Geography and Environmental Studies

Professors: Gruntfest, T. Huber and Larkin; Professor Emerita: Beyer; Associate Professor Jennings (chair); Assistant Professors: Harner and Holder; Senior Instructor: Poulton; Instructor: C. Huber.

Bachelor of Arts — Geography

The Bachelor of Arts in Geography requires the four introductory classes (GES 100, 101, 198, and 199) plus 16 hours of upper-division coursework. The upper-division coursework must include at least one of the tools courses, GES 305, 400, 406, or 411. (NOTE: GES 105 will not count as credit towards this tools requirement). A maximum of 54 credit hours may be taken by a major in GES. All students must take an exit exam before graduation.

Minor in Geography and Environmental Studies

A minor requires a total of 18 credit hours of GES courses; at least nine of these must be at the upper-division level. A student pursuing a minor must take GES 100 or 101, GES 199 or 198, and a tools course (GES 305, 400, 406 or 411). A degree option is available for elementary and special education teachers. Please contact the Student Success Center or the College of Education for further information.

Master of Arts in Applied Geography

The Department of Geography and Environmental Studies offers a Master of Arts in Applied Geography. The goal of the program is to provide graduate level education that enables students to address community concerns through applied geographic research. Graduates with an MA in Applied Geography will have integrative skills that link human activity to natural systems, and that apply a spatial perspective to human and natural processes. Areas of emphasis are:

Physical systems, including geomorphic, climatic, biologic, and hydrologic processes.

Natural hazards mitigation and policy issues

Population and society, including urban community development

Applied uses of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing

The MA provides students with specific scientific and communication skills necessary to be community leaders in their area of expertise. Graduates of this MA program will have the following skills and competencies to work on community issues:

An understanding of and appreciation for the interactions between the human and natural world

Skills to synthesize, analyze, and evaluate diverse social and physical information

Ability to conceptualize spatial relationships for problem solving

Communication skills to clearly present solutions or recommendations

Admittance Requirements

The following are minimum standards for admission of students to the MA in Applied Geography degree program:

1. Hold a baccalaureate degree or a master's degree from an accredited college or university, or demonstrate completion of work equivalent to the baccalaureate or master's degree given at this University.

2. Have an undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 or better ("A" is equal to 4.0).

Complete the GRE General Test. While we have no threshold for acceptance, we use your scores in combination with other criteria to evaluate your application. We recommend a minimum combined score (for the 3 sections of the exam) of 1500.

Provide 3 letters of recommendation.

Provide two copies of official transcripts from all institutions attended.

Program Requirements

Students may complete either a thesis option or a non-thesis option for the MA in Applied Geography. The department strongly encourages students to fulfill the thesis option. The thesis option consists of 24 credits of coursework and 6 credits of thesis. The non-thesis option consists of 30 credits of coursework plus a research paper and comprehensive exam. All students must take GES 501: Seminar in Geographic Research during their first fall semester.

Prerequisites

All entering graduate students are required to have the kind of knowledge presented in the Department’s introductory courses in physical geography (GES 100 Environmental Systems/Climate and Vegetation and GES 101 Environmental Systems/Landforms and Soils) and human geography (GES 198 World Regional Geography and GES 199 Human Geography). It is the responsibility of the student to obtain this knowledge. Students may gain the required knowledge by formally taking the introductory courses, by auditing the courses, by reading the textbooks or by any other means. This knowledge will enhance the student’s ability to perform at the level expected in the GES 501 research seminar. You will work with your advisor to determine the appropriate action needed to fulfill the prerequisites. Students are encouraged to have some background in college math, statistics, and computer skills.

Contacts

For more information, please see our departmental web page at http://web.uccs.edu/geogenvs. Follow the MA Program links. Also, you may contact John Harner, Graduate Director at (719) 262-4054 or jharner@uccs.edu.

Master of Basic Science — Geography and Environmental Studies

The Department of Geography and Environmental Studies (GES) is also part of the Masters of Basic Science (M.B.S.) program. For applications and initial advising contact the M.B.S. director. GES has a separate option under the M.B.S. program. See the description of the M.B.S. degree program later in the catalog for general questions.