Meteorology Major

Professional Meteorology Concentration

The following is valid for the 2024-2025 catalog and onward.

Printable Professional Meteorology Degree Check Sheet 2024-2025 | Catalog Version

General Studies and Ethnic Studies & Social Justice Requirements – 24-36 credits

Meteorology Core for all students – 29 credits

• MTR 1400 Weather and Climate (3)
• MTR 2020 Weather and Climate Lab (1 (lab))
• MTR 2410 Weather Observing Systems (3)
• MTR 3000 Weather Discussion (1 credit lab)
• MTR 3040 Computer Programming for Meteorologists (3 with lab)
• MTR 3330 Climatology (3 with lab)
• MTR 3400 Synoptic Meteorology (3)
• MTR 3410 Weather Analysis Techniques (3 with lab)
• MTR 3420 Radar and Satellite Meteorology (3 with lab)
• MTR 3430 Atmospheric Thermodynamics (3)
• MTR 4600 Meteorology Research Seminar (3)

Professional Concentration Additional Courses:  43 credits

• MTR 3440 Physical Meteorology (3)
• MTR 3450 Dynamic Meteorology (3)
• MTR 4400 Advanced Synoptic Meteorology (4 with lab)
• MTR 4500 Mesometeorology (3)
• PHY 2311 General Physics I (4)
• PHY 2321 General Physics I Lab (1)
• PHY 2341 General Physics II Lab (1)
• CHE  1800 General Chemistry I  (4) 
• MTH 1410 Calculus I (4)
• MTH 2410 Calculus II (4)
• MTH 2420 Calculus III (4)
• MTH 3210 Probability and Statistics (4)
• MTH 3420 Differential Equations (4)

Professional Concentration Approved Meteorology Electives – Select at least 3 credits

____   GIS 2250 Geographic Information Systems (4), MTR 2050 Community Climate Initiatives (2), MTR 3000 Weather Discussion (Repeatable) (1), MTR 3100 Air Pollution (3), MTR 3340 Climate Change Science (3), MTR 3500 Hazardous Weather (3), MTR 3710 Meteorology Internship (2 – 6), MTR 3777 Field Observations of Severe Weather (3 field), MTR 3920 Directed Study in Meteorology (2 – 6), MTR  4210 Forecasting Laboratory (repeatable) (1 with lab), GIS 2250 Geographic Information Systems (4 with lab), CS 1050 Computer Science I (4), MTH 2520 R Programming (4), MTH 2540 Scientific Computing with Python (4), MTH 3130 Applied Methods in Linear Algebra (4), MTH 3220 Statistical Methods (4), MTH 3270 Data Science (4), or Any MTR course 2000+

Unrestricted Electives – 9 to 21 All students need 120 total credits to graduate.  The number of General Elective credits you will need depend on how many credits you have.  Many students take MTH 1110 College Algebra and MTH 1120 College Trigonometry, which will count towards 7 of your General Elective credits.).

Total credits for Meteorology Major =  120

Applied Meteorology Concentration

The following is valid for the 2024-2025 catalog and onward.

Printable Applied Meteorology Degree Check Sheet 2024-2025 | Catalog version

General Studies and Ethnic Studies & Social Justice Requirements – 24-36 credits

Meteorology Core for all students – 29 credits

• MTR 1400 Weather and Climate (3)
• MTR 2020 Weather and Climate Lab (1 (lab))
• MTR 2410 Weather Observing Systems (3)
• MTR 3000 Weather Discussion (1 credit lab)
• MTR 3040 Computer Programming for Meteorologists (3 with lab)
• MTR 3330 Climatology (3 with lab)
• MTR 3400 Synoptic Meteorology (3)
• MTR 3410 Weather Analysis Techniques (3 with lab)
• MTR 3420 Radar and Satellite Meteorology (3 with lab)
• MTR 3430 Atmospheric Thermodynamics (3)
• MTR 4600 Meteorology Research Seminar (3)

Applied Meteorology Concentration Additional Courses – 16 credits

• MTR 3500 Hazardous Weather (3) or MTR 4500 Mesometeorology (3)
• MTH 1410 Calculus I (4)
• MTH 3210 Probability and Statistics (4)
• PHY 2311 General Physics I (4) or PHY 2010 College Physics I (4)
• PHY 2321 General Physics I Lab (1) or PHY 2040 College Physics I Lab (1)

Applied Concentration Approved Meteorology Electives – Select at least 6 credits

____   MTR 2050 Community Climate Initiatives (2), MTR 3000 Weather Discussion (Repeatable) (1), MTR 3100 Air Pollution (3), MTR 3340 Climate Change Science (3), MTR 3710 Meteorology Internship (2 – 6), MTR 3777 Field Observations of Severe Weather (3 (field)), MTR 3920 Directed Study in Meteorology (2 – 6), MTR 4210 Forecasting Laboratory (repeatable) (1  (lab)), MTR 3440 Physical Meteorology (3)*, MTR 3450 Dynamic Meteorology (3)*, MTR 4500 Mesometeorology (3), MTR 4400 Advanced Synoptic Meteorology (4 with lab)*, MTR 2000-4999 Any non-1000-level meteorology course, ENV 3700 Mountain Environments (3), ENV 4470 Snow Hydrology (3), GEG 3410 Biogeography (3), GEL 4150 Hydrology (Surface Water) (3), GIS 2250 Geographic Information Systems (4), GIS 4840 Remote Sensing (4), CS 1050 Computer Science I (4), MTH 2520 R Programming (4), MTH 2540 Scientific Computing with Python (4). *Students in the applied concentration are unlikely to have the proper prerequisites for courses with an *

Students may choose an optional minor or fill out the rest of their coursework with unrestricted elective credits.  Students should take care to achieve 40 upper division credits total to graduate.  Students might enjoy one of the several minors offered in the Earth and Atmospheric Science department such as Climate Change, Geography, Geographical Information Systems (GIS), Geology, Environmental Science, Sustainability Studies.  Students might also enjoy minors in Math, Physics, Computer Science, Chemistry, Aviation Technology, Communication Studies, Journalism and Media Production, Sociology, or Water Studies.

Unrestricted Electives – 33-45 All students need 120 total credits to graduate.  The number of General Elective credits you will need depend on how many credits you have.  Many students take MTH 1110 College Algebra and MTH 1120 College Trigonometry, which will count towards 7 of your General Elective credits.)

Total credits for Meteorology Major = 120

Concentration Explanations

The Professional and Applied Meteorology concentrations began in catalog year 2022-2023.  Please visit the Previous Catalog Years page for degree check sheets before 2022-2023 when we did not have concentrations.

The Professional Meteorology degree is nearly identical to the degree we have always offered at MSU Denver and it conforms to the requirements for students to qualify to work for the National Weather Service (NWS)  It also fulfills the American Meteorological Society’s recommendations for a Bachelor’s degree in Meteorology.  Similarly, students wanting to eventually get the AMS Broadcast Certification will want the professional concentration.

The Applied Meteorology concentration is rather different in that it does not require the level of math demanded by the NWS.  Although we proudly tote several alumni who work at the National Weather Service throughout the country, we found that the majority of our alumni have found employment as successful broadcast (TV) meteorologists or as meteorologists in the private sector or even as science educators.  The Applied Meteorology degree is for students looking to personalize their degree a bit more than the very prescribed requirements of the Professional Meteorology degree.  For example, a student looking to produce or broadcast meteorology might choose to Major in Applied Meteorology and minor in Journalism and Media Production and focus their meteorology electives on severe weather.  (However, students wanting to eventually get the AMS Broadcast Certification will want the professional concentration.)  A student looking to work in the private sector on forecasting or instrumentation might major in Applied Meteorology and minor in Computer Science or GIS.  A student interested in climate change might major in Applied Meteorology and minor in Geography, Environmental Science, or even Sociology.  Beginning on 2024-2025 catalogs, a minor is optional.  Students might then choose to diversify their remaining credits to build their skill base in an area best for their career aspirations.  We recommend meeting with a meteorology professor for recommendations.

Students hoping to continue their studies in graduate school in Atmospheric Science (Meteorology) should choose the Professional Meteorology degree, but students open to going to graduate school for something different like Geography, Environmental Science, GIS, or a professional master’s might be okay to choose the Applied Meteorology degree.

All students are encouraged to develop their programming and mapping skills by taking courses in computer science, python, R, and GIS.  These skills are essential to marketability and we encourage you to take them early in your degree so the skills can be practiced in your Meteorology Research Seminar course.

Both concentrations share a Meteorology core, then branch off and have their own required courses, then have their own list of meteorology electives.  Use the accordions above by hitting the plus sign to see the requirements for each concentration.

Students on older catalogs may declare the Applied Concentration by moving up their catalog to 2024-2025.  Students on older catalogs wanting the Professional concentration shouldn’t bother, the old degree is essentially the same.  Please visit the Previous Catalog Years page for degree check sheets for 2023-2024 and previous years.

All current students can see their current catalog and requirements by visiting their Degree Progress Report and may also choose to try a “What If” report to see how their coursework might fit into a different catalog.  Please see an advisor to chat!