(2) As described in Section
7841(b)(2) of the
Code, and Section
7841.2(c)(2) of
the Code, the requirement for successfully completing 30 semester hours or 45
quarter hours, in courses that, in the opinion of the Board, are relevant to
geology, of which at least 24 semester hours or 36 quarter hours are upper
division or graduate level, shall include the minimum coursework and concepts
specified in subdivisions (A) and (B) below. Additional geologic coursework
necessary to meet the total 30 semester hours or 45 quarter hours requirement
specified in Section
7841(b)(2) and
Section 7841.2(c)(2) of
the Code may be selected at the applicant's discretion but shall be relevant to
geology as defined in Section
7802 of the Code. This requirement
shall be fulfilled at a college or university which, at the time the applicant
was enrolled, was accredited by a national or regional accrediting agency
recognized by the United States Office of Education. "Life Experience Course
Credit" is not acceptable.
(A) Core Geologic
Concepts: Of the 30 semester hours or 45 quarter hours required by the Code, an
applicant shall successfully complete a minimum of 15 semester hours or 22.5
quarter hours of core geological science courses in the following subject areas
as specified:
(i) "Earth Materials" shall
include a minimum of four semester hours or six quarter hours of instruction in
the identification, classification, and chemistry of minerals and rocks; their
formation; the interpretation of their origins; as well as their uses and
importance.
(ii) "Structural
Geology" shall include a minimum of three semester hours or four and one-half
quarter hours of instruction in the description and analysis of structural
features of rocks to reconstruct the motions and processes involved in the
buildup and deformation of the Earth's crust from small to large scales. It
shall also include the interpretation of brittle and ductile strain, the
fundamentals of plate tectonics, and the analysis of local and regional
geologic structure.
(iii)
"Stratigraphy and Sedimentation" shall include a minimum of three semester
hours or four and one-half quarter hours of instruction in the identification
and interpretation of sedimentary rocks, sedimentary processes and structures,
application of stratigraphic and dating methods, identifying the impact of
climate and geologic processes on depositional patterns, and facies
analysis.
(iv) "Upper-Division
Field Geology" shall include a minimum of five semester hours or seven and
one-half quarter hours of field training designed to demonstrate a progression
of field investigation skills culminating in a final project or integrative
field experience that is based on the knowledge and skills acquired in earlier
geological science courses. This shall include instruction in the geological
techniques or methods needed to measure, map, evaluate, and communicate
geologic data; and the ability to plan and conduct geological investigations
based upon existing sources of geologic information. This shall include
preparing and interpreting geologic maps, cross-sections, stratigraphic
columns, and written reports. The field training may be obtained in one or more
separate upper division field courses, but shall not be introductory in nature
or be part of laboratory exercises for other geological science courses.
Academic instruction in field methods such as geophysical techniques, logging
trenches or borings, designing wells, and other common professional geologic
tasks may serve as a component of the Upper-Division Field Geology requirement
described in this section so long as it is part of an established field
techniques course taught within a college or university geology or related
geological sciences program.
(B) Applied Upper-Division Geology
Coursework: Of the 24 semester hours or 36 quarter hours of upper division or
graduate coursework required by the Code, an applicant shall successfully
complete a minimum of six semester hours or nine quarter hours from a
combination of at least two of the following subject areas.
(i) "Geomorphology" shall include instruction
in the classification, origin, and analysis of landforms and watershed elements
as well as the surface and tectonic processes that relate landforms to the
underlying geologic materials. This shall include methods of geomorphic
analysis and interpretation of different types of mapped data, including
topographic, geologic, and remotely sensed data.
(ii) "Engineering Geology" shall include
instruction in that branch of geology as defined in Section
3003(b) of Title
16, California Code of Regulations. This shall include instruction in those
skills necessary to demonstrate knowledge and abilities as described in Section
3041(a)(2) of
Title 16, California Code of Regulations.
(iii) "Hydrogeology" shall include
instruction in that branch of geology as defined in Section
3003(h) of Title
16, California Code of Regulations. This shall include instruction in those
skills necessary to demonstrate knowledge and abilities as described in Section
3042(b)(2) of
Title 16, California Code of Regulations.
(iv) "California Geology" shall include the
instruction necessary to demonstrate knowledge of the seismicity and geology
unique to the State of California, and the state laws, rules and regulations
unique to the practice of geology in this state as described in Section
7841(d) of the
Code.
(v) "Paleontology" shall
include instruction necessary to recognize common fossils and fossil types, the
geologic settings that would indicate the potential for paleontological
resources, and the evolutionary history of fossil groups of traditional
importance to geologists. Other topics may include basic modes of preservation,
skeletal anatomy, systematics and taxonomy, biostratigraphy, paleoecology, and
paleobiogeography.
(vi) "Resources
Geology" shall include the instruction needed to identify the origin,
occurrence, and distribution of non-renewable resources, including metallic,
nonmetallic, and energy-producing materials; problems related to resource
extraction; estimations and limitations of reserves; and reclaiming sites after
extraction of resources.
(vii)
"Environmental Geology" shall include an introduction to concepts involved in
environmental site assessment and remediation, environmental geochemistry, and
the mitigation of potentially negative effects of human activities such as
exploration for mineral and energy resources, or solid and hazardous waste
disposal on geologic systems, as well as the protection of water resources,
land and watershed restoration.
(viii) "Geophysics" shall include instruction
in that branch of geology defined in Section
7802.1 of the Code and Section
3003(e) of Title
16, California Code of Regulations.
(ix) "Technology Applications in Geology"
encompasses a wide range of technology related instruction that includes an
emphasis on applications to geologic investigations. These subjects may
include, but are not limited to, instruction in the use of Geographic
Information Systems (GIS), computer modeling of groundwater flow or other
geologic processes, signal processing or numerical methods of data analysis.
Instruction without a specific and demonstrable geologic application will not
qualify. A maximum of three semester hours or four and one-half quarter hours
would be accepted in this subject area.
(x) "Applied geoscience topics taught by a
college or university department other than a geology or related geological
sciences department" refers to instruction in subject areas with a reasonable
and rational application to the professional practice of geology. These courses
are limited to the topics of geological engineering, geotechnical engineering,
mining engineering, petroleum engineering, soil science, engineering soil
mechanics, or hydrology. A maximum of three semester hours or four and one-half
quarter hours taught in a college or university department other than a geology
or related geological sciences department would be accepted in this subject
area.