Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences - Minor

The Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (ATOC) offers an undergraduate minor for students pursuing a bachelor's degree in another academic department. Students who successfully complete a major at CU Boulder in a quantitative field, such as physics or chemistry, and a minor in ATOC, will be prepared for graduate work in atmospheric and oceanic sciences. The ATOC minor is offered through the College of Arts and Sciences and is noted on the official CU Boulder transcript.

Although the ATOC minor is primarily designed for students who are interested in developing a knowledge base in atmospheric and oceanic sciences with an emphasis on the earth's climate, there is considerable latitude within the minor program for students to design a course of study that is tailored to their individual interests.

Students who wish to declare the ATOC minor should contact the ATOC Undergraduate & Graduate Program Assistant by email at atocasst@colorado.edu or by phone at 303-492-6633.  Questions regarding coursework or advising should be directed to the ATOC minor advisor, Dr. Katja Friedrich, at katja.friedrich@colorado.edu.

Requirements

A minimum of 18 credits is required for the minor, at least 9 of which must be upper-division (see list below). The other 9 may be lower-division, upper-division or a combination of both.

All coursework applied to the minor must be completed with a grade of C- or better; no pass/fail work may be applied. Students must have at least a C (2.00) average for all attempted work in atmospheric and oceanic sciences.

Courses toward a minor may also be applied toward graduation requirements, as well as the major requirements for a non-ATOC major. Students are allowed to apply no more than 9 credit hours, including 6 upper-division credit hours, of transfer work to a minor.

Available Courses