Following Klein’s keynote address in the Student Union multipurpose room, students were split into groups to make the rounds between three other events: a career panel, a current student panel and hands-on activities like the augmented-reality sandbox.
During the career panel, students heard from Klein, Matthew Van Grinsven (CalGEM), Sade Haake (CalGEM) and Raj Dhillon (California Resources Corporation). Each took a few moments to explain their jobs and their journey with geology. All the panelists said a big draw of geology for them was a love for the outdoors.
“(Geology) requires being outdoors, not just sitting at a desk all day, and I just fell in love with it,” Dhillon said. “And the deeper I went, I realized it was not just about rocks. It’s a whole new world out there. You can work in subsurface, you can work with water, you can do consulting work, and you can teach.”
In another panel, current geology students took turns sharing about the research and internship experiences they have been able to pursue at CSUB. Maggie Izumi spoke about her internship at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Tyler Garza spoke about his internship at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Brooklyn Macross spoke about her research on critical minerals and Ryan Tengelsen, Garrett Cooper and Trace Hicks each spoke about their recent experiences on a Labrador Sea research cruise.
Izumi went into detail about her research on hydrogen storage, citing it as an example that the work CSUB geology students do is “solving real world problems right here in our own backyard.” Her involvement has taken her not just to the Bay Area for her research, but to conferences in Anaheim, Washington D.C., and soon New Orleans. Like her fellow presenters, Izumi emphasized that these trips were all paid for and her research work was compensated.
In his presentation, Tengelsen echoed Izumi’s point that even though they are students, the research they are doing is much more than simple lab exercises.
“If you love being very hands-on, if you love working outside, with geology, you get to go around to so many cool places and you get to do so many cool things,” he said. On the research cruise, “we’re not just sitting there and watching. We’re handling the equipment and helping the crew members.”
Geology faculty members regularly need student research assistants, and the students all encouraged the crowd of future students to make connections with them.
“Just talk to your professors,” Macross said. “They have so many funding opportunities. If you are going to college, no matter what your major is, just talk to your professors. Get friendly with them. They’re not scary. They’re excited for students to get involved.”
Back in the multipurpose room before breaking for lunch, students heard from Dr. Matthew Herman, associate professor of geology at CSUB. Dr. Herman spoke more about careers in geology, encouraging students to choose careers for which they have a passion.
Camille Valadez is a geology teacher at Ridgeview High School who is a CSUB geology alumna herself. She brought about 70 college-bound seniors to Geology Day. She hoped her students left the day with some insights into the opportunities they have in college.
“Whether they are getting a degree in geology or not, college isn’t just about going to school,” she said. “It’s about networking and experiences and all of the other cool things that they’ll learn and get to be a part of.”
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