Geography

Concerned with the science of location, the Geography Department faculty teach students to use maps, air photos, computers, and information about places to understand how people use the land they live on and what makes land different from other areas. Students learn about the nature of places, human impacts on environment, and the proper use of land. Career opportunities include travel and tourism, environmental protection, urban, regional, and transportation planning, map making, and area studies.

PROGRAMS OF STUDY: BA, MS

DEPARTMENT CHAIR
Brian Sommers

Location: DiLoreto 201-14
Phone: 832-2785

sommersb@CCSU:EDU

 

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CCSU GEOGRAPHY - GRADUATE PROGRAM

Notice!

Students wanting to become graduate students in geography must contact the Graduate Advisor (Dr. Peter Kyem).This is not an official program description; please consult the most recent edition of the university graduate catalogue.

Faculty

Dr. Brian Sommers (Chair, DiLoreto 208),  Dr. Richard Benfield, Dr. John Harmon, Dr. Peter Kyem,  Dr. Timothy Rickard, Dr. Cindy Pope,  Dr. Xiaoping Shen, Dr.  David Truly, Dr. Philip Van Beynen   (Department phone: 860.832.2785)

Department Overview

Central Connecticut State University has the oldest and largest graduate program in Geography in the state of Connecticut. The graduate program was initiated in 1962 with a Master of Science in Social Science for in-service teachers who desired to complete the requirements for their permanent teaching certificates. However, the program's emphasis has changed since state approval was granted in 1976 to offer a Master of Science in Geography. Since that time, students have used the latter degree in the pursuit of a variety of career goals.

Geography is the science of location. The geography faculty teaches students how to use effectively maps and air photos, gather information about places, and make computer analyses. Students use this knowledge to learn about how people use the land in different places, and what impacts humans.

The Department of Geography has fully equipped cartography, air photo interpretation and microcomputer laboratories available for student use. The microcomputer lab includes a network of IBM PC compatible computers, to include an extensive software collection along with digitizers and plotters for automated cartography, computer graphics and geographic information systems. We can access a VAX mainframe computer from terminals. CCSU has a map depository for the Defense Mapping Agency and the U.S. Geological Survey, with close to 30,000 sheets in our collection. The department also receives planning reports, maps and documents from cities, towns and regions throughout the Northeast.

In addition the Department of Geography provides internships and part-time employment for students in a variety of town, regional, state and private planning agencies and offers consulting services, workshops and short courses as part of its outreach program.

Programs

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The M.S. in Social Science with a concentration in geography continues to meet the needs of Connecticut's teachers.

The M.S. in Geography has been used as a springboard by those interested in further graduate study. Several graduates have gone on the Ph.D. programs at major universities. However, most graduate students are interested in using the M.S. in Geography as a terminal degree which will prepare them for careers in several technical areas.

ADMISSION STANDARDS

The M.S. degree programs are available to all individuals who meet the admissions requirements of the School of Graduate Studies. The Graduate Record Examination is not an admission requirement. An undergraduate major or minor in geography is desirable but not required of applicants. However, those with deficient academic preparation may be asked to complete up to four courses of remedial work at the undergraduate level. Details are available from the Graduate Adviser in Geography.

PROGRAM OF STUDY

Students enrolled in the graduate program must comply with all requirements in the current graduate catalog.

M.S. in Social Science with a Concentration in Geography

This program requires 30 credits of course work, distributed as follows: two professional education courses, one general education elective course, and seven geography courses. Geog.  500 and Geog. 598 are required of all students and at least half of the credits must be at the 500 level.

M.S. in Geography

Students pursuing this degree may select Plan A, which requires 30 credits, including a thesis.  24 or 27 credits in geography (which must include Geog. 500, 598, 599 and either Geog. 530 or 542, one from Geog. 514, 516 or 518) and one or two elective courses in other disciplines. Thesis guidelines are available from the Graduate Adviser. Some students select Plan C. The thirty credits required are the same as in Plan A, except that Geog. 595 is substituted for Geog. 599.

Program Specializations

Students enrolled in the M.S. in Geography program may specialize in any of the following areas:

• Urban and regional planning
• Environmental protection
• Travel and tourism
• Computer mapping or geographic information systems

Each graduate student's planned program of studies is custom-designed to provide the best possible preparation for the career selected, and can include practical work experience to apply classroom theory.

CERTIFICATION

Graduate study in geography does not lead to teacher certification. Those who wish to teach geography should pursue the certification program in secondary social studies.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Graduate Assistantships. The Department of Geography normally has one or two graduate assistantships available to the best-qualified graduate students. They require 20 hours work per week when classes are in session. The work may range from assisting a faculty member with a research project to teaching a section of an introductory course, depending on the student's qualifications. For details, contact the Chair.

Advisement. Contact the the Deparment through our comments page or write to:

Department of Geography
Central Connecticut State University
New Britain, CT 06050 USA
www.geography.ccsu.edu