Alexandria, VA - The majority of bachelor’s and doctoral graduates did not participate in an internship experience during their postsecondary career. In contrast, the majority of master’s graduates did have at least one internship experience. Most of these bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral students that held an internship considered their internship experiences to be “very important.” Of these master’s candidates, 48% were employed within the geosciences at a company they had previously interned at the time. [Read More]

The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) would like to thank Mr. Lewis (Stan) Pittman for his continued service to the AGI community by honoring him with the William B Heroy Jr. Award. Pittman has served on AGI committees for over a decade, serving in financial roles, including the AGI Executive Committee treasurer. AGI is grateful for Pittman’s service helping shape AGI’s financial goals. Along with his leadership roles with AGI, Pittman is also recognized for his educational and industry contributions. [Read More]

The Executive Committee of the American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is proud to announce that Dr. Peter Scholle has been awarded the AGI Medal in memory of Ian Campbell honoring his contributions to the geoscientific community. When measured against the career of the medal’s namesake, Scholle’s colleagues lauded his accomplishments and underscored his leadership both as a scientist and educator. Scholle has conducted research on carbonate sedimentology and petroleum geology in nearly 30 countries and has written, coauthored, or edited eight books, more than 250 papers and abstracts, and 28 CD-ROMs and other computer or audio visual products. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA — Readers are advised to download the newly corrected version of the 2013 Status of Recent Geoscience Graduates report. An error was found in the title and x-axis labels on the figure on page 20. The data in the figure displays geoscience graduates that are seeking, or have accepted a job position outside of the geosciences. The associated text has been changed now correctly represents the data presented. [Read More]

An important question asked of recent graduates with geoscience majors is why they chose to major in the earth sciences. Recent analysis of over 400 responses from the National Geoscience Student Exit Survey from 71 geoscience departments identified several common answers among the respondents. Of those surveyed, many declared a geoscience major during their formative undergraduate years for a variety of reasons: Enjoyment working in the outdoors A lifelong interest in the subject Desire for career opportunities Read more [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) and the National Park Service (NPS) invite you to participate in the fourth annual National Fossil Day on October 16, 2013, during Earth Science Week (October 13-19). National Fossil Day brings together paleontologists, educators, and students from across the country to participate in fossil-related events and activities outdoors, in classrooms, and online. AGI and the NPS have developed resources and activities to highlight the scientific and educational value of paleontology, as well as the importance of preserving fossils for future generations. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - Recent analysis of over 400 responses from the National Geoscience Student Exit Survey from 71 geoscience departments identified distinct trends for bachelor’s-, master’s- and PhD-level participants on quantitative classes and core science courses. Notably, 70% of all participants had taken Calculus I and II; following those courses, there was a significant drop in bachelor’s- and master’s-level candidates pursuing further mathematics coursework. Meanwhile, PhD candidates listed multiple courses past Calculus II. [Read More]

EARTH: New Subduction Zone May Close Atlantic Ocean Alexandria, VA — Throughout the history of Earth, supercontinents have formed and ocean basins have opened and closed over timescales of 300 million to 500 million years. But scientists haven’t found direct evidence of the in-between phase — an ocean basin that was opening, starting instead to close — until now. Thanks to new high-resolution surveys of the seafloor, scientists think they have evidence of that process starting in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Portugal. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - View a new webcast detailing resources, events, and opportunities available through Earth Science Week, the annual worldwide celebration of the geosciences! The “Introduction to Earth Science Week 2013” webcast is now available for viewing at your convenience. This free webcast provides an overview of learning activities, instructional materials, career resources, upcoming events, networking opportunities, contests, videos, and other programs available through Earth Science Week. The tutorial includes a wealth of online links, which viewers can click during the presentation to review available resources. [Read More]

Alexandria, VA - The world is diversifying its energy portfolio with renewable energy technology. However, one of the biggest hurdles renewable technologies need to overcome is inherent variability: humans can’t control when the sun shines or how much the wind blows. There’s also variability on the demand side, with people needing more energy during certain times of the day and certain months of the year. Thus, to truly make the most out of renewable energy resources, geoscientists are working with engineers to help translate natural energy fluxes into products that can be delivered to the grid on an as-needed basis. [Read More]