Geography M.S. - Community & Environmental Planning
General Graduate Program Requirements
Graduate School policies and standards can be found on the Graduate School Policies page.
The minimum GPA for any graduate program is 3.0. Individual programs may require more than a 3.0 to remain in good standing.
The minimum grade for a course to be accepted toward any requirement is C. Individual programs may require higher grades for specific courses.
MASTER OF SCIENCE - GEOGRAPHY; COMMUNITY & ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING CONCENTRATION
The Master of Science in Geography with a concentration in Community and Environmental Planning is appropriate for those interested in working in community planning, hazard mitigation, and land-use planning. Beyond the core requirements specified for the general M.S., an additional 23 credits are required.
- Choices in the core and of remaining credits will be selected in consultation with the graduate committee to support the research program and student's professional goals. Coursework must be approved by the committee no later than the second semester in residence, but earlier if possible. Per Graduate School policy:
- At least 20 of the total credits must be taken within the major discipline.
- At least 20 of the total credits must be in coursework, not research or thesis.
- At least half of the coursework credits (minimum 10 credits) must be at the 500 level or above.
- Courses below the 400 level do not count towards the M.S. course requirements.
- Up to 10 of the 33 or 39 credits may be taken as thesis (GPHY 599).
Degree Options
For the M.S. in Geography, students are required to complete one of the following options. There is no minimum number of thesis credits that must be taken for any of the options.
Thesis Option
This option requires the completion of 34 credits. The student must successfully complete and defend a thesis or one or more papers (i.e., articles) of publishable quality before an examining committee.
Professional Paper Option
This option requires the completion of 34 credits. The student must successfully complete and defend a professional paper or one or more papers (i.e., articles) of publishable quality before an examining committee. The difference between a thesis and a professional paper is that while the thesis is directed toward advances in the discipline, the professional paper may be directed toward advances in the profession. A professional paper may also consist of one or more papers of publishable quality intended for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
Portfolio Option
This option requires the completion of 39 credits. The student must successfully complete a portfolio and written and oral comprehensive examinations.
Course Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate Research Seminar | ||
| Complete one of the following courses, 1 credit per semester: | 2 | |
| Seminar | ||
| Graduate Seminar (1 cr. per semester) | ||
| Seminar | ||
| Graduate Seminar in Wildlife Biology | ||
| Graduate Research Design | ||
| Complete one of the following courses: | 3 | |
| Research Design in the Geographical Sciences I and Research Design in Geographical Sciences II | ||
| Conservation and Social Science Methods | ||
| Fundamentals of Academic Research | ||
| Research Design and Research Design Lab | ||
| Graduate Research Methods | ||
| Complete one of the following courses: | 3 | |
Quantitative methods | ||
| Environmental Analytics | ||
| Ecological Statistics | ||
| Social Data Analysis | ||
| Statistical Methods I | ||
or STAT 452 | Statistical Methods II | |
Qualitative methods | ||
| Qualitative Methods | ||
Historical or survey methods | ||
Advanced GIS or computer methods | ||
| Additional Graduate Seminar | ||
| Complete one of the following courses: | 3 | |
| Advanced Physical Geography | ||
| Seminar in Planning | ||
| Seminar GIS & Cartography | ||
| Concentration Requirements | ||
| Complete all of the following courses: | ||
| GPHY 465 | Planning Principles & Processes | 3 |
| GPHY 466 | Environmental Planning | 3 |
| GPHY 468 | Community & Regional Analysis | 3 |
| GPHY 469 | Planning & Analysis Laboratory | 1 |
| GPHY 560 | Seminar in Planning | 3 |
| GPHY 561 | Land Use Planning Law | 3 |
| GPHY 564 | Planning Design | 3 |
| Concentration Electives | ||
| Complete 4 credits of the following courses: | 4 | |
| Community Resilience | ||
| Land Use Planning Clinic | ||
| Internship | ||
| Electives and Thesis | ||
| Complete 0-5 additional credits chosen in consultation with your faculty advisor according to the selected track. | 0-5 | |
| Total Hours | 34-39 | |