Physical geography is concerned with understanding the forces that shape the physical environment upon which humans depend. A knowledge of physical geography can aid students in understanding present environmental stresses as well as prepare them for a career in one of several environment-related occupations.

Graduates with a bachelor's degree often find employment in private firms or in local, state, and federal agencies. Types of jobs available include environmental research coordinator, soil technician, water resource planner, hydrologist, research meteorologist, natural resource planner, land management specialist, and climatologist.

Required Courses

In addition to the Core Courses, listed to the left, the Physical Environment Option consists of the following courses.

ONE of the following courses:	TWO of the following courses:	ONE of the following courses:
Geography 340 Processes of Environmental Degradation Study why and how humans harm the physical environment; includes geographic, cultural, political, economic causes and consequences. Case studies from around the world. Geography 344 Environmental Hazards Human interaction with hazardous phenomena such as earthquakes, storms, and infectious diseases; spatial aspects of the social processes and perceptions creating risk and vulnerability in the environment; local hazards.	Geography 352 Geomorphology Characteristics, origin, and development of landforms. Geography 353 Physical Climatology and Meteorology Radiation and energy balances; composition, characteristics, and circulation of the atmosphere. Introduction to weather map analysis and forecasting.OR Geography 354 Climatology Examine world climatic patterns, climate classification, air pollution climatology, and global climate change. Geography 358 Biogeography Examine spatial and temporal patterns of plants, animals, and microbes with emphasis on dynamic relationships between life form, population, and habitat. Significance of biotic distributions on human affairs and human impacts on biosphere locations.	Geography 377 Remote Sensing I Characteristics of aerial photographs and digital imagery. Use remote sensing materials to conduct resource inventories, and land use evaluation, and landform analysis. Geography 476 Geographic Information Systems I Develop, use and maintain a geographic-based spatial information system (GIS) for resource management. Acquire and assess spatial data. Compare raster and vector data models. Computer-based geographic data handling, analysis, interpretation, and display. Cartographic and spatial modeling.

SIX credits selected from any of the following:
Geography 340 Processes of Environmental Degradation Study why and how humans harm the physical environment; includes geographic, cultural, political, economic causes and consequences. Case studies from around the world. Geography 344 Environmental Hazards Human interaction with hazardous phenomena such as earthquakes, storms, and infectious diseases; spatial aspects of the social processes and perceptions creating risk and vulnerability in the environment; local hazards. Geography 352 Geomorphology Characteristics, origin, and development of landforms. Geography 353 Physical Climatology and Meteorology Radiation and energy balances; composition, characteristics, and circulation of the atmosphere. Introduction to weather map analysis and forecasting. Geography 354 Climatology Examine world climatic patterns, climate classification, air pollution climatology, and global climate change.	Geography 358 Biogeography Examine spatial and temporal patterns of plants, animals, and microbes with emphasis on dynamic relationships between life form, population, and habitat. Significance of biotic distributions on human affairs and human impacts on biosphere locations. Geography 371 Gender and Environment Gendered nature of environmental degradation; feminist theories and gender-sensitive methodologies for the study of and solution to environmental problems. Geography 377 Remote Sensing I Characteristics of aerial photographs and digital imagery. Use remote sensing materials to conduct resource inventories, and land use evaluation, and landform analysis. Geography 379 Remote Sensing II Learn principles of remote sensor technology and apply them to inventory earth resources, detect and monitor pollution, and measure other environmental phenomena. Use visual analysis and computer-assisted digital imaging processing techniques to interpret various types of remote sensor imagery. Geography 393* Field Trip in Geography Observe physical and cultural phenomena; required readings, field notebook and/or report. May repeat for credit with change in locale or topic.	Geography 476 Geographic Information Systems I Develop, use and maintain a geographic-based spatial information system (GIS) for resource management. Acquire and assess spatial data. Compare raster and vector data models. Computer-based geographic data handling, analysis, interpretation, and display. Cartographic and spatial modeling. Geology 330 Environmental Geology Apply geological principles to understand and solve problems associated with human interaction with the physical environment, including soil and rock mechanics, slope stability, land subsidence, earthquakes, coastal erosion, and resource extraction. Geology 370 Glacial Geology Origin and development of glacial features and related phenomena over the last three million years. Geology 393* Field Trip in Geology Observe geological phenomena; readings, field notebook and/or report. May repeat for credit with change in locale or topic.

* 3 credit Max.

Students who elect the Physical Environment Option should be advised that they may need to take only a few additional geography and/or geology courses for an Earth Science Minor.

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