SFSU

1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94132    415/338-2061
Last modifiedTuesday, January 24, 2006 , by the John Monteverdi