Applicable only to students admitted during the 2012-2013 academic year.

Earth and Space Sciences

College of Letters and Science

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Earth and Space Sciences offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Geochemistry; the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Geology; and the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Geophysics and Space Physics.

Geochemistry

Admission

Program Name

Geochemistry

Address

3683A Geology
Box 951567
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1567 

Phone

(888) 377-8252 

Email

holbrook@ess.ucla.edu  

Leading to the degree of

M.S., Ph.D. 

Admission Limited to

Fall, Winter, Spring 

Deadline to apply

January 15th 

GRE (General and/or Subject)

GRE: General and Subject in any appropriate field of science (optional for Ph.D.) 

Letters of Recommendation 

3 

Other Requirements

In addition to the University's minimum requirements and those listed above, all applicants are expected to submit a statement of purpose.

M.S..: A bachelor's degree in chemistry, geology, physics, or a related field is required. Applicants must have outstanding records in the basic sciences, physics, chemistry, and mathematics. Students planning to work for the Ph.D. degree are not encouraged to obtain the M.S. degree.

Ph.D.: A bachelor's degree in chemistry, geology, physics, or a related field is required. Applicants must have outstanding records in the basic sciences, physics, chemistry, and mathematics. Students planning to work for the Ph.D. degree are not encouraged to obtain the M.S. degree. 

Master's Degree

Advising

Students are assigned a faculty adviser who is chosen by the graduate adviser in consultation with the student just prior to the first quarter of enrollment. During the first quarter of residence, the faculty adviser selects two additional faculty members to complete the student's advising committee. At the beginning of every quarter, the student's program must be reviewed and approved by the faculty adviser before submission for official approval by the graduate adviser.

Departmental Reviews. The Graduate Student Affairs Committee annually reviews student progress (generally in late May and early June). These reviews become part of students' departmental records and are transmitted to the students and their faculty advisers in writing. If students' scholarship or progress is insufficient, they are subject to dismissal. The normal minimum course load is 12 units per quarter.

Areas of Study

The program in geochemistry offers study in biogeochemistry, crystal chemistry, experimental petrology, isotopic studies of stable and radioactive elements, marine geochemistry, meteorite research, planetology, and lunar geochemistry.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

A minimum of nine courses is required for the degree, at least six of which must be graduate-level courses. Sixteen units of 500-series courses may be applied toward the total course requirement for the M.S. in Geochemistry. Twelve units may be applied toward the minimum graduate course requirement.

Each course of study is worked out individually by the advising committee in consultation with the student. Students are expected to attain, either through previous training or through prescribed coursework, a common mastery of the subject matter in Earth and Space Sciences 51A, 51B, C206, C207, C209, 210, 234, and Chemistry and Biochemistry 110A, 110B, as well as more advanced courses in particular fields, and some familiarity with the methods of field geology (Earth and Space Sciences 61 and 111G are strongly recommended). Students are required to register in one of the following courses each quarter: Earth and Space Sciences 235A, 235B, 235C, or 295A, 295B, 295C.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Comprehensive Examination Plan

The advising committee prepares and administers the final examination (which normally is oral). In the preparation for this examination, the committee takes proper recognition of the fact that some students are better qualified in chemistry and others in geology. However, it is required that a distinct competence in one of these fields be matched by at least an adequate performance in the other. In most cases, a failed final examination can be repeated one additional time.

Thesis Plan

Every master's degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research.

The thesis must be approved by the student's research director (who usually is the chair of the advising committee), as well as by the other members of the student's advising committee. If students choose the thesis plan, no examination is required.

Time-to-Degree

Students who are making normal progress and whose undergraduate training is not deficient, should receive the M.S. degree after about four to seven quarters.

Doctoral Degree

Advising

Students are assigned a faculty adviser who is chosen by the graduate adviser in consultation with the student just prior to the first quarter of enrollment. During the first quarter of residence, the faculty adviser selects two additional faculty members to complete the student's advising committee. At the beginning of every quarter, the student's program must be reviewed and approved by the faculty adviser before submission for official approval by the graduate adviser.

Departmental Reviews. The Graduate Student Affairs Committee annually reviews students' progress (generally in late May and early June). These reviews become part of students' departmental record and are transmitted to the students and their faculty advisers in writing. If students' scholarship or progress is insufficient, they are subject to dismissal. The normal minimum course load is 12 units per quarter.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

The program in geochemistry offers study in biogeochemistry, crystal chemistry, experimental petrology, isotopic studies of stable and radioactive elements, marine geochemistry, meteorite research, planetology, and lunar geochemistry.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students are expected to complete at least the minimum number of courses which are required for the M.S. degree. Each course of study is worked out individually by the advising committee in consultation with the student. Students are expected to attain, either through previous training or through prescribed coursework, a common mastery of the subject matter in Earth and Space Sciences 51A, 51B, C206, C207, C209, 210, 234, and Chemistry and Biochemistry 110A, 110B, as well as more advanced courses in particular fields, and some familiarity with the methods of field geology (Earth and Space Sciences 61 and 111G are strongly recommended). Students are required to register in one of the following courses each quarter: Earth and Space Sciences 235A, 235B, 235C or 295A, 295B, 295C.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass University written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations the University oral qualifying examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to University requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

Written Qualifying Examination. This examination must be taken before the end of the first year of the doctoral program if the student has a master's degree; otherwise, it must be taken before the end of the second year of enrollment. It may be given in either a question/answer format or in a proposal format, at the discretion of the student.

The question/answer format is a conventional written examination that covers the field of geochemistry and related areas of geology and chemistry. It may be followed by an oral part, at the discretion of the examining committee.

The proposal format is based on three written research proposals prepared by the student and submitted to the examining committee at least 10 days before the examination. The proposals must be concise, must entail three dissimilar projects, and one of them should cover the intended dissertation topic. The proposals are presented briefly to the examining committee orally, and the committee examines their originality and scientific merit. The oral examination is not necessarily limited to the topics of the proposals.

In case of failure, an examination of either format can be repeated at the discretion of the examining committee.

University Oral Qualifying Examination. After passing the written qualifying examination, students must consult their faculty adviser and the graduate adviser regarding nomination of the doctoral committee and arrange a time for the examination. At least a week before this examination, students must provide each member of the doctoral committee with a written prospectus of their proposed dissertation research. The subject matter covered in the examination includes, but is not limited to, the proposed research. Repetition of a failed examination is at the option of the doctoral committee.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Not required for all students in the program. The decision as to whether a defense is required is made by the doctoral committee.

Time-to-Degree

A. The written qualifying examination is normally taken in the fifth or sixth quarter of residence, unless the student already has a master's degree, in which case the student must take it by the end of the third quarter.

B. The oral qualifying examination should be taken as soon after the written qualifying examination as practical. A nominal time would be the sixth or seventh quarter.

C. The dissertation and final oral examination should be completed by the 12th to 15th quarter.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for termination who fails to meet requirements regarding course scheduling and deadlines for completion of examinations or the degree as agreed upon between the student and the Graduate Affairs Committee or the student's advising committee. A student may appeal a recommendation for termination through a letter to the graduate adviser or the departmental chair.

PAGE 2 -- Geology
PAGE 3 -- Geophysics & Space Physics