Welcome to the Department of Geosciences at the University of Cincinnati, a program with high-caliber faculty and a strong research reputation. We strive to provide our undergraduate and graduate students with the knowledge and skills necessary for a broad range of careers. We teach and conduct research in many areas of the geosciences including paleontology, hydrogeology, geomorphology, sedimentology, stratigraphy, tectonics, environmental geology, and biogeochemistry. Our faculty maintain high-tech laboratories and conduct field work all over the world and our students are involved every step of the way.
Quick Contacts:
Main office phone: 513-556-3732
Department Head - Aaron Diefendorf, diefenan@ucmail.uc.edu
Program Director, Departmental Advisor - Krista Smilek, smilekka@ucmail.uc.edu
Business Manager - Stacey Ludwig, ludwigsy@ucmail.uc.edu
Financial Administrator 2 - Sarah Hammer, tritscsh@ucmail.uc.edu
Financial Administrator 1 - Myia Engleman, englemmi@ucmail.uc.edu
Instrumentation Specialist - Owen Cowling, cowlinon@ucmail.uc.edu
Undergraduate Director - Dylan Ward, warddy@ucmail.uc.edu
Graduate Director - Andrew Czaja, czajaaw@ucmail.uc.edu
October 5, 2026
Cincinnati magazine turns to University of Cincinnati Professor Carlton Brett to explain what Cincinnati was like as a shallow sea during the Ordovician period.
September 21, 2026
UC Associate Professor Dylan Ward and UC geosciences graduate Rachel Bosch joins an episode of OutSCIder Classroom to talk about weathering in caves found in places such as Mammoth Cave National Park.
August 12, 2026
Researchers say a spike in temperatures during an ice age 304 million years ago could inform what climate scientists are learning about rapidly changing conditions today.