At first glance, you might think geography has little to do
with your day-to-day life and even less to do with your career.
You might think that studying geography is nothing more than
memorizing state capitals or learning to plot points on a map.
But geography is much more than that. While historians study
events through time, geographers study where and why. The keys
are location and interaction across horizontal space. Maps are
crucial for showing geographic information. Another focus of
geography is the relationship between human beings and their
environment. The truth is that may be one of the most useful
subjects offered in any school.
The world is changing rapidly. Where people once focused on
their neighborhood, their town, their country, they are now
adopting a more global perspective. They are learning that the
earth’s resources are not limitless and that the impact of human
beings on the environment is far greater than had been
anticipated as little as a decade ago.
In its 1988 publication Geography: Making Sense of Where We
Are, the National Geographic Society Society makes the following
statement:
Geography for its own sake offers a fascinating realm of
knowledge that can enrich our lives. Conversely, a lack of
geographic understanding can diminish us as individuals, blunt
the success of our international economic and political
ventures, and dilute our strength as a nation.
(Source: Careers in Geography, National Geographic Society,
1996.)
The Major
The Geography Major consists of a minimum of 40 credits and
must include one of the three options listed below. Each option
integrates course offerings from several departments. A common
core of introductory courses is required of all majors as a
foundation for more specialized work in a particular option.
The Geography Major Options are:
The Minors:
In addition to the provided majors, the department also
offers the following options for minors.
