UWA PLUS

Our Changing Water Cycle - GEOSM403

Water is a vital resource for people and the environment. As populations increase and climates shift it's vital that we understand how the water cycle is changing. What drives rainfall patterns, and how are these drivers changing in the Anthropocene? How are changes in climate affecting our streams and groundwater systems? Find the answers to these questions and more during this exploration of our changing water cycle. This micro-credential is designed for people who have undergraduate-level scientific literacy and numeracy skills and are interested in deepening their understanding of the ways that water is stored within and moves through landscapes. Topics covered include WA climate drivers, stream hydrology, soil moisture, groundwater systems and surface water – groundwater interaction.

Upon successful completion of this micro-credential, you'll receive:

  • Three PD Points
  • A Certificate of Achievement
  • A UWA Plus Professional Development Transcript, listing all successfully completed micro-credentials
Delivery mode
Online.
Course dates
The micro-credential will next be offered in 2025
Duration
6 weeks
Effort
A total of 75 hours composed of readings and watching of recorded videos, learning activities and discussions during online workshops, completion of assessment tasks. Two weeks post-workshops to finalize assessment submission.
Academic lead
Dr Sarah Bourke
Cost
$1,188 inc. GST
Critical information summary
Our Changing Water Cycle GEOSM403 [PDF 245KB]

What you'll learn

Participants will be able to:

Identify processes controlling water storage and movement in landscapes.

Analyse and interpret measured hydrological data.

Keyboard 

Why study this course?

  • Learn about the worlds' most important resource: water
  • Deepen your understanding of water storage and flow in a time of global change
  • Build your skills in analysis and interpretation of hydrologic data

Who should study this course?

This micro-credential is suitable for people who are working in water-related roles and want to deepen their understanding of how the water cycle is changing in response to climate change. This micro-credential is also suitable for people who are considering Masters-level postgraduate study and would like to “try before they buy”.

Recommended prior study

Completion of an undergraduate degree in natural sciences. Undergraduate-level numeracy skills including unit conversions and rearranging of equations. Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite, especially Excel for data analysis and data plotting and PowerPoint for drawing simple schematics.

What's next after this course?

This micro-credential is complemented by GEOSM404. Completion of both of these micro-credentials can be used as academic credit towards GEOS4499 upon enrolment in the Master of Hydrogeology or Master of Environmental Science at UWA.