Graduate Programs with the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning

Our faculty and students are making a difference. They are researching the complex issues facing our society with the goal of making the world a more resilient and sustainable place. While our research interests are broad, many of them fall within these research areas:

• Physical geographers study earth surface processes, the interactions between Earth’s main ‘spheres’: lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. Students have the opportunity to conduct hands-on fieldwork in remote landscapes and ecosystems, at the intersection of physical geography, engineering, sustainability, and GIScience.
• Researchers in human-environmental science take an interdisciplinary approach by integrating subfields such as land system science, environmental remote sensing, transportation, energy, and sustainability. Graduates frequently go on to research posts in academia, government, and NGOs. 
• Our climatology faculty emphasize the growing importance of the field within modern society. For example, the development of resilient cities requires collaboration among climatologists, urban planners, architects, engineers, computer scientists, etc., and provides unique deep learning opportunities and drives solutions to global challenges through interdisciplinary engagement.
• Our faculty and students are thought leaders in spatial analysis and are developing new analytical methods for geospatial data. If data have a geolocation (think GPS data, Google Maps data, data from satellites, geotagged social media), spatial analysists can use it to identify patterns and predict future trends.
• Urban and environmental planners learn the effects of the built environment (buildings, infrastructure systems, and open spaces) on people, the changes people and cultures make to the built environment, and how to devise solutions that lead to more equitable, efficient, and sustainable kinds of communities.
• Our school prepares transportation scholars to solve the problems of poorly functioning transport systems, and to create transport systems that equitably provide access for all. Practitioners may implement physical changes - like redesigning a street - or policy changes - like implementing smarter parking charges.