Graduate Program Outcomes Data

 

1) Presentation and Publication Totals

USU Geology Graduate Student Presentations and Publications 2010 - 2016

 

2) Degree Completion Rates

Out of 75 total graduate students entering the program from 2010 – 2016, 68 students successfully completed their graduate degrees. That is 91% of students. Only seven students left the program without completing. Most of these were for family, medical, or change-in-employment reasons.

Geology Graduate Degrees Granted 2010 - 2016

Year	MS (Plan A)	AEG-MS (Plan B)	PhD	Total
2010	5	—	—	5
2011	5	1	—	6
2012	2	1	2	5
2013	8	—	2	10
2014	3	1	3	7
2015	4	—	1	5
2016	3	2	—	5
Total	30	5	8	43

3) Time to Completion

The first PhD students were admitted into our relatively young PhD Geology program in 2007. The second cohort of PhD students graduating from 2012-2016 completed in an average of 4 years. We consider this meeting an optimum target for a research-based PhD, especially with the inclusion of a teaching or industry internship.

MS Plan A students graduating from 2012-2016 have required, on average, 2.5 years for completion. This is reasonable for Thesis projects that require both field and laboratory components. In addition, many of our MS students spend a semester in an internship, which greatly enhances their training and marketability upon graduation. Data from the American Geosciences Institute indicates that across the nation, Geology MS students require an average of 2.75 years for degree completion.

4) Employment Outcomes

Our tracking of students after they have completed our program indicates high success in our graduates obtaining employment in the geosciences and in being accepted into further graduate programs of their choice: see Geology Post-Graduate Outcomes 2010-2016.

Students who graduated during the interval 2010-2016 have the following post-graduation careers (for 41 out of 43 total graduates, or 95%):

Petroleum Industry	=	19/43 (44%)
Environmental/Engineering Consulting	=	7/43 (16%)
Pursuing PhD Degree after MS	=	5/43 (12%)
State or National Geologic Surveys	=	4/43   (9%)
Higher Eduction/Academia	=	4/43   (9%)
K-12 Education	=	1/43   (2%)
Mining Industry	=	1/43   (2%)