Careers in Earth System Science & Engineering

Current Job Openings

• American Geophysical Union Job Search: careers.agu.org/jobs
• American Meteorological Society Career Center: www.ametsoc.org/careercenter/index.html
• I.M. Systems Group, Inc. (IMSG) Current Opportunities: www.imsg.com/index.php/careers/current-opportunities/
• CLIMATE-L community subscribers Climate Change Job Vacancies Update: climate-l.iisd.org/climate-change-job-vacancies-update

Did you know?

According to a recent study, students with degrees in Atmospheric Science have one of the lowest unemployment rates at 1.6%. Geological and Geophysical Engineering is even better at 0%.  SOURCE: Yahoo News

AOSS graduates go on to diverse careers in a variety of areas. Employers know that U-M graduates are well-rounded, knowledgeable individuals ready to tackle the tasks before them intelligently.

AOSS students obtain a professional degree that allows them to enter fields such as space engineering, weather forecasting, and analysis of atmospheric information for a broad range of applications including environmental assessment, resource management, and risk assessment. Graduates from the ESSE program have a scientific background that can support careers in primary and secondary education and communication. All of these areas require analytic thinking, the ability to look at problems creatively, and the insight needed to ask the right questions.

Some of the many career options open to you upon graduation with your BSE from AOSS include:

Earth Systems Science & Engineering

• Meteorology and weather forecasting
  • NWS occupational requirements
  • AMS guidance
  • Career Information: A Guide to Meteorology Resources
• Climate research and policy
• Environmental assessment

Space Science

• Space weather
• Geospace science
• Planetary science

Space Engineering

• Mission design
• Scientific instrumentation
• Remote sensing

Science Policy Internships

• American Geological Institute (AGI) Government Affairs Program:14 week spring and fall internships, 12 week summer internship, all full-time.
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Graduate Studies

Pursuing graduate degrees on the path to your career is recommended for those interested in securing research and/or acadmic positions.  You AOSS Faculty Advisor is an excellent source of information about degree programs.

• Planetary Science Programs for Grad School
• What Does it Take to Get Into Grad School?

Career Advice

• Career Resource Center
• CoE Bulletin - Student Life Career Resources
• Career Research Database

Research Opportunities Offered by the University of Michigan

• CoE Summer Undergraduate Research in Engineering (SURE)
• CoE Summer Research Opportunity Program for Non-UM Studensts (SROP)
• Rackham: SROP
• NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) at U-M Biological Station (UMBS): Biosphere-Atmosphere Interactions in a Changing Global Environment
• UROP
• UM Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Program, research opportunities for Marian Sarah Parker Scholars (MSP)

Research opportunities at other institutions

• 
CalTech
• Columbia
• The National Suborbital Education and Research Center (NSERC)
• University of Colorado at Boulder
• Colorado State University
• University of Oklahoma
• National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)
• 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

• Beltsville Center for Climate System Observation
• The Rocky Mountain Sustainability and Science Network Summer Academy
• Others listed on NSF page

Internships

• American Meteorological Society (AMS)
• Smithsonian
• NASA 

• Department of Energy (DoE) Science Undergraduate Laboratory Interships (SULI)

Scholarships


• NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarships
• American Meteorological Society (AMS) scholarships


Department of Energy (DoE) opportunities

DOE provides funding to gain research experience at national labs

• Argonne National Lab
• Los Alamos National Lab
• Pacific Northwest National Lab

• Sandia National Lab
• National Renewable Energy Lab
• DOE Scholars Program

Blogs and other interesting information

• AGU Blogosphere - A community of Earth and Space Science blogs: 
  • http://blogs.agu.org/magmacumlaude/2012/04/04/talking-with-undergrads-about-nontraditional-careers-in-the-geosciences/
• United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Atmospheric Scientists, Including Meteorologists Occupational Outlook Handbook
  • http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Life-Physical-and-Social-Science/Atmospheric-scientists-including-meteorologists.htm
• Atmospheric Science Overview from the Sloan Career Conerstone Center
  • www.careercornerstone.org/pdf/atmsci/atmsci.pdf

Here are some of the places our graduates have found jobs

• Aerospace Engineering
• NASA - Goddard Space Flight Center
• NASA - Marshall Space Flight Center
• NASA - Ames Research Center
• The Aerospace Company, California
• Northrop Grumman Space Technology
• Dept. of Environmental Quality, State of Michigan
• Ford Motor Company
• National Weather Service
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• University of Colorado
• UCAR
• NCAR
• Rice University Physics and Astronomy Department
• US EPA Grants Admin Division
• Gas & Elect Company
• Point Beach Nuclear Plant
• Galson Corporation
• Civil Engineering/OSV
• American Metrological Society
• Harris Corporation
• Consumers Power
• Vista Research, Inc
• U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
• Black & Decker, Inc.
• Tycho Technology
• Great Lakes Research Division
• Proctor and Gamble
• Lockheed Palo Alto Research Lab
• National Center for Research Administration
• Triad Systems Corporation
• Michigan/Wisconsin Pipe Line
• Mobil Oil
• Peak Placement