The mission of Millsaps Geology Department is the creation and development of a community of productive and involved world citizens equipped with a broad and thorough knowledge of the process and specifics of the Earth Sciences. The Department focuses on educating and encouraging students to develop an on-going curiosity and involvement with all elements of their environments so that these future leaders of society incorporate logical, critical assessment of the natural world into the fabric of their individual philosophies.

All students in the Department of Geology are given the opportunity to participate in significant scientific research. Various sponsored projects in basic geology, environmental geology, and geophysics have given students the unique experience of hands-on contribution to real, often publishable, research during their undergraduate years. Field trips to diverse geological terrains help emphasize the hands-on approach. Past field trips have included areas such as the Florida Keys, the Pacific Northwest, southeastern and southcentral Alaska, the Yucatan Peninsula, the central and northern Rocky Mountains, and the greater Yellowstone area.

Over the last five years, 80 percent of Millsaps graduates with B.S. degrees in geology have gone on to work in resource exploration, environmental, and government research fields or enrolled in graduate or professional schools upon completion of their baccalaureate studies. Recent Millsaps graduates have enrolled in geoscience graduate programs at Colorado School of Mines, Mississippi State University, New Mexico Tech, Rice University, Texas A&M, Tulane University, University of Alabama, University of Arkansas, University of North Carolina, University of Kentucky, University of Memphis, University of Mississippi, and Virginia Tech.