Graduate Catalog Links
2003-2005
2005-2007
Admission Requirements
A bachelor's degree and a background in geography or a closely related discipline is normally required for admission. Applicants are required to submit transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and scores from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). To be admitted unconditionally, students must have a 3.0 GPA in their previous undergraduate coursework and a minimum combined total score of 1,000 on the verbal and quantitative sections of the GRE. Conditional admission is considered if the student satisfies one of the two criteria. Applications for assistantships should be received no later than March 1, though later submissions will be considered if additional funded positions become available.
Degree Requirements
Each student enrolled in the Masters program is required to take GY 500: Research Traditions and Methods in Geography.
Students may select from either a thesis or a non-thesis plan upon entry into the Masters program. This decision is to be made in consultation with the student's program advisor and will specifically consider the student's career goals.
Thesis Option: This option requires a total of 30 credit hours including 3 hours of program requirements and 6 hours for thesis research. A minimum of 12 credit hours must be taken from courses in one of the areas of concentration including physical geography; regional, environmental and urban planning; human geography; or geographical information sciences. The remaining 9 credit hours may consist of courses from any of the other three areas of concentration and/or be selected from related courses offered in other disciplines with departmental approval (up to 6 of the 9 credit hours).
Non-Thesis Option: This option requires a total of 39 credit hours including 3 hours of program requirements and 3 hours for non-thesis research projects. Students selecting this option must take a minimum of 8 hours of geographic techniques, and may count up to 15 credit hours of such coursework towards their Masters program. A minimum of 15 credit hours must be taken from courses in one of the areas of concentration including physical geography; regional, environmental and urban planning; human geography; or geographical information sciences. The remaining 10 credit hours may consist of courses from any of the other three areas of concentration, related courses in other disciplines with departmental approval (up to 6 of the 10 credit hours); and/or experiential courses (up to 3 of the 10 credit hours).
Areas of Concentration
Physical Geography: This area of concentration includes courses in geomorphology, watershed dynamics, biogeography, vegetation analysis, and climatology.
Regional, Environmental and Urban Planning: This area of concentration addresses the need for training in urban; regional and environmental analysis, and planning; location theory; and environmental impact assessment.
Human Geography: This area of concentration emphasizes the breadth of human geography including political, urban, economic, and transportation. It prepares students for careers as educators, careers in applied human geography, or advanced study.
Geographical Information Sciences: This area of concentration includes spatial modeling, remote sensing, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and computer cartography. The department's GIS/Remote Sensing Lab includes state-of-the-art facilities. The Cartographic Research Lab and University Map Library are housed in the geography department and are directed by full-time professional staff.
