Skip to content

Geology Education Abroad Guide

Student looking at icebergs in Iceland
CU Boulder Education Abroad offers over 400 programs in over 70 countries! You can go abroad for a semester, year, 2-12 weeks in the summer, or even winter break. Going abroad is strongly encouraged by the Geology department. Use the following information as a general guideline to plan your time abroad, and connect with your academic advisor as well. Work with Education Abroad advisors to get more details on how to get started, discuss your program options, and next steps. 

Quick Facts

  • Go abroad sophomore or junior year, summer after sophomore year is also a great time to study abroad
  • The most common degree requirements taken abroad are upper-division GEOL electives, certain Gen Ed courses, and general elective hours
  • Use the Course Approvals List to find programs that offer courses approved for the credit you need

Planning and When to Go

  • First-year: Start planning for education abroad! Take Gen Ed and GEOL courses that may not be available on the education abroad program you choose (see below for more details). Try to stay on track with your ancillary course sequences in chemistry, calculus and physics.
  • Sophomore: Finish lower-division GEOL courses so you'll have the pre-reqs needed for the upper-division GEOL classes you need upon return to CU Boulder. Continue completing your ancillary math/science sequence courses. Going abroad during sophomore year is less common, but possible.  Summer after sophomore year is a great time to go abroad and fulfill some A&S Gen Ed classes.
  • Junior: Go abroad! Meet with advisor on plans on how you will complete your field requirement for the major as the upper division field requirement is also difficult to take abroad. If there are certain courses you plan on taking as a senior, make sure you’ve completed the pre-reqs, or be certain that your education abroad courses will suffice.
  • Senior: Work closely with your advisor to ensure that you can get all of your requirements completed.
    Be sure that you know when the credits may be transcripted, as this can delay your official graduation date.

What Kind of Credit Can You Earn Abroad?

Usually Doable Tricky Probably Not
General Electives  A&S Gen Ed GEOL A&S Gen Ed GEOL A&S Gen Ed GEOL
Overall credit hours  Arts and Humanities, Natural Science (Non-Lab), Social Sciences Upper-division GEOL electives Global Diversity N/A
 		 Natural Science (Lab), Written Communication Ancillary courses
 

Suggested Programs

Use these links to find programs that may be a good match for you and your course needs.
   

Additional Resources

Last Updated March 2023