Programs by Campus
Bloomington
Geography
College of Arts and Sciences
Departmental E-mail: geog [at] indiana [dot] edu
Departmental URL: www.indiana.edu/~geog
(Please note that when conferring University Graduate School degrees, minors, certificates, and sub-plans, The University Graduate School’s staff use those requirements contained only in The University Graduate School Bulletin.)
Apply electronically for admission: http://graduate.indiana.edu/admissions/apply.shtml/
Curriculum
Degrees Offered
The department only confers Master’s degrees as a step in the Ph.D. program. Candidates who enter without a Masters will earn one before progressing to the Ph.D. The department is not currently accepting applications for any terminal Masters degrees outside the Ph.D. program.
Doctor of Philosophy. The department currently is not accepting applications for the terminal Master of Arts, Master of Science, Master of Arts for Teachers or for the dual programs, Master of Arts in Geography and Master of Science in Environmental Science (SPEA) or Master of Science in Geography and Master of Science in Environmental Science (SPEA).
Special Departmental Requirements
(See also general University Graduate School requirements.)
Grades
B (3.0) average or higher; B in core courses.
Master of Arts Degree
Admission Requirements
(Currently this program is not accepting terminal M.A. applications.) Undergraduate major in geography or its equivalent. Applicants not meeting this requirement may be expected to take additional work.
Fields of Study
Climate and Environmental Change; Food and Agriculture; Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing; Cities, Development and Justice; Water Resources.
Course Requirements
A minimum of 30 credit hours, including a core curriculum consisting of G500, G501, and G588. In addition, each student should select one topical field of concentration and complete a sequence of courses involving a minimum of 9 graduate credits in that field.
Thesis or Research Papers
Students have the option of writing a thesis (G850) or two research papers (G845). Up to 6 credit hours are allowed for a thesis and up to 3 credit hours are given for each research paper.
Final Examination
Oral examination covering the topic of specialization, the thesis or research papers, and other aspects of geography.
Master of Science Degree
Admissions Requirements
(Currently this program is not accepting terminal M.S. applications.) Undergraduate major in geography, environmental science, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, or equivalent. Applicants not meeting this requirement may be expected to take additional work.
Fields of Study
Climate and Environmental Change; Food and Agriculture; Systems and Remote Sensing; Cities, Development and Justice; Water Resources.
Course Requirements
A minimum of 30 credit hours, including a core curriculum consisting of G500, G501, and G588. In addition, each student should select one topical field of concentration and complete a minimum of 9 graduate credits in that field.
Thesis or Research Papers
Students have the option of writing a thesis (G850) or two research papers (G845). Up to 6 credit hours are allowed for a thesis and up to 3 credit hours are given for each research paper.
Final Examination
Oral examination covering the topic of specialization, the thesis or research papers, and other aspects of geography.
Master of Science in Geography with Specialization in Climate and Environmental Change
(Currently this program is not accepting terminal M.S. applications.) Requirements are the same as for the M.S. in Geography, with the additional requirement of a minimum of 9 graduate credits in the field of climate and environmental change. Suitable courses include but are not limited to:
- GEOG-G 505 Ecological Climatology
- GEOG-G 532 Physical Climatology
- GEOG-G 540 Topics in Environmental Geography
- GEOG-G 544 Climate Change Impacts
- GEOG-G 550 Field Methods in Physical Geography
- GEOG-G 551 Physical Hydrology
- GEOG-G 552 Tree-Ring Science
- GEOL-G 577 Topics in Climatology
- GEOG-G 588 Applied Spatial Statistics
- GEOG-G 589 Advanced Geospatial Data Analysis
- GEOG-G 602 Topical Seminar in Climate, Land, & Environmental Change
Master of Science in Geography with Specialization in Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing
(Currently this program is not accepting terminal M.S. applications.) Requirements are the same as for the M.S. in Geography, with the additional requirement of a minimum of 9 graduate credits in the field of geographic information systems and remote sensing. Suitable courses include but are not limited to:
- GEOG-G 504 Advanced Quantitative Methods in Geography
- GEOG-G 535 Environmental Remote Sensing
- GEOG-G 536 Advanced Remote Sensing: Digital Image Processing
- GEOG-G 538 Geographic Information Systems
- GEOG-G 539 Advanced Geographic Information Systems
- GEOL-G 584 GIS Applications in Geology
- GEOG-G 588 Applied Spatial Statistics
- GEOG-G 589 Advanced Geospatial Data Analysis
- GEOG-G 639 GIS and Environmental Analysis
Master of Arts for Teachers Degree
Admission Requirements (Currently this program is not accepting applications.)
A full undergraduate major in geography is not required, but applicants should have had introductory courses in physical, environmental, or human geography.
Program
An individual program of study will be arranged for each student. A general description of the M.A.T. requirements is found elsewhere in this bulletin.
Master of Arts/Master of Science in Geography and Master of Science in Environmental Science (Public and Environmental Affairs)
Admission Requirements (Currently this program is not accepting applications.)
The Department of Geography and the School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA) offer a program that qualifies students for two master’s degrees. A student must apply to and be accepted by the School of Public and Environmental Affairs for study toward the Master of Science in Environmental Science (M.S.E.S.) and by the Department of Geography and the Graduate School for study toward the M.A. or M.S. degree.
Program
An individual program of study will be arranged for each student.
Doctor of Philosophy Degree
Admission Requirements
Candidates who enter without a Masters will earn one before progressing to the Ph.D.
Fields of Study
Climate and Environmental Change; Food and Agriculture; Geographic Information Sensing and Remote Sensing; Cities, Development and Justice; Water Resources
Course Requirements
A minimum of 90 credit hours, including a core curriculum consisting of G500, G501, and G588 as well as a dissertation (up to 20 credit hours). Each student must select a major within the field of geography chosen from the fields of study listed above. Students must complete a minimum of 12 credit hours beyond the M.A./M.S. in the major, including at least one graduate seminar. The dissertation must be written in the major field of study within geography.
Minors
At least one outside minor required. It should be closely related to the internal major and must be chosen from approved programs of study outlined in this bulletin (unless exceptions are approved by the University Graduate School).
Qualifying Examination
Written and oral, covering the areas of concentration, other aspects of geography, and the tentative dissertation problem.
Research Proposal
The proposed research for the dissertation must be approved by the research committee and presented at a departmental colloquium.
Final Examination
Oral defense of the dissertation.
Ph.D. Minor in Geography
The requirements for the Ph.D. minor in geography are flexible. A student’s specific program should be developed in consultation with the minor-field advisor in geography. Typical fields include Climate and Environmental Change; Food and Agriculture; Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing; Cities, Development and Justice; Water Resources. A minimum of 9 credit hours of course work.
Ph.D. in Geography with Specialization in Climate and Environmental Change
Requirements
Requirements are the same as the Ph.D. in Geography, with the additional requirement of a minimum of 12 credit hours in Climate and Environmental Change beyond the M.S. in Geography with a Specialization in Climate and Environmental Change. Suitable courses include but are not limited to the list that appears under the course requirements for the M.S. in Geography with a Specialization in Climate and Environmental Change (above).
Ph.D. in Geography with Specialization in Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing
Requirements
Requirements are the same as the Ph.D. in Geography, with the additional requirement of a minimum of 12 credit hours in Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing beyond the M.S. in Geography with a specialization in Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing. Suitable courses include but are not limited to the list that appears under the course requirements for the M.S. in Geography with a specialization in Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing (above).
Certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing
Students must complete a minimum of 15 credit hours in geographic information systems and remote sensing coursework including:
- Both GEOG-G535 Environmental Remote Sensing and GEOG-G538 Geographic Information Science.
- GEOG-G536 Advance Remote Sensing or GEOG-G539 Advanced Geographic Information Science.
- One course (3 cr. hrs.) selected from:
-
- GEOG-G504 Advanced Quantitative Methods in Geography
- GEOG-G588 Applied Spatial Statistics
- GEOG-G589 Advanced Geospatial Data Analysis
- GEOL-G584 Geographic Information Systems Applications in Geology
- SPEA-E518 Vector-Based Geographic Information Systems
- SPEA-E519 Applied Remote Sensing of the Environment
- SPEA-E529 Applications in GIS
- SPH-R580 GIS and Spatial Data Applications in Public Health
- SPH-E660 Spatial Epidemiology and Disease Mapping
- GEOG G639 GIS and Environmental Analysis