There are three integrated elements of the M.A. in Applied Geography and Geospatial Science:
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Area of Inquiry: Geographic Perspectives on Human-Environmental Interaction
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Research Method: Geospatial Science
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Professional Development: Community Engagement, Service Learning, and Employment Training
Advanced Training in Geospatial Science
Geospatial science provides a set of techniques that allow researchers to understand relationships between human society and the natural environment in ways not previously possible. Students in the AGGS MA program have access to faculty with extensive geospatial teaching and research experience and to a wide range of specialized courses in GIS modeling and analysis, computer cartography, environmental remote sensing, web-based GIS, FOSS-based GIS, and spatial statistics.
Community Engagement and Service Learning
The program emphasizes professional development through community engagement and interactive service learning. Students apply their geo-spatial research skills in the context of collaborative faculty-led projects conducted jointly with community partner organizations. In GEOG 6800, the Community-Based Research Studio, students will generate scoped products that meet the needs of a government, non-governmental, or private sector partner organization. This portion of the curriculum is operated in concert with an outside advisory board drawn from regional employers of geo-spatial professionals.
Professional Science Masters (PSM) Certification
This program has received preliminary approval for certification as a Professional Science Masters (PSM) program by the PSM national office, and final certification is pending. PSM certification requires that 50 percent of a program’s coursework be STEM qualified, and that an additional 20 percent of coursework be focused on professional development. The goal of the PSM organization is to help develop and promote masters level graduate programs that combine advanced training with professional engagement opportunities in science disciplines.
Student learning in the M.A. in Geography and Applied Geospatial Science will focus on:
- Geography: students will learn the capacity for the discipline of geography to provide a useful and robust forum for exploring, analyzing and responding to developments at the human-environment interface.
- Acquire in-depth knowledge of theory, methods, and research in the field.
- Develop ability to analyze problems, develop hypotheses, and design research.
- Geospatial skills: students will become proficient in geospatial analysis.
- Application: students will be capable of incorporating research and geospatial skills into real-world research programs.
- Communication: students will master interactive and presentation skills in order to articulate problems and to communicate solutions and recommendations within a team setting.