24-2 From Campus to Cloud: Rethinking Graduate Education in the Geosciences

Session: Transforming Geoscience Education: Reimagining how we teach the Earth (Posters)

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Abstract:

Fifteen years ago, advanced graduate degrees offered fully online were exceedingly rare. Only a small number of universities hosted such programs, and most required students to visit campus one or two times per semester. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, fundamentally transformed higher education by rapidly expanding educators’ capacity to connect with students in virtual environments. As courses moved fully online out of necessity in 2020, there was a parallel explosion in digital platforms designed to support remote teaching and collaboration. At the same time, students’ personal and professional lives have become increasingly integrated into online spaces through social media and, more recently, artificial intelligence–driven tools. These shifts raise important questions about the future of graduate education. In response, some universities are developing fully online, asynchronous, and highly structured master’s programs. This poster examines online graduate programs in the geosciences, using the University of Georgia as a case study, to highlight efforts to create rigorous learning environments that equip students with the technical skills and practical tools needed to either secure their desired careers or advance within their current organizations.

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