Opportunities

Geosciences minors have the chance to extend their learning outside the classroom by participating in research, internships, and study abroad. 

Consortium Courses

Holy Cross students may take courses at other schools in the Higher Education Consortium of Central Massachusetts.  Clark University and Worcester State University have relevant courses in geography and earth sciences. Contact the Holy Cross registrar for course listings or call the consortium school directly for course information.

Eco-Action Student Group

Eco-Action is a student environmental concerns organization at Holy Cross. The group grows campus consciousness of humans’ relationship to the environment by organizing education, service, and action opportunities in the community.

Field Trips

Students observe rock formations at Purgatory Chasm in Sutton, Massachusetts.

Students observe rock formations at Purgatory Chasm in Sutton, Massachusetts.

Our location in central Massachusetts is an ideal place to study geosciences. The geology of Massachusetts is the result of a process that started more than a billion years ago. Massachusetts lies at an edge of a continent, and has been the location of many continental collisions that have created a wonderfully complex geologic setting.

Field trips are frequently made to sites that offer students opportunities to explore the geology of the area, including the Blackstone River Watershed, Connecticut River Valley, Narragansett Bay, Purgatory Chasm and Woods Hole.

Research

Several faculty members advise students on projects relating to the geosciences. Check out their faculty web profiles and speak with them about opportunities working in their labs.

Summer Research

Opportunities for summer research through Holy Cross are available through the College’s Weiss Summer Research Program.

Off-campus summer research opportunities are available at the following organizations:

There are a wide variety of summer research programs in the geosciences offered by other colleges and universities that are available to Holy Cross students by application.

Semester Away and Study Abroad

Many Geosciences students choose to take courses through a semester or year abroad experience.

From aquatics to wildlife, land to water scarcity, School for Field Studies offers programs in Australia, Bhutan, Cambodia, Costa Rica, Kenya, Tanzania, Panama and the Turks and Caicos Islands that include integrated coursework and field research. Most of these programs focus on ecology rather than geosciences; consult with the geosciences coordinator to determine which program might be the best fit for you.

The SEA Semester at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, offers field-based environmental education at sea. Many of the programs focus on marine science and climate change and provide a chance to conduct oceanographic research.

Williams Mystic, a collaboration of Williams College and the Mystic Seaport Museum, educates undergraduate students in a semester-long academic investigation of the sea accompanied by original research opportunities and travel throughout the United States.

Students also participate in many of the College’s study abroad opportunities, such as the University of Melbourne in Australia and St. Andrews University in Scotland. Learn more about study abroad.