Did you hear the great news at UAA?
The University of Alaska Anchorage has just started a new master's degree program in geological sciences. The M.S. degree is the primary working credential for those who find, evaluate and help develop, with rigorous environmental safeguards, Alaska's resources. This is a statement that Alaska is looking over the horizon and is ready to "grow our own" geoscientists with top-level researchers and educators right here in Anchorage. Geologists tend to be an optimistic bunch; there is always another ore deposit or oil field to discover, or geologic hazards to study and mitigate, and the excitement and optimism at UAA about this new advanced-degree program is high.
The University of Alaska is 100 years old this year. This recent action has demonstrated foresight and confidence in the future of Alaska, the university and it mission, and the fact that the university intends to be around for the next hundred years and beyond. Thank you, UAA and UA administration and Board of Regents, for creating this program.
[University of Alaska budget cut by $8 million in budget compromise]
The University of Alaska has strongly supported the growth and development of top-notch, research-grade faculty at UAA who will deliver state-of-the-art geoscience education for decades, through good times and challenging times. There has been no shortage of opportunities for Alaska geologists from Gold Rush days, through the 1964 earthquake, volcanic eruptions (including Katmai/Novarupta in 1912), discovery of the Cook Inlet and North Slope oil fields, glacial flooding, landslides, coastal erosion, groundwater supply, alternative energy, and responsible large-mine development. Most Alaskans know a geoscientist as a neighbor, friend, community volunteer or colleague.
Now, students from Alaska, other states and around the world have the opportunity to join this exciting career field or improve their professional skills. UAA's M.S. program includes both a traditional thesis-track M.S. degree option and a non-thesis M.S. degree. UAA is actively coordinating with the long-established geology and geophysics program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks to broaden opportunities available to students on both campuses. The Geology Department at UAA has received generous industry donations of advanced-technology computer software worth over $100 million along with hardware and datasets to teach students cutting-edge sedimentary basin, energy, and structural geology and geophysics.
Trained geoscientists occupying high-impact jobs are an essential building block of Alaska's continuing economic prosperity and will energize the state's economic engine for decades to come. Master's level geoscience education is critical to:
• Promoting vital long-term resource development in Alaska;
• Addressing critical gaps in U.S. energy and strategic minerals supply;
• Working as resource management and development professionals in Alaska;
• Demonstrating that resource development in Alaska is sustainable and compatible with strong environmental stewardship and social responsibility; and
• Addressing and mitigating geological hazards that may threaten people and infrastructure.
Many firms and agencies want to hire local people who are well-qualified and who understand the unique conditions in Alaska. Keeping these talented people in Alaska is good for our state.
UAA is now accepting applications through Nov. 1 for this program for the first term beginning in January 2018 at the Anchorage campus location. Happy 100th, UA, and rock on, Alaska. The future looks bright!
Stephen Trimble is chair and Jim Munter is vice chair of the Community Advistory Board to UAA's Department of Geological Sciences. The board is made up of professional geoscientists from the oil and gas, environmental consulting, mineral exploration and alternative energy industries, and from Native corporations and government agencies. More information about the master's degree program is here.
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