Mar 29, 2024  
2020-2021 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2020-2021 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Geography Major, BA


This major of 65 credits offers students the greatest flexibility and is suited for students with interests outside of the specializations listed below. In consultation with a departmental advisor, students may choose a specialization and design a program of component courses which best fits specific career goals and aspirations. In addition to the core requirements, students pursuing this option must take a set of department-approved electives that includes an upper-division course from each of five subfields. To satisfy the overall major requirement, at least 8 of the credits must be in 400-level geography courses in addition to Geography 489 - Geography Capstone.

Program Learner Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this program, students will be able to:

  • Demonstrate improved familiarity with the basic geography of the Earth, especially the distribution of countries, major cities, and key physical features.
  • Demonstrate improved familiarity with the discipline’s vocabulary, concepts and themes.
  • Demonstrate improved critical thinking ability with respect to the interactions of human systems and physical systems, the networks of intra-and inter-national interdependence, and the manner in which human and physical systems modify each other and control the Earth’s surface and resources.
  • Effectively prepared by the Department of Geography for future careers.
  • Communicate effectively in oral, written and a variety of graphical forms
  • Effectively integrate ideas and information from human geography, physical geography, resource geography, regional geography, and techniques courses.

Geography Core


Admission to the Major

All students who wish to major in geography must:

  1. Have a 2.25 minimum GPA in all coursework taken up to the time of admission
  2. Apply for acceptance into the geography major
  3. Upon acceptance into the program, meet with their assigned advisor to develop a major contract
  4. Earn a C- or higher grade in each of the courses in their major contract

Department-approved Electives


Take one course each in Human Geography, Physical Geography, Regional Geography, Resource Geography, and Techniques plus additional electives from the courses listed below to reach 40 credits of electives in Geography. A student must also take at least 8 credits at the 400-level, not including GEOG 489 Geography Capstone. Other courses may be counted by advisement.

Human Geography Electives


Take at least one of the following courses (4 credits minimum)

Physical Geography Electives


Take at least one of the following courses (5 credits minimum)

Total Electives Credits: 40


Total Credits: 65


College and Department Information


Geography Department  
College of the Sciences