Doctor of Philosophy in Geography

The doctoral program is for those who have demonstrated proficiency in conducting independent research. The department is particularly well-qualified to direct graduate work in location analysis and transportation geography, urban and economic geography, population, migration, and demography, geographies of race, ethnicity, and social justice, climate change and environmental history, human-environmental interaction, and the geography of the natural environment (especially biogeography and geomorphology), and Geographic Information Science. The faculty is qualified to direct students from a variety of approaches ranging from historical, qualitative, and social theoretical to quantitative, computational, and geospatial. The department is particularly well-qualified to direct graduate research in geography of the natural environment (especially biogeography, paleoclimatology, and geomorphology), spatial analysis (especially location analysis, environmental modeling, and geographic information science), and human geography (especially economic, urban, transportation, population, and cultural).

Completion of a Master's Degree is expected prior to full admission into a Ph.D. program.
Although new graduate students may begin during any term, the Fall semester is strongly recommended.

The application deadline for Fall term is February 1.
However, to be assured consideration for first-round departmental funding offers for Fall semester, all application materials for domestic and international applicants must be received by December 15th.

A 3.00 (4.00 scale) or higher undergraduate grade point average is normally required for admission to a graduate degree program.
Official transcripts of all previous college work and a minimum of three letters of recommendation are required.
No single criterion will dominate but the aggregate should provide strong evidence of ability and potential.
Foreign students without degrees from an accredited U.S. institution must submit TOEFL scores (minimum of 550 PBT or 95 iBT required for admission) or IELTS (minimum of 7.0 required for admission). Official scores required prior to admission.