UC Santa Barbara Geography / Undergraduates / BS in Physical Geography

The Bachelor of Science in Physical Geography (BS) provides majors with rigorous training in earth and environmental science. The BS offers students the option of choosing a more structured, directed program, which emphasizes the quantitative and scientific approaches to studying the Earth's physical environment. At the same time, the major offers the flexibility of deciding on what areas of the systematics the student wants to focus on: soils and hydrology, oceanography and meteorology, biogeography and soils or any other combination. BS students are offered a specific list of related courses from Biology and Geology to supplement their selection of systematics courses.

• Preparation for the Major (BA Phys. Geog Checklist)
• Requirements Map [HTML]
• Requirements Map

Requirements

Preparation for the major - 53 lower division units required

1. Strongly Recommended: Computer Science 12, Geography 12, and any additional courses from the below selection
2. Required courses
   • Geog 3A - Oceans and Atmosphere
   • Geog 3B - Land, Water and Life
   • Geog 5 - People, Place and Environment
   • Math 3A,B,C - Calculus
   • One of the following Physics sequences
   • Phys 6A,B,C - Introductory Physics
   • Phys 1,2,3/L,4/L - Basic Physics
   • One of the following Statistics courses
   • PSTAT 5A - Statistics
   • PSTAT 5LS - Statistics for the Life Sciences
   • EEMB 30 - Concepts in Statistics
   • One of the following Chemistry courses and lab
   • Chem 1A/AL - Introduction to Chemistry
   • Chem 2A/AL - Introduction to Chemistry - honors
3. A minimum of 12 units from the following courses
   • Chemistry
   • Chem 1B/BL,1C/CL - Introduction to Chemistry
   • Chem 2B/BL,2C/CL - Introduction to Chemistry - honors
   • Chem 95 - Global Energy Sources
   • Biology
   • MCDB 1A/AL,B/BL; EEMB 2/L,3/L - Introduction to Biology
   • EEMB 21 - General Botany
   • EEMB 24 - Aquatic Ecology
   • Geology
   • 2 - Principles of Physical Geology
   • 3 - Principles of Historical Geology
   • 14 - Mineralogy
   • 15 - Optical Mineralogy
   • Math
   • Math 5A - Introduction to Linear Algebra and Differential Equations
   • Math 5B - Vector Calculus
   • Math 5C - Differential Equations and Fourier Series
   • Math 8 - A Transition to Higher Mathematics
   • Physics
   • Astro 1 - Basic Astronomy
   • Astro 2 - History of the Universe

Note: Chemistry 1A/AL-B/BL-C/CL is prerequisite to MCDB 1A/AL

Upper division major - 44-50 upper division units required

1. Area A: One course from Statistical Analysis courses
   • Geog 172 - Intermediate Geographical Data Analysis
   • PSTAT 120A - Probability and Statistics
   • EEMB 146 - Biometry
   • Geology 134 - Introduction to Geological and Geophysical Data Analysis (Department of Earth Science)
2. Area B: Four (4) courses from Physical Geography courses
   • Geog 102 - Introduction to Environmental Optics in Physical Geography, 5.0
   • Geog 104 - Physical Geography of the World’s Oceans
   • Geog 110 - Introduction to Meteorology
   • Geog 112 - Environmental Hydrology
   • Geog 114A - Soil Science
   • Geog 134 - Earth System Science
   • Geog 167 - Biogeography: The Study of Plant and Animal Distributions
3. Area C: Three (3) courses from Specialized Physical Geography courses
   • Geog 114B - Soil Genesis and Classification
   • Geog 116 - Groundwater Hydrology
   • Geog 123 - Contaminant Hydrology
   • Geog 133 - Tropical Meteorology
   • Geog 135 - Mock Environmental Summit
   • Geog 135S - Mock Environmental Summit (Summer)
   • Geog 144 - Forms, Process, and Human Use of Rivers
   • Geog 149 - The California Channel Islands
   • Geog 158 - Geography of the California Current
   • Geog 162 - Environmental Water Quality
   • Geog 163 - Ocean Circulation
   • Geog 165 - Waves and Tides in the Ocean
   • Geog 170 - Introductory to Vegetation Analysis
   • Geog 175 - Environmental Data Analysis
   • Geog 185D - Urban and Environmental Systems Analysis
4. Area D: Three (3) courses from Geographical Techniques courses
   • Geog 115A - Geographic Photo Interpretation
   • Geog 115B - Geographic Remote Sensing Techniques
   • Geog 115C - Intermediate Geographic Remote Sensing Techniques
   • Geog 117 - Research Methods in Geography
   • Geog 126 - History of Cartography: Maps in Science and Society
   • Geog 128 - Analytical and Computer Cartography
   • Geog 168 - Field Studies in Biogeography
   • Geog 176A - Introduction to Geographical Information Systems
   • Geog 176B/BL - Technical Issues in Geographic Information Systems
   • Geog 176C - GIS Design and Applications
   • Geog 183 - Cartographic Design and Geovisualization
   • Geog 184 - Introduction to Cartographic Programming
   • Geog 191/L - Intro to Optimization Models for Geographic Problems

Note: Geography 193, 194, 195, 198, 199, 199RA may be applied to area B, C or D by petition, depending on the subject matter.

1. Prerequisites
   Check the General Catalog for the prerequisites to all listed courses, or the listing of geography courses here on the geog website.
2. P/NP Grading Option
   Allowed for up to four units of Geography 193 and 199RA. Not allowed for any other course applied to the major (prep or UD), including courses applied to the major from other departments.
3. Substitutions
   In the major requirements are permissible only by petition to the department chair and dean.
4. Residence Requirements
   At least 20 UD units in major while in residence at UCSB.
5. G.P.A. Requirements
   At least 2.0 overall UC average in all upper-division major courses and all courses (Prep and UD) for the major, including courses in excess of minimum requirements.
6. Double Majors
   With the approval of each department chairperson, up to a total of 8 units may be applied simultaneously to both UD majors.