Introduction

Admission

Application Deadline

The Department of Geography accepts applications for Fall term admission only. Applications should arrive by February 1 in order to be considered for the following fall term.  The department will notify applicants of its decision around April 1.  Graduate teaching fellowships are normally awarded only once per year, in April.

Graduate Admissions Committee
Department of Geography
University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1251

• Application form for Graduate Admissions (submitted electronically)
• Application for Graduate Award (Graduate Teaching Fellowship), if desired
• Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores
• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores---International students with English as a second language only
• Official transcripts from all institutions in which you took college-level courses
• Three (3) letters of recommendation - sent directly to the department by the letter writers
• 2 to 3 page statement of purpose.

Office of Admissions
240 Oregon Hall
1217 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1217

• Application form for Graduate Admissions (submitted electronically)
• Official transcripts from all institutions in which you took college-level courses
• Supplementary Application and Financial Statement for International Students-International students only.

General Requirements

To ensure breadth of knowledge in the discipline, the department requires all Ph.D. and Master's candidates to complete the following courses or their equivalents: Cartographic Methods (GEOG 311) or Introduction to Geographic Systems (GEOG 516); Geographic Data Analysis (GEOG 314); two upper-division courses in physical geography from different subfields; and two upper-division courses in human geography from different subfields.

Intro to Graduate Studies (GEOG 609) is required of all new students in their first fall term, Theory and Practice of Geography (GEOG 620) must be taken during the following winter term, and Current Trends in Geography (GEOG 621) must be taken the succeeding spring term. Each graduate student must take 1 credit of Workshop (GEOG 608) every fall and spring term that the student is in residence.

For students following the master's degree option in geography and education, some substitutions for these course requirements may be authorized by the departmental coordinator for that option.

Master's Program

The Graduate Program Handbook contains a detailed listing of degree requirements

The M.A. and M.S. degrees in geography emphasize broad understanding of physical and human geography and basic geographic techniques. Students develop specialized research skills during work on the thesis. Beyond the general requirements for all graduate students in geography, two graduate seminars in geography (GEOG 507 or 607), one in human geography and one in physical geography, are required of each candidate.

Students must demonstrate skill in a second language, which may be met either by passing a second-year university foreign language course during the seven-year period prior to the receipt of the master's or doctor's degree or by passing the Graduate Student Foreign Language Test (GSFLT) in the twenty-fifth percentile or better.

Where appropriate for the thesis or dissertation topic and with the approval of the advisory committee, computer programming skills may be substituted for the second language.  These skills are typically demonstrated by completing a minimum of two approved courses and writing a program used in the thesis research.

A committee of two geography faculty members supervises the research and writing of a master's thesis that shows evidence of original research and writing. The student must enroll for 9 credits of Thesis (GEOG 503), at least 3 of which must be taken during the term the degree is granted. Every master's thesis must be presented at a public lecture.

Geography and Education.  The geography and education option relates geographic research methods and perspectives to the teaching of social studies at all levels. Course and seminar requirements parallel those for the M.A. program in geography, but teacher licensure is deemed to be a substitute for foreign-language competence.  Students must take at least one workshop (GEOG 608) that is designed for this option. A final written examination administered by a departmental committee is required. A learning activity project is substituted for the thesis.

Those interested in this option must have public school teaching licensure and must indicate their intent to pursue the option before being admitted to the graduate program. Completion of the geography and education option by itself does not lead to additional licensure in the state of Oregon.

Graduate students admitted to the department's summer master's degree program must seek formal admission if they decide to enter the regular geography graduate program.

Doctoral Program

The Graduate Program Handbook contains a detailed listing of degree requirements

The Ph.D. program requires competent understanding of one of the systematic fields of geography and a broad understanding of geographic topics that enables the student to address and synthesize problems that cross the various fields of geography.  While this program is designed to suit each individual's background and interests, prospective candidates should pay particular attention to the systematic specialization and regional interests of the department's faculty members before applying for admission.

The candidate may use the flexibility of Research (GEOG 601) and Reading and Conference (GEOG 605) to follow specific interests with individual members of the faculty. The Ph.D. program, planned with faculty committee approval, is measured by achievement of the stated goals rather than by any specific number of credits.

Ph.D. Requirements

In addition to completing all Graduate School requirements and a master's degree in geography or equivalent study that includes courses required for the M.A. degree in geography at the University of Oregon, the geography Ph.D. program requires at least two graduate-only seminars in geography (GEOG 507 or 607), one in human geography and one in physical geography, and the completion of a second language or technical skill. The second language or skill requirement may be met in any of the following ways:

1. Proficiency in a second language at the level required for the M.A. degree or computer programming skills
2. Advanced foreign language training to the level required to pass a third-year university-level course in composition and conversation
3. Mastery of a technique or method of geographic research by passing at least three courses in cartography or advanced geographic information systems approved advanced-level courses from outside the department

After completing the appropriate course work, graduate seminars, and language or technical skills requirement, advancement to candidacy is achieved by passing comprehensive written examinations in following areas: a world region, a systematic field of geography, a topic that integrates several fields of geography, and geographic thought and methodology. The student, in consultation with a faculty committee, writes four questions in each area for the comprehensive examination. Two or three questions in each area are then selected by the advisory committee, and the student prepares written answers to them during a six-week period.

Within nine months of completing the comprehensive examination, the student must present a dissertation proposal for approval by the student's dissertation committee. The completed dissertation, the capstone of the doctoral program, presents the results of substantive and original research on a significant geographic problem. It is defended in a public oral presentation.  

Financial Assistance