In this episode, we sit down with Keira Hum, a passionate Integrated Science student at McMaster University, to explore the ins and outs of student life in the world of Earth Sciences. Keira shares her journey from the classroom to the field, offering invaluable advice for balancing academics, personal growth, and career aspirations. Whether it’s navigating coursework, finding opportunities in the geoscience community, or preparing for a future in the field, Keira’s relatable stories and practical tips are sure to inspire students and geoscience enthusiasts alike. Tune in for a fun and insightful conversation packed with guidance for thriving in geoscience studies! 🌍🎙️ Listen now: You can also listen to our podcast on these platforms: Audible Apple Podcasts Spotify Read along with the podcast transcript: Introduction Hello, everyone. Welcome to Beneath Your Feet, a geoscience podcast. I’m Veronica Klassen, science communicator, geology enthusiast and your host. Here at the APGO Education Foundation, our mission is to spark curiosity and passion for the geology of Ontario. Whether you’re a geology nerd, science enthusiast, or nature lover, this podcast is for you. Join us as we geek out over fascinating geology, uncover the hidden storiesand secrets of our extraordinary planet and explore the captivating world beneath your feet. Veronica Klassen Thanks so much for joining me. Today I’m here with Keira Hum, a third year university student at McMaster. We’re going to be talking about some tips and ideas for being in school, studying geology,all those sorts of things. And I think it’ll be a really good conversation. I’m really excited to talk with you. Keira Hum I’m really excited to talk to you, too, Veronica. I’m excited to kind of talk about my job and experience going through a geoscience program. VeronicaYeah, for sure. All right, so why don’t you just start by introducing yourself? Who are you? What do you do? KeiraSo, yeah, my name is Keria Hum. I go to McMaster, and I’m in the Integrated Science program. I’m going into my fourth year of study and I have a concentration in Earth and Environmental Science. So I do a lot of, like, scientific research and take a lot of environmental electives. VeronicaAwesome. How does it feel being almost done? KeiraPretty good. I know I’m going to miss my friends a lot so that I’ll be going over my mind throughout the year and kind of thinking about master’s programs too, right now. So that’s been what I’ve been doing. VeronicaYeah. And how did you get where you are now? So how did you originally become interested in geoscience and what was that journey like for you? KeiraSo in my first year of undergrad in my Integrated Science program, we did have an introductory lecture and course in Earth and Environmental Science, and I really enjoyed that compared to like all the other courses that we had to take. And I just thought the Earth Science course was so much more fun and so much more interactive. And I also took an intro to Environment, Climate and Water, and I thought that was really interesting too. And I had a bunch of field events, which was really fun, and I thought, you know, can’t hurt to try going into that concentration. And I’m so glad that I did. VeronicaYeah, that’s awesome. And I think I remember you saying that you were not imagining that you would do Earth Science before university. You had a different track in mind. Is that the case? KeiraYeah. I was thinking I would go into biology. That’s kind of what I was interested in during high school. But getting introduced to the course at a university level and the concepts I thought was really interesting. I really like the idea of sitting in the classroom, learning about the concepts and then doing labs outside and in the field. That was really interesting to me and I learn so much better in those kind of environments. So it was kind of perfect for me. Yeah, and I just thought, it’s so applicable to so many different types of disciplines, like I could do biology and geoscience if I wanted, or earth and environmental science and biology. And I really liked how the discipline can, kind of, interact with so many other ones. VeronicaYeah, definitely. That’s one of the things that I also love about geology is just like how universal is and like it relates to so many different scientific and also nonscientific areas of study. KeiraYeah, for sure. VeronicaAnd you also said that you decided to try to get your PGO certification. So could you tell us a bit about how that process has been for you? KeiraYeah. So I first got introduced to what PGO is and the importance of it in my first year of study. So I was kind of thinking about it and trying to plan my courses for the PGO and because I’m in ISci, it’s hard to manage my electives just because I have limited space every year. So I had to do a lot of planning field courses and extra courses during the summer and spring terms just so I can make up all the knowledge requirements to get the PGO certificate. So it’s been a lot of planning and stress, but I know it’ll be worth it in the end. Yeah, I love the courses that I’m taking anyway that are required for the PGO knowledge requirements, so I find it, you know, not too difficult and pretty enjoyable because I’m getting more exposure to courses I might not have noticed or taken if it wasn’t for the PGO requirement list and seeing the course offerings on that document. VeronicaRight? Yeah, it’s different things that necessarily you would always get to get to explore. So that’s cool. On that note, do you have any other piece of advice that you would give for younger students who are maybe considering PGO or geoscience in general? What