Undergraduate Studies Home

Majoring in Geography

Advising Office

GIS Minor

Internship Opportunities

Career Opportunities

Geography Honors Program

Geography Awards

Requirements for the Geography Specialization

In order to major in Geography with a specialization in Geography (22060), a student must complete all University CORE requirements, a minimum of 35 credits in Geography, and 15 credits in a supporting area.  Of the 35 credits of Geography coursework, students must take 8 credits of Geography primary requirements, 9 credits of gateway courses (human, physical and technical), 15 credits of upper level non-technical Geography systematic electives, and 3 credits of quantitative coursework.  The supporting area coursework (15 credits) are taken outside of the Geography department; these courses can be either in one department, such as Economics or Anthropology, or in an area of concentration, such as urban studies, where a student might combine urban related courses from Urban Studies and Planning, Sociology, and Criminal Justice.  Students meet with a Geography advisor and a faculty member every semester to develop a personalized curriculum.

Primary Requirements (8 credits):

The Primary Requirement consists of four 200-level courses that introduce the major areas of geographic research and prepare students for upper level courses.  These are normally taken before doing upper division work in the Department:

GEOG 201 Geography of Environmental Systems (3 credits)
GEOG 211 Geography of Environmental Systems Lab (1 credit)
GEOG 202 The World in Cultural Perspective (3 credits)
GEOG 212 The World in Cultural Perspective Lab (1 credit)

Gateway Requirements (12 credits):

Students specializing in Geography must also select one human, one physical, and one techniques course.  In selecting these courses, a student may wish to determine courses that would be most applicable to his or her area of concentration.

Human Gateway Courses (3 Credits):
GEOG 310 Maryland and Adjacent Areas
GEOG 312 The United States and Canada
GEOG 313 Latin America

GEOG 330 Cultural Geography

GEOG 331 Introduction to Human Dimensions of Global Change
GEOG 332 Economic Geography

GEOG 334 The American City: Past and Present

Physical Gateway Courses (3 Credits):
GEOG 340 Geomorphology
GEOG 342 Introduction to Biogeography
GEOG 345 Climatology

Techniques Gateway Courses (3 Credits):
GEOG 372 Remote Sensing
GEOG 373 Geographic Information Systems
GEOG 375 Computer Cartography

Quantitative Courses (3 Credits):
GEOG 306 Introduction to Quantitative Methods for Geographic and Environmental Sciences

Upper Level Geography Systematic Electives (15 credits):

Students are encouraged to concentrate within one sub-field of Geography, but may select any combination of upper level courses.  Below are links describing suggested areas of concentrations, and the geography advisors will work with students to develop a personalized curriculum.   6 out 15 of this credits must be at the 400 level.