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What classes do you have to take to be able to
take Oceanography in College?
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Question Date: 2014-09-09 | | Answer 1:
So the classes you take in high school don’t
really decide your major in college. For something
like Oceanography, you would certainly want to
take science classes or any class directly related
to the ocean. Though these will just give you a
better background and won’t be the deciding factor
on what you end up majoring in. In fact, many
people would say what you major in doesn’t even
have a large impact on what your eventual career
is. Generally speaking, in high school you
should take the classes that interest you the
most.
| | Answer 2:
In high school:
Math (up to calculus if possible, trigonometry if not)
Geology (if your school has it)
Physics (preferably advanced placement)
Biology
Chemistry
In college:
Oceanography (likely its own subject)
Atmospheric science/meteorology
Geology
Marine biology
Physics
| | Answer 3:
Oceanography is a multidisciplinary
science. This
means that to be a
smart oceanographer one needs to have a broad
background in science
and math.
So, one should study two years of Chemistry,
two years of Physics,
two years of Biology and as much Math as you can
tolerate. This
material becomes the background.
Then, depending on what ASPECT of Oceanography you
do research in, one
needs to acquire additional knowledge in Geology,
fluid Mechanics,
Meteorology and data management.
But while you study all this stuff, you should
simultaneously be
reading general Oceanography textbooks. From an
introductory textbook
you can come to learn of all the sub disciplines
within the GIANT
field of Oceanography.
| | Answer 4:
Beyond the basics that all high schools
require, take a lot of additional science and math
courses. There are a lot of different focuses in
Oceanography. Some people study the animals,
others the currents, others the effects of
temperature changes, etc. But regardless of what
your focus will be, you will likely need a good
background in Math (algebra, calculus, etc.),
Chemistry (the ocean is all about things mixing,
pH, etc.), Physics (the ocean is constantly
moving, along with the things that live in the
ocean), and Biology. With a good understanding of
these topics from high school, the college
introductory courses will be easier and you can
more quickly get into more advanced topics that
align more with your specific interests related to
Oceanography.
| | Answer 5:
It's great to hear that you're interested in
oceanography! In general, if you plan to become a
scientist, I would suggest becoming well-versed in
statistics, learning how to communicate your ideas
well, and learning how to learn (figure out how
you learn best!)
A more specific answer to your question would
probably depend on what kind of oceanography you
would like to do. For instance, typical subjects
of interest for biological oceanographers
(aka marine biologists) are the ecosystems,
behaviors, and effects of pollution on animals and
plants in the ocean. Some relevant classes may
be various biology and chemistry
classes. On the other hand, a chemical
oceanographer is interested in the
chemistry of the ocean and how pollutants might
affect the various ecosystems of the ocean.
Often, chemical oceanographers are also interested
in the effects of atmospheric and terrestrial
chemistry on ocean chemistry. Some relevant
classes might include organic, analytic,
atmospheric, and oceanographic chemistry, as
well as other basic earth science courses.
Physical oceanographers are interested in
the physical aspects of the ocean, such as
the relationship between the ocean's currents and
weather patterns. Physics courses such as fluid
mechanics/dynamics, thermodynamics, and a good
amount of math (calculus, differential equations,
etc.) would probably be good to take if you're
interested in this field of study.
Ultimately, what I would suggest to you is that
you develop as many transferable skills as you
can. For example, most scientists need to be able
to work with large amounts of data, so getting
comfortable with data analysis is a good
skill to have in your toolbox (this includes being
comfortable with the software and perhaps even
small amount of programming you might have
to do to carry out data analysis). I hope this
helps!
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