ETSU Students Get Skills, Field Experience In Geosciences

From East Tennessee State University:

February 7, 2022

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Melissa Magno’s role as a geologist at Colliers
Engineering & Design is diverse. She observes and samples drilling operations. She
crafts maps, figures and reports based on her interpretations of a range of data.

Magno, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in geology from East Tennessee State
University in 2018, landed her current role at the Charlotte, North Carolina based-firm
after working as both a consultant and field technician.

The education she received at ETSU helped prepare her for the professional world.

As an ETSU student, she served as a research assistant in a study that analyzed household
risk perception for potential volcano eruptions in Hawaii. She completed lab analysis
of soil samples and was active in education outreach for geosciences. And parts of
her thesis have been published in Applied and Environmental Soil Science – a journal
that accepts only 22% of submitted articles.

She met her current supervisor at a professional development meeting arranged by the
department.

“Needless to say, I would not be where I am today without the Geosciences Department and the encouragement and insight of their amazing staff,” she said.

Many good paying jobs exist for those who leave ETSU with a degree in geosciences,
according to department chair Dr. Arpita Nandi.

Over the last decade, alumni have landed positions in laboratories and governments,
as well as acceptance into graduate programs. Employment of geoscientists is projected
to grow 7% through 2030, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Because the varied programs in geosciences often aren’t taught in high schools, plenty
of soon-to-be college students simply don’t know about the potential opportunities.

“Our diverse program, focused on academics, research and field training, prepares
out students exceptionally well for the professional world,” said Nandi, who teaches
courses ranging from an introductory class in geology to a higher-level course focused
on engineering geology. “Our students have great success after they leave our beautiful
campus.”

At ETSU, undergraduate students have the option to major in geography, geology and
environment, geospatial and paleontology. Opportunities go beyond the classroom.

Students get real-world experience at the Don Sundquist Center of Excellence in Paleontology at ETSU. The center helps manage and oversee the Gray Fossil Site and Museum, home
to a repository for ETSU’s paleontology collections and an ecosystem millions of years
old.

Faculty take students to area caves, streams, faults, gullies and the Appalachian
Trail. A field experience class allows students to travel to specific regions to study
geography and geology.

Professors and students utilize drones in geospatial research, recently capturing
images of archaeological sites and photos of the grassy bald expansion on nearby Roan
Mountain.

Amanda Oler, a December 2021 graduate who concentrated in geospatial science and minored
in geology, landed two internships. At the Jonesborough Water Department, she collected
GPS data that covered 200 miles of valves, mains, hydrants and meters. At the Johnson
City Water Department, she worked on a project related to a rule handed down by the
EPA in 2020 designed to improve public health by reducing exposure to lead and copper
in drinking water.

“In geographic information system (GIS), all our work is project based. I gained a
lot of experience with a variety of different project types,” said Oler, who hopes
to land a job working in local government when her internship in Johnson City ends.
“GIS is so broad that we dabbled in a little bit of everything to get a general idea
of what could be seen on the job.”

The Jefferson City, Tennessee, native transferred to ETSU with an associate’s degree
in psychology. Her high school offered little content related to geosciences.

“Outside of a few chapters in our regular science books in middle school, I had no
exposure to geosciences before college. All I knew was that I wanted to change my
path and it was likely going to be science,” she said. “Geosciences was perfect: low
on math, endless careers and environmentally oriented. On a whim I decided to tour
ETSU’s Ross Hall one day and it confirmed my suspicions. The wall-to-wall maps and
rock samples convinced me to decide on geosciences with confidence.”

To learn more, visit etsu.edu/cas/geosciences/default.php.

This press release was produced by East Tennessee State University. The views expressed are the author's own.