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Masters of Geophysics Degree Program

The Department of Geosciences offers a wide range of courses leading to the Degree of Master of Science in both Geology and Geophysics. Applicants to the Master's of Science Program must have earned a Bachelor's Degree or its equivalent. Applicants to graduate school will be evaluated based upon their Grade Point Average (GPA), Graduate Record Exams (GRE) scores, and letters of recommendation. A GPA of 3.0 or better in the last 60 hours and commensurate scores on the verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing sections of the GRE is generally considered acceptable for admission. GRE score must be at least 1100 for verbal and math section together and 3.0 for analytical writing. Individuals with a lower GPA but elevated GREs may also be admitted. Letters of recommendation are also given considerable weight in the evaluation process. All non-native English-speaking students must take the TOEFL examination and receive a score of 550 or better for the paper exam, 213 or better for the computer exam, and 79 or better for the internet-based exam.

All application forms, transcripts, test scores, and three letters of recommendation PDF should be sent to:

Sylvia Marshall, Advising Assistant
Geosciences Department
Rm. 312 SR1
University of Houston
Houston, Texas 77204-5007

Questions pertaining to application documents, procedure, and status should be addressed to the advising assistant, Sylvia Marshall (smarshall@uh.edu).
Questions pertaining to academic program and requirements should be addressed to the graduate advisor, Aibing Li (ali2@uh.edu).


Deadlines

Domestic students: The first Friday of July for the Fall, the first Friday of December for the Spring, and April 1st for the summer.

International students: General application deadlines are April 1st for the Fall semester, Oct. 1st for the Spring semester, and April 1st for summer enrollment.


Financial Aid

Students applying for financial support (Teaching Assistantships, Research Assistantships, Fellowships, etc.) should have all of the required forms, letters, scores into our departmental office by March 1st for the following Fall semester, and October 15th for the Spring semester. Additional funding may be available for late applicants. The Robert and Margaret Sheriff SEG Fellowship is available for first year international students

Do NOT send any material to the office of admissions!


Background Requirements

To ensure a common background for students in the Geophysics MS program, students will take or have successfully completed course work equivalent to the following courses:

  • GEOL 1330 (Physical Geology)
  • GEOL 1130 (Physical Geology Laboratory)
  • GEOL 3340 (Geologic Field Methods)
  • GEOL 3345 (Structural Geology)
  • GEOL 4330 (Introduction to Geophysics)
  • MATH 3331 (Differential Equations)
  • MATH 3363 (Intro. to Partial Differential Equations)
  • MATH 3364 (Intro. to Complex Analysis)

Substitution of courses equivalent to those listed above as well as waivers of requirements will be considered on an individual basis. Applicants with a few deficiencies can satisfy those requirements while also taking graduate courses at the University of Houston. It is normally recommended that a student with 6 or more deficiency courses, e.g., those whose undergraduate degree is in another discipline, consider working toward a second undergraduate degree in Geophysics prior to graduate work.


Program

A minimum of 30 credit hours is required for the M.S. degree in Geophysics, 6 of which are thesis hours. All students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with all rules, regulations, etc., of the University, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and Department of Geosciences and for meeting all requirements. Applicants are encouraged to review the detailed requirements for the M.S. degree posted here. Application forms for admission as well as financial support can be found on the degree programs page.

To provide a fundamental background in the essential elements of geophysics, all students are required to take the following 4 courses:

  • GEOL 7330 (Potential Field Methods of Geophysical Exploration)
  • GEOL 7341 (Geophysical Data Processing)
  • GEOL 7333 (Seismic Wave and Ray Theory)
  • GEOL 6397 (Rock Physics)

Students are encouraged to make their selections for other graduate courses after consultation with their thesis or graduate advisor.