Department of Earth, Environmental & Planetary Sciences

Undergraduate Program

DEEPS prepares students for diverse careers through an innovative undergraduate program supported by one of the nation's top research departments.

DEEPS Undergraduate Listserv

The GEOUNDERGRADS listserv is an email list for all the Brown undergraduate students who have declared their concentration, are active within, and/or are interested in DEEPS.

Undergraduate Program

DEEPS prepares students for diverse careers through an innovative undergraduate program supported by one of the nation's top research departments.

We encourage students of all backgrounds to learn more about how the land, water, and air around us directly affect our lives, whether by taking one course, or several, or a concentration program with independent research. Are you interested in mitigating climate change and environmental problems? Earthquakes, volcanoes, and other natural hazards? How the Earth's surface and interior have evolved over time? Whether other planets are habitable? These are just a sampling of the fundamental topics that we address in DEEPS.

Our department is known on campus for being open, friendly, and uniquely down-to-Earth. With approximately 30 faculty, 60 undergraduate concentrators, and 60 graduate students, classes are comfortably small, and faculty, graduates, and undergraduates interact frequently. Undergraduates are able to engage in varied research opportunities.

After graduation, DEEPS concentrators pursue a wide variety of career options, including environmental consulting, academia and geoscience education at all levels, government agencies like NASA, NOAA, EPA, and the USGS, non-governmental agencies (NGOs), technology and software companies, the green energy sector, and much more. The success of the undergraduate program is demonstrated by the demand for DEEPS graduates in top-notch graduate programs across the nation and in jobs that require the ability to solve important and complex problems.

DEEPS courses (EEPS course code in Courses@Brown) build expertise in applying concepts from biology, chemistry, physics, math, and computing to understanding the environment and processes at the surface and in the interior of the Earth and other planetary bodies. We offer A.B. and Sc.B degrees in four concentrations (Geology-Biology, Geology-Chemistry, Geology-Physics/Math, and Geological Sciences), allowing students to flexibly pursue their interests. 

Undergraduate Courses

DEEPS courses are uniquely suited to providing in-depth, hands-on learning opportunities about the Earth, our environment, and other planets.

Undergraduate Concentrations

DEEPS provides a highly collaborative learning environment that emphasizes process-oriented, active learning in courses, in research labs, and on field trips.

Undergraduate Research

Whether you enjoy making measurements in the lab, analyzing data and modeling processes through computing, or collecting samples in the field, there are research opportunities in DEEPS that will let you develop your interests.

Other Opportunities and Events

DEEPS offers students a close community and diverse learning opportunities, including career development events, field trips, and social activities.

Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)

Undergraduates from around the nation are invited to come to Brown University this summer to engage in cutting-edge research in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences.

GeoDUG

The DEEPS Departmental Undergraduate Group (GeoDUG) is a group of concentrators that plan events and activities intended to build a sense of community within the concentration.

Learn more

Undergraduate Advisors

We encourage you to talk with one of the undergraduate advisors about courses, concentrations, and research possibilities.

DEEPS Undergraduate Listserv

The GEOUNDERGRADS listserv is an email list for all the Brown undergraduate students who have declared their concentration, are active within, and/or are interested in DEEPS.