Geosciences

The Bachelor’s program offers a wide-ranging, interdisciplinary and research-related course of studies in the area of geosciences. It is based on a cooperation between Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich and the Technical University of Munich, which together with further partners created the Munich GeoCenter (MGC).

Central to the program are the structure and development of planet Earth, as well as the processes that take place within and influence this dynamic system. Further content concerns the development of life as well as the effects that human interventions have on the environment. In the analysis of these themes, the methods of mathematics and the natural sciences play a central role. The program also deals with resource exploration and usage, the study and further development of existing materials, and risk assessment relating to natural hazards. Further topics handled during the course of study include biodiversity, climate change, the geochemical analysis of biogeochemical cycles, environmental pollution, environmental remediation, and satellite-based observational methods.

In addition to foundational competencies, the program allows students to start specializing in one of the core areas of the geosciences: geology, paleontology and geobiology, mineralogy, or geophysics.

Which further expertise and skills will I acquire?

As a graduate, you are able to independently formulate and deal with geoscientific questions using the appropriate methods. Your knowledge allows you to develop strategies that yield solutions to discipline-specific problems in various areas. Depending on your study profile, you can draw upon further expertise in environmental and climate protection, energy and natural resources, construction and spatial planning, material development or natural phenomena, biodiversity research in space and time, as well as georisks. In all of your activities you draw upon your interdisciplinary knowledge of mathematics, physics, chemistry, or biology.

Upon completing the program you are familiar with the processes involved in the formation of the Earth. You understand how they work, their physical characteristics, and their material components. In addition, you understand the processes that continuously shape the Earth and the current diversity of life on Earth. You are also able to classify minerals and rocks, as well as document these in geological cross sections and maps. Further, your choice of specialization has resulted in the acquisition of additional specialist knowledge in the relevant discipline.

As a result of the mapping and field exercises accompanying your studies, you are accustomed to applying your skills in practice. Working in a group has provided you with distinctive social competencies, so that you are able to negotiate conflicts and take responsibility for your actions.