Schenectady,
N.Y. (Oct. 4, 2001) – Union College's Geology department was 4th in
a ranking of geoscience research at national liberal arts colleges. The
ranking, conducted by faculty at Mount Holyoke College, Ma, considered the
number of articles, pages, and abstracts published in the scientific literature between 1987 and 1996. The results of this study were recently
published in the Journal of Geoscience
Education.[JG1]
Union, whose Geology faculty published 28 scientific articles in the
literature, is joined by Williams, Colgate, Wesleyan, and Franklin &
Marshall colleges as the top five ranked geoscience departments.
“At Union, we place a strong emphasis on research – at both the faculty and
undergraduate levels,” Union Prof. of Geology John Garver said. “This is a
welcome validation that our efforts are well-placed.”
The study notes that a research-rich environment is one of the key ingredients in
motivating students to go on to pursue graduate studies after receiving their
undergraduate degree. The United States
National Science Foundation (NSF) has had a number of programs in place for over
a decade aimed at addressing the steadily falling number of students in the
sciences. The NSF has identified
research-rich teaching environments as a key to encouraging science education
in the nation.
The rankings' authors indicated a
“growing interest in research at liberal arts colleges” and such research is
“highly concentrated among a few schools.” Further, they noted a “positive
correlation between faculty research at an institution and the undergraduates
who go on to receive Ph.D.'s in geoscience.”
Garver noted that about 50 to 60 percent of recent graduates from
Union Geology go on to advanced studies in geology and allied sciences. In their advanced-degree research, these
students have focused on the full breadth in the geosciences including marine
studies, coastal erosion, water contamination, tectonic activity, climate
change, and climate reconstruction.
“My experience in the Union Geology Department gave me ample
preparation and inspiration for my graduate research project focused on global climate
change,” said Brandi
Molitor of Averill Park, Union class of 2000 graduate, who is pursuing a
graduate degree at Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA.
“Being surrounded by, and part of cutting-edge research teams at Union helped
me realize successful science is a result of very hard work and perseverance.”
“The
Geology Department at Union brings students out into the field through class
lab periods, extended field trips, and through faculty-student research
projects that have included the Olympic Mountains of Washington, the Grand
Canyon, the Russian Far East, the Alps in France and Italy, , the Andes
Mountains of Peru and Ecuador, the Southern Alps of New Zealand, and the
Pyrenees in Spain,” Garver added. “Students learn along side us in real time,
in the real world.”
“For
most students, finishing these research-rich courses can be an exciting time,
because they realize that they can do science, that it makes sense, and that it
is fun.”
“The Geology Department at Union brings
students out into the field through class lab periods, extended field trips,
and through faculty-student research projects that have included the Olympic
Mountains of Washington, the Grand Canyon, the Russian Far East, the Alps in
France and Italy, the Gasp Peninsula of Quebec, the Andes Mountains of Peru and
Ecuador, the Southern Alps of New Zealand, and the Pyrenees in Spain,” Garver
added. “Students learn along side us in real time, in the real world. For most
students, finishing these research-rich courses can be an exciting time,
because they realize that they can do science, that it makes sense, and that it
is fun.”