Departments, Programs and Centers

Departments

Geography

  • Chair: Professor Jeffrey Wilson
  • Professors: Frederick Bein, Jeffrey Wilson
  • Associate Professors: Timothy Brothers, Owen Dwyer, Thomas Fedor, Pamela Martin
  • Assistant Professors: Rudy Banerjee, Daniel Johnson
  • Adjuncts: Associate Librarian James Baldwin; Professor Greg Lindsey;  Gilbert Liu, MD; Instructor Kevin Mickey; Professor Gilbert Nduru; Professor John Ottensmann; Professor Catherine Souch; Sarah Wiehe, MD
  • Lecturers: Andrew Baker; Professor Robert Beck;
  • Academic Advising:
    • Owen Dwyer, Undergraduate Advisor 
    • Rudy Banerjee, Graduate Advisor

Cavanaugh Hall 213, phone: (317) 274-8877; fax: (317) 278-5220; e-mail: geogdept@iupui.edu; Department Web site: www.iupui.edu/~geogdept. Please refer to this Web site for updates of all degree and certificate requirements.

Geography, like history, is a way of looking at the world. Whereas historians study variation through time, geographers study variation through space: how and why the earth’s natural and human features vary from place to place. Underlying this spatial approach are such recurring themes as spatial diffusion of people, goods, and ideas; the significance of location in human interaction; the power of place in human conscience; and the interaction of physical and human processes to create landscapes. Geographers work at the intersection of social and natural sciences, using the concepts and methods of both to examine human-environmental relationships in their full complexity. This integrative approach is a hallmark of geography and one of its main attractions. Geographers can be found in a great variety of positions often not specifically identified as geographic: environmental management, urban planning, conservation, recreation and tourism, transportation planning, international affairs, and many others.
Programs in Geographic Information Science
During the last two decades, rapid growth has occurred in the field of geographic information. Stimulated by advances in technology and the collection, storage and analysis of data, a new sub-discipline has emerged: geographic information science. Geographic information science involves research on the development and application of spatial technologies, including geographic information systems, remote sensing, and the global positioning system. At the core of geographic information science is the integration of these technologies and their application to problems of spatial analysis. The fundamental theories and principles of geographic information science are based in geography. However, virtually all fields (engineering, medicine, science, management, business, social sciences, and humanities) are now embracing geographic information science in theoretical and applied research.

The IUPUI Department of Geography offers an Undergraduate Certificate, Graduate Certificate, and Master of Science in Geographic Information Science.