Rate My Professor James White

Professor James D. L. White serves as a Professor in the Department of Geology at the University of Otago, part of the Division of Sciences. He earned a BA and BSc in Geology and Philosophy/History from Texas Christian University, an MSc from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a PhD in Geology/Volcanology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Following his doctorate, White held postdoctoral positions at Dalhousie University from December 1989 to June 1991 and at GEOMAR Research Center from September 1991 to October 1992, before joining the University of Otago where he progressed to full Professor. He previously served as Head of the Department of Geology and continues to contribute significantly to academic leadership.

White's research focuses on volcanology, encompassing explosive subaqueous and subglacial eruptions, maar-diatreme volcanism, shallow sub-volcanic plumbing systems, magma-water interaction and fragmentation, experimental volcanology, and primary and secondary volcaniclastic sedimentation. He teaches courses including GEOL 112 Dynamic Earth: A New Zealand Perspective, GEOL 264/364 Igneous Petrology and Volcanology, and GEOL 273/373 Sedimentary Processes and Materials. White has supervised more than 30 PhD theses, along with numerous MSc and BSc(Hons) projects, covering topics such as volcanic processes in New Zealand, Antarctica, the USA, and Iceland. His scholarly impact is evidenced by over 11,400 citations across 301 publications, with a high h-index. Notable publications include 'Primary volcaniclastic rocks' (Geology, 2006, 679 citations), 'Peperite: a review of magma–sediment mingling' (Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 2002, 511 citations), 'Maar-diatreme volcanoes: a review' (Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 2011, 482 citations), and recent works on submarine jumbled sheet flows (Bulletin of Volcanology, 2025) and low sulfur emissions from the 2022 Hunga eruption (Nature Geoscience, 2025). White chairs the award committee for the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior (IAVCEI).