Graduate Program

A central intent of the UW PCC is the development of a core of students and faculty with a collaborative, interdisciplinary approach to climate science. The PCC is not a degree-granting department, but provides opportunities for cross-disciplinary interaction and study for students with academic homes in colleges and departments across the UW campus.


Core courses:

  • Climate Dynamics (Au)ATM S/OCN/ESS 587
  • The Global Carbon Cycle and Greenhouse Gases (Wi) OCN/ATM S/ESS 588
  • Paleoclimatology: Data, Modeling and Theory (alt Sp), ESS/OCN/ATM S 589
  • Paleoclimate Proxies (alt Sp) OCN/ATM/ESS 554
  • Climate Modeling (alt Sp), ATM S/ESS 559 and OCEAN 558.

    • PCC Seminars:

    • Current Research in Climate Change (OCN/ESS/ATM S 586) AU: follows the topic of the annual theme. WI: seminar is often student directed.
    • Communicating Climate Science Seminar(W), ATM S/ESS/OEAN 593.

    Links to quarterly climate offerings and departmental seminar listings.


    Graduate Fellowships

    Graduate student fellowships are an important part of the PCC, and are awarded to highly qualified students interested or involved in interdisciplinary climate research. Traditionally, fellowships are awarded to incoming students in one of the PCC core departments of Atmospheric Science, Earth and Space Science and Oceanography. Recipients are selected by the home departments with PCC representation, and offered as part of the admissions process.

    To enhance PCC's interdisciplinary flavor, we now also award PCC fellowships to students outside the core departments. We are able to award one nine-month at-large fellowship for the academic year 2010/2011; the student may be an incoming, first year student, or an existing student enrolled in a degree granting UW department, excluding those in departments that currently receive PCC fellowships (ESS, Chemical and Physical Oceanography, and Atmospheric Sciences). More information.


    Graduate Certificates

    • GCeCS-The Graduate Certificate in Climate Science was created to provide an interdisciplinary training in methods, research issues, and communication of climate science that enhances the scientific breadth and professional employability of GCeCS awardees. The certificate combines the PCC courses, specifically designed to address the cross-linkages in the earth system that disciplinary curricula are not able to do, with a capstone project in Communicating Climate Science.

    Two certificates are administered by the Program on the Environment:

    • IPDES-Interdisciplinary and Policy Dimensions of the Earth Sciences. Administered by the Program on the Environment,and directed by Ed Miles (School of Marine Affairs), one goal of this certificate is to direct student to apply Earth Science education to issues of public policy.
    • Environmental Management-graduate students from across the University collaborate to tackle real-world problems with profound policy, scientific, and business ramifications.

    Conferences

    The PCC hosts an Annual Summer Institute in which local and visiting speakers participate along with 60 faculty and graduate students. Reading sessions are offered for participating graduate students in the month prior to the conference that focus on publications by the speakers.

    Every 18 months, the UW climate graduate students host a conference by and for graduate students (the Graduate Student Climate Conference). With financial support from across campus, this has become an extremely successful event.


    Contact the UW PCC office for more information on these programs.

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