The Department of Geography offers both a thesis and nonthesis M.A. degree track. To apply, submit transcripts of all undergraduate work, the aptitude portion of the GRE, and three letters of recommendation for evaluation by the graduate committee. Several teaching and research associateships and scholarships are awarded each year. To be considered for financial support for the academic year beginning in September, submit all application materials prior to March 1. Application deadlines for admission to the graduate program are one month prior to the quarter for which you are requesting admission. All financial support is allotted on a competitive basis, and most is committed in the fall. Occasionally, however, associate or scholarship support is available for students wishing to begin study during the winter, spring, or summer quarter.
Geography courses which are required for both the thesis and nonthesis tracks are GEOG 571 Quantitative Methods, GEOG 580 Geographic Thought, GEOG 675 Library Research and Writing, and at least two seminars in geography.
For the thesis track, you must take a minimum of nine courses, seven of which must be in geography. Hours in 504, 505, 585, and 690 are excluded from the count. Fifteen additional hours in thesis are also required. The thesis committee is made up of three faculty members from the Department of Geography (one of whom will serve as your advisor and thesis director); you may choose one additional committee member from a related discipline. For the thesis degree, you must successfully defend both your thesis proposal and the completed thesis before this committee.
For the nonthesis track, you must complete a minimum of 60 quarter hours of graduate study, 50 of which must be in geography. Hours in 504, 505, 585, and 690 are excluded from the count. You must develop a program of study with two of the following areas of systematic emphasis: area studies, cultural, physical, resource management, population, urban, and land use planning. These systematic concentrations must be supported by at least two courses taken in one of the following techniques: cartography, remote sensing, quantitative methods, and geographic information systems. The program of study must be approved by a committee made up of three geography faculty members. The degree is completed by passing a three-part comprehensive written exam on the chosen areas of systematic and technique emphases.
502 Meteorology (5)
General survey of physical principles of weather.
503 Climatology (5)
Exchanges of energy and moisture and their significance in the use of the earth's surface.
504 Observations in Meteorology (2)
Prereq: 502. Lab experience in acquisition and measurement of meteorological parameters.
505 Practicum in Meteorological Forecasting (2-10)
Prereq: 502, 504. Lab experience in preparation and dissemination of meteorological forecasts.
507 Synoptic Meteorology (5)
The construction and analysis of meteorological models used in predicting meteorological phenomena.
511 Advanced Physical Geography (5)
Application of physical geographic principles to specific research problems or topics.
515 Landforms and Landscape (5)
The study of landforms and landform assemblages as fundamental elements of the physical environment.
521 Population Geography (5)
Systematic survey of world population problems including distribution, composition, fertility, mortality, density, age-sex structure, and impact of these factors on world population growth and resources.
522 Settlement Geography (5)
Patterns and forms of rural settlement in terms of environmental, functional, and traditional effects.
523 Landscape and Culture (5)
Consideration of Anglo-American landscape as key to understanding Anglo-American culture and its myths (e.g., frontier) and stereotypes (e.g., individualism).
524 Industrial Location (5)
Factors in industrial location, theory, and applications in developmental planning.
525 Political Geography (5)
Systematic examination of basic approaches, topics, and spatial concepts in political geography with case studies. Emphasis at nation-state level.
526 Urban Geography (5)
Study of internal patterns of urban areas.
527 American Rural Vernacular Architecture (5)
Consideration of temporal and spatial characteristics of American rural vernacular buildings and importance of preserving ordinary structures.
530 Western European Geography (5)
Topical and regional survey of western Europe with emphasis on region's position as integrated economic area. Specific European planning regions will form basis for discussion.
531 African Thematic Geography (5)
Systematic examination of four selected themes relevant to modern geography of Africa. Emphasis on development.
532 Africa: Regional Approaches (5)
Regional survey of the major areas of tropical Africa: East, West, Equatorial, Central, and South.
535 Geography of Latin America (5)
Regional survey of Latin America with emphasis on problems of social and economic development.
538 Southeast Asia (5)
Survey of population, food production, natural resource exploitation, energy, physical environment, and the regional concept in Southeast Asia.
540 Environmental Impact Analysis (5)
Introduction to analytic techniques, legal responsibilities, and administrative procedures in evaluating environmental impacts of land use change. Practice in production of environmental impact statements and in documenting scientific research.
544 Agricultural Ecosystems (5)
Agriculture examined from four viewpoints: evolution of agricultural systems, ecological analysis of traditional and modern agriculture, food and agricultural development (Third World Emphasis), and problems and prospects in North American agriculture.
546 American Conservation Movement (5)
Topical survey of schools of thought, themes, and specific issues in American conservation in past century. 19th century transcendental thinkers are baseline for survey. Contemporary environmental issues and debates provide capstone for course.
547 Resource Management (5)
Themes in American environmental history, contemporary environmentalism, methods of resource assessment and management, and selected case studies in managing renewable resources.
550 Land Use Planning (5)
Land use controls in U.S. zoning ordinance, subdivision regulation, social concerns, managed growth, historic preservation.
553 Environmental Planning (5)
Introduction to the development, implementation, and operation of activities to guide landscape development. Emphasis on interaction between natural and social systems, methods of environmental analysis, and the evolution of environmental planning strategies.
555 Evolution of Planning (5)
Evolution of urban planning in U.S. during 19th and 20th centuries. Housing, parks, ideal communities, intellectual attitudes, zoning and subdivision case law, federal intervention, and present programs.
560 Cartography (5)
Introduction to basic design principles of aesthetically pleasing maps, emphasizing legibility and readability from map user's viewpoint. Map construction ranges from simple map compilation to multicolor composition and scale reduction.
561 Statistical Cartography (5)
Prereq: 560. Cartographic techniques of representing quantitative data on maps. Both traditional and computer techniques applied.
562 Teaching Map Skills (1)
Covers basic skills in using maps and globes as tools to understand important themes in geographic education. Enables teachers to develop better teaching skills for improving classroom activities and enhances layperson's knowledge of map and globe usefulness.
565 Remote Sensing I (5)
Principles and techniques used in air-photo interpretation for geographers, geologists, community planners, engineers, and environmentalists.
566 Remote Sensing II (5)
Application of computer-based statistical patterns recognition techniques to the digital analysis and classification of remotely-sensed imagery.
568 Automatic Cartography (5)
Introduction to automated techniques for compiling and producing maps. Issues range from reapplication of manual techniques in a computer environment to fully automated production and GIS.
571 Quantitative Methods (5)
Systematic survey of quantitative techniques employed by geographers.
575 Analysis of Geographic Systems (5)
Introduction to methods of systems analysis and modeling directed to study of regional human and environmental processes and their interaction at regional and global scales.
576 Field Methods (5-9)
Introduction to geographic field methods and techniques in rural and/or urban areas, involving field mapping and recording, spatial sampling, interviewing, coding and visual recording, field analysis, and reporting and summarizing.
578 Geographic Information Systems (5)
Introduction to the development and use of computer database management systems for the capture, storage, and analytic manipulation of geographic data.
579 Advanced Geographic Information Systems (5)
Prereq: 578. Directed readings and laboratory projects in the design, implementation, and application of GIS in the spatial sciences.
580 Geographic Thought (5)
Development of geographic concepts and philosophies from ancient to post-modern.
585 Internship (max 15)
Provides qualifying students credit for work study experience in cartography, remote sensing, land-use planning, resource management, and other fields in applied geography. Supervised by geography faculty and evaluated by on-the-job supervisor. Lengthy report summarizes experience.
593 Colloquium (1)
Colloquium with a systematic, regional, or technique emphasis in geography, using graduate students, faculty, and/or guest speaker presentations.
594 Field Problems (5)
Research on field problems using standard geographical field methods.
666 Seminar in Cartography (5)
675 Library Research and Writing (5)
Emphasis on geographic research and writing. Consideration of geography as science and scientific method. Study of techniques and style, followed by completion of writing tasks including literature reviews, criticism, and research proposal.
678 Analysis of Geographical Data (5)
Prereq: 571. Students build geographical data file; analyze with descriptive and inferential statistics; use models of spatial analysis; learn CMS, languages, and packages -- all directed toward description and analysis of spatial patterns.
679 Seminar: Human Geography (5)
680 Seminar: Third World Development and Environment (5)
681 Seminar in Physical Geography (5)
682 Seminar in Economic Geography (5)
682B Seminar in Political Geography (5)
683 Metropolitan Areas: Seminar in Urban Geography (5)
684A Seminar in Regional Geography: Latin America (5)
684B Seminar in Regional Geography: Southeast Asia (5)
684C Seminar in Regional Geography: Africa (5)
685 Seminar in Population Geography (5)
686 Seminar in Historical Geography (5)
687 Seminar in Geographical Technique (5)
688 Seminar in Resource Management (5)
689 Seminar in Land Use Planning (5)
690 Geographic Studies (1-5, max 5)
694 Research Project (1-15)
695 Thesis (1-15)
Return to 1995-1997 Graduate Catalog Table of Contents
University Publications and the Computer Services Center revised this file (http://www.ohiou.edu/~gcat/95-97/area/geography.html) April 13, 1998.
Please e-mail comments or suggestions to "gcat@www.cats.ohiou.edu."