Academics
Find out about the 2014 Stanford Reactive Transport (StaRT) Summer School, co-taught by Kate Maher and Jenny Druhan (NSF postdoctoral fellow at Stanford).
The graduate and undergraduate students of EIG come from a diverse array of educational backgrounds, including chemical engineering, civil and environmental engineering, and mathematics, in addition to the earth sciences. All share a passion for the environment and for scientific inquiry.
PhD students are encouraged to have field, analytical and theoretical components to their research projects. Within the School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences we offer a broad array of classes in isotope geochemistry, environmental geochemistry, geomicrobiology, thermodynamics, reactive transport, hydrology and modeling of Earth systems. An even broader array of courses is available through other Departments and programs within the University.
Undergraduate students from across Stanford conduct independent research with our group during the summer through two Stanford programs, SURGE and SURPS. We also provide many opportunities for independent research at the undergraduate level in the summer and throughout the academic year. The majority of these undergraduate research projects result in presentations at scientific meetings and ultimately peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals. A substantial fraction of these talented undergraduate researchers have gone on to pursue majors and M.S. or PhD degrees in earth science or a related field.
In 2012, Kate was awarded the Cox Medal for Fostering Undergraduate Research for her efforts in mentoring undergraduate researchers.
Related Courses
Course work will vary strongly depending on the research project. The following courses are recommended but students are encouraged to explore new courses that would add an interesting perspective to their research and experience. A strong background in chemistry and fluid mechanics is also useful.
- GES 163: Introduction to Isotope Geochemistry (GES 263)
- GES 170: Environmental Geochemistry (EARTHSYS 170)
- GES 171: Geochemical Thermodynamics
- GES 224: Modeling Transport and Transformations in the Environment
- GES 237: Surface and Near-Surface Hydrologic Response (CEE 260B)
- GES 238: Soil Physics
- GES 261: Physics and Chemistry of Minerals and Mineral Surfaces
- GES 273: Isotope Geochemistry Seminar
- EESS 211: Fundamentals of Modeling (EARTHSYS 211)
- EESS 216: Terrestrial Biogeochemistry (BIO 216)
- EESS 220: Physical Hydrogeology (CEE 260A)
- EESS 221: Contaminant Hydrogeology (CEE 260C)
- EESS 234: Stable Isotopes in Biogeochemistry
- EESS 256: Soil and Water Chemistry
- EESS 258 Geomicrobiology
- CHEM 271 Advanced Physical Chemistry
- CHEM 273 Advanced Physical Chemistry
- ENERGY 221 Fundamentals of Multiphase Flow
- ENERGY 252 Chemical Kinetics Modeling
- ENERGY 253 Carbon Capture and Sequestration
- CEE 177 Aquatic Chemistry and Biology
- CEE 262A Hydrodynamics
- CEE 262B Transport and Mixing in Surface Water Flows
- CEE 266A Watersheds and Wetlands (CEE 166A)
- CEE 273 Aquatic Chemistry
- CEE 274A Environmental Microbiology
Student Opportunities
We have opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral research with the laboratory. Please contact us to discuss possibilities.
You can also find potential undergraduate summer research opportunities through: