# Hopeful Geologist in distress! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 14, 2014, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hopeful-geologist-in-distress/688424 "2014-05-14T09:04:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2014, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hopeful-geologist-in-distress/688424/21 "2014-05-14T21:05:01Z")
> [@FeAudrey](#): > > I’ll see “Rachellelogram” 's repeat of Calc I, and raise her a pre-calculus course. Your problems with math go back further than where you hit the wall. > > The benefit of math classes is less being able to do the calculations than being able to set up the problems. It’s a basic subject that you need to be solid in. > > As is physics, both for chemistry, which underlies geology, and the geology itself. Strata all the way down! 😛 Good call. I actually tested into Calc II myself, but ended up taking Calc I just to be on the safe side (in case my brain rotted a little over the summer). Nothing wrong with a semester of review before getting to the hard stuff. ---
**Author:** ![PurpleClogs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f04885/32.png) [@PurpleClogs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PurpleClogs)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2014, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hopeful-geologist-in-distress/688424/22 "2014-05-14T22:49:39Z")
Calc wasn’t my prob, it was statistics! I had to take that damn class 3 times before i came out with a B. the 3rd time was a different professor and he let us use calculators and take handwritten formula sheets into the exams. It matters who is teaching so shop around. Ask students who passed it already what prof to take. Don’t get married to a career dream just yet. Keep an open mind and aim for what you like and have a natural talent for and you’ll end up a much happier employee of whatever employer you work for someday. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2014, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hopeful-geologist-in-distress/688424/23 "2014-05-14T23:12:33Z")
They don’t call calculus (and physics and organic chemistry) “weed out” classes for nothing. Think of it as an elaborate hazing ritual. If you make it out, you’ve proven that you’re smart enough and diligent enough to handle anything that NASA (or whomever else) throws at you. If you really want to be a geologist, or a scientist in general, you’ll need to get out of the habit of saying you “dim” at math. That’s like a English major saying they are “dim” when it comes to vocabulary, yet they intend on being the next William Faulkner. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t take such a person very seriously. So stop saying you are “dim” and instead say you’re having temporary difficulty that you are trying to rectify. Assuming you haven’t been diagnosed with any learning problems, you can rectify this with enough work. For me, the quality of instruction mattered a lot more in my calc classes than it did in my other subjects. I could kind of teach myself chemistry and physics if I read the textbook hard enough. But my success with calc really depended on the skill of the professor. Whenever I was stuck with sucky professors, I’d drag my ass to the tutorial sessions run out of the math department. Every evening I’d be in there working on my homework with other students. Even when I kinda-sorta got what was going on in class, I’d be there because I’d usually learn something new. Are you studying with other students? If you are not, start now. I would also ask your professor for help whenever you can. ---
**Author:** ![Char\_Aznable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d07c76/32.png) [@Char\_Aznable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Char_Aznable)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2014, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hopeful-geologist-in-distress/688424/24 "2014-05-15T02:06:33Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > OK, let me just check one thing here - a D is like 50-60%, right? Not a failing grade. Nope not at my university at least; hence why I am still allowed to register for Calc 2 ---
**Author:** ![Char\_Aznable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d07c76/32.png) [@Char\_Aznable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Char_Aznable)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2014, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hopeful-geologist-in-distress/688424/25 "2014-05-15T02:30:17Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > With that in mind, your goal at this point should probably be getting into a grad school program at a school with a strong planetary geology/geophysics program or even just a professor who’s done work in that field. Doing research along those lines will maximize your chance of maybe getting an occasional gig at NASA and even if you don’t it’s still the same kind of science. Absolutely, I made some ground on that today in between downtime at work, and have narrowed it down to University of Arizona, or remaining at UH since there is a professor here already who is in fact on a board for NASA. I am leaning toward staying at my current college because I am already somewhat acquainted with this professor, and would like to have him on my committee when I do my masters thesis > [@lieu](#): > > Geologist here. As mentioned above, much of the calculating needs you’ll encounter in your average day to day responsibilities as a geologist are routinely carried out by the software applications you’re using; dips, fault throws, TVDSS, volumetrics, etc. You will need to be able to do some basic calculations yourself, often times in the field but they’re not rocket science, even for NASA folks, and just having a good grasp of geometry and being able to visualize structures and movement in 3D and apply formulas to measure and predict those accurately should suffice. > > For the record, how are you doing in your geology classes? Also, again as mentioned above, how about in writing? You’ll need to share your observations and interpretations with team members and managers and the ability to write concisely and communicate effectively is equally important. Well as far as writing is concerned I am an English man in all sorts of the word. I have made 4.0’s in all of my composition courses, and even did so after already obtaining the credits in highschool through AP testing, and once more in dual credit simply because I ran out of English classes to take my senior year. I really do appreciate you letting me know how much computation is involved in real world on the job settings, and this is something that really quells my fears. I am still resolved to do as good as a can in math, and will do whatever it takes to get a decent grade in my remaining courses In regards to my geology classes as of now all I have under my belt is an intro class which I took my first semester, I got a B- in it but it would have been a B+ if transportation complications didnt prevent me from going to the extra credit field observation. I take the lab to the aforementioned course this upcoming semester and expect to do well in it. I have transferred in with so many credits however, that after this next semester the only courses I will have to take for my BS are Physics, Calculus 3, and all of my other Geology related courses. So basically when Calculus and physics are out of the way it is literally a straight shot all the way to my BS, and if I stay on track I will be able to have it by the age of 21 or 22 leaving plenty of time for me to work on my masters and even doctorate 🙂 > [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > Honestly asking - is this a legit premise? I would think that a Calc II would cover pretty much the same material whether taken at a community college or a 4 year university. If the class content varies significantly from school to school, then it becomes meaningless. I hate to say that it is…but it is. Simply put my community college curriculum is much more glazed over than my University curriculum. As quiet as it is kept the University of Houston has a math curriculum that is on par in difficulty with schools such as Vandy and Spellman. Hence why I am so hesitant to go the community college route. > [@MrDibble](#): > > I’d think for NASA we’d be talking PhD, at least. This ironically is not the stem of my fears. As I already stated I feel that I could do well in the Geology major courses when math is out of the way depending on how harshly they draw off of Calculus, and even then I am still confident in my ability to succeed in them. I really do feel that when math is done I will literally have the keys to the kingdom in my possession 😃 (well not literally but still) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hopeful-geologist-in-distress/688424.md?page=1)