Degree Programs 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.

Facilities

The campus of SFSU lies within the city of San Francisco, on the San Francisco Peninsula in a spectacular setting overlooking the Pacific Ocean. SFSU's Department of Geosciences, part of the College of Science and Engineering and an affiliate of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, is housed on the fifth and sixth floors of Thornton Hall.

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 scientistÕs research laboratories.