257 Diversifying Geoscience Education Across the Academic Playing Field: Using Creative Methods to Foster the Current and Next Generations of Geoscience Professionals (Posters)

A wide range of geoscience educators across several disciplines will share a multitude of diverse and innovative ideas regarding lesson plans, projects, and pedagogical techniques best suited for today’s ever-changing classrooms.

Wednesday, 22 October 2025
8:00 AM - 5:30 PM
HBGCC, Hall 1

LET’S GEO: An á la carte Program for Helping Geoscience Students Gain Career Skills - What Worked, What Didn’t, and What’s Sustainable

Paper number: 257-1
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 8:00 AM – 8:00 AM

Authors

Abstract

As the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) Geosciences Department’s NSF IUSE GEOPAths funded LET’S GEO (Learning Ecosystem for Training Student Geoscientists for Employment Opportunities) program ends after four years, we provide a retrospective of this innovative career preparedness program.

Student participation in this program was á la carte, with UWM graduate and undergraduate students opting in to various opportunities. Major elements included: (1) mentee-mentor pairings between UWM Geoscience students and geoscience professionals, (2) free in-person HAZWOPER 40-hour training course, offered annually, (3) series of three 1-credit career-centered courses, offered every spring, (4) frequent colloquia and professional visitor events focused on non-academic geoscience careers, (5) career-related local field trips arranged with prospective employers, (6) support for students studying for and taking the ASBOG Fundamentals of Geology (FG) Exam, (7) student resume feedback from professional geoscientists, and (8) sponsored attendance at or participation in geoscience conferences. During the 3rd year (2023-2024), 61% of our students participated in one or more LET’S GEO activity, including 39% of UWM Geoscience majors (n=27), 100% of MS students (n=12), and 78% of PhD students (n=7). This was an increase over years 1 and 2, in which 45% and 37% of our students (grad and UG combined) participated.

Of these activities, the professional visitor events (requiring minimal time commitment) were the best attended by both undergraduate (29%) and graduate students (76%). Other elements (higher time commitment) had lower attendance rates: <20% of undergraduate students and up to 62% of graduate students. The FG study group was least successful; despite two student cohorts forming study groups, no students took the exam.

Survey data for the mentor program, including both mentees (n=21) and mentors (n=43), indicated overwhelming support for the program, with 4.91/5 for mentors and 5/5 for mentees agreeing they would recommend the program. A more general survey of UWM graduates before and after LET’S GEO is currently underway, to compare perceptions of career preparedness.

Some aspects of the project could continue, including a scaled-back mentor program (without incentives, targeting students closer to graduation), occasional career-focused colloquium speakers, and the career-centered courses. Others such as HAZWOPER, while valuable, are not sustainable without funding. A critical “win” for this program is the closer ties and reinvigorated communications with our alumni and other regional nonacademic geoscientists.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 57, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-412083

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