Department of Geography: Undergraduate Program

Introduction

Geographers study the earth much as you encounter it in your everyday life--in its entirety. That's what makes geographers unique among educated people. We are interested in so many different kinds of things, and in seeing how seemingly unrelated facts and ideas fit together to explain the world around us. Geographers take a more integrated view of the world around us, and think about it more holistically than practitioners of most other disciplines. So if you are interested in more than two of the following kinds of phenomena, you are on your way to becoming a geographer:

• Places
• Environment
• Maps
• Education
• Cultures
• Religions
• History
• Population
• Human migrations
• Land use
• Cities
• Urban planning
• Economics
• Human behavior
• Natural resources
• Climate change
• Geology
• Environmental perception
• Natural hazards
• Wildlife habitat
• Politics and policy
• World futures

The next step is to take a course or two from us to see if our approach to understanding the world fits well with your own. This will tell you if we share common interests and if you enjoy our style of thinking and analysis.

When you decide you want to major in Geography, the first thing you need to do is come in and talk to one of our faculty members. He or she will also ask you to pick up the Major Program Application, required by the university, and our own Major Application Diagnostic Essay instructions.

The Diagnostic Essay is designed to help both of us do some important things:

• First, it helps you to think about where you want to go-or what you want to do-with a geography degree.
• Second, it tells our advisors something about you as a student and a person.
• Third, it helps us to match you with the best academic advisor for your particular interests.

When you finish filling out the application, return it to the department Secretary's office, and she will set up an appointment for you to to speak to the Chair of the department.

Our Departmental Mission Statement

An understanding of geography is integral to an educated person's ability to live and act effectively in today's changing world. A broad range of factors (cultural and physical, natural and technological) are at work shaping the future of our planet, and it is the mission of the Department of Geography and Land Studies at Central Washington University to prepare its students to become active participants in that rapidly developing future. To fulfill its mission, the department emphasizes human diversity and student-centered instruction in research, analysis and presentation of both cultural and physical data. We offer a range of course work featuring techniques and tools for understanding the processes and results of the earth-human relationship, and for empowering students to deal with the rapid changes they will face.

The department is committed to a liberal education as well as to professional training related to planning and natural resource management. In meeting those commitments, we offer the geographer's way of "seeing" the interrelationships between human life and our habitat. Our students learn to see a holistic earth and its components--physical and human--along with the processes which shape them. We seek to instill in our students the joy of discovery and the satisfaction gained from the knowledge of how to learn. The department encourages imagination and creativity, while providing our graduates with the skills necessary to deal with issues--at scales ranging from local to global--relating to the planet, its diverse regions and its peoples.

We stress the importance of place as a path of research and understanding, and as an arena for positive action ... we expect geographers to speak for the land and spirit of places. As an intrinsic characteristic of our discipline, we encourage interdisciplinary teaching, research and public service among our faculty, and a similar orientation in our students--regardless of their ultimate career choices. Our students graduate with real-life experience, gained in contact with other cultures, through field work and internships, and by acquiring skills necessary for coping with our highly dynamic world. Toward these ends, the department maintains a strong commitment to general education and makes major contributions to the Energy Studies Minor, Environmental Studies Minor, International Studies Programs, GIS Certificate Program, and the Resource Management Graduate Program.

We prepare our students for life as active participants in the creation of tomorrow. It is our intention that those who study with us be prepared to evaluate for themselves the consequences of public and private choices which will shape the future of our global society, and the lands and natural resources that sustain us.

The Major

Admission to the Major

As with all majors, Geography has formal admission requirements. We currently require you to have a 2.25 minimum GPA in all university coursework taken up to the time of admission. In addition, you need to complete the Major Program application process described above.

Major Contract and Advising

Once you have been admitted to the program, you will be assigned an academic advisor in the Geography Department. He or she is available to help answer any questions you have about the major. You should plan to meet with him or her once each quarter to assess your progress. One of the principal tasks of your advisor is to help you prepare your Major Contract. The courses you choose for your major program will vary from those of other students because we try to tailor your individual program to your interests. One of the purposes of the Major Contract is to allow you to determine with your advisor the classes that will be especially useful for your future and which will meet university and departmental requirements. The Major Contract is also a formal document on file with the university and is used by the Registrar to ensure that you have taken all your required classes prior to graduation. You must file a major contract at least one year before your expected graduation date.

Major Programs and Graduation Requirements

Geography is fundamentally a liberal arts major. Although it is not designed to prepare students for specific kinds of employment, the breadth of our program allows you take courses in geography as well as other fields of study, and to develop skills that might qualify you for a number of different employment opportunities. For example, if you wish to qualify for a permanent position with a federal land or resource management agency, we strongly suggest that you take a combination of courses in math and science to support your geography degree. If you wish to work as a land use planner, we recommend that you take courses in economics, public administration or political science. We have deliberately kept our major requirements modest so that you have the flexibility to take these important types of program electives.

We put considerable emphasis on increasing your facility for writing, graphic communication (especially the use of maps), and in speaking in front of groups. These skills are not unique to geographers, but they are important. We also expect all of our majors to have acquired a measure of competence in two or three marketable skills by the time they graduate: Cartography, Air Photo Interpretation, Policy Analysis, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and/or Remote Sensing and Image Processing. As a geography major, you will be guided in your course selections by referencing either the general geography guidelines or one of four specializations. These specializations serve as advising guidelines that will lead you toward what courses you need to succeed in your chosen area of work or further graduate study. All of these specialized programs require a total of 60 credit hours (including the core) in Geography and related fields. In addition, the department sponsors a GIS certificate program. If you choose to have a second major, then a 45-credit general geography program option is available.

Please see the online CWU Catalog for more detailed information.

Core Requirements of the Geography Major

In order to allow you the flexibility to develop your own major program, we require only five specific core classes, which total 20 credit hours. These five classes will expose you to the major areas of geographic thinking. In addition to these five courses, you will select 25-40 credit hours of electives which are appropriate to your chosen specialization and which must be approved by your advisor. Among these electives, however, you are required to take one upper division geography course in each of the four identified subfields of the geography discipline: physical, human, regional, and techniques.

Required Core Courses (20 credits):
GEOG 101, World Regional Geography (5)
GEOG 107, Introduction to Physical Geography (5)
GEOG 108, Introduction to Human Geography (5)
GEOG 203, Map Reading and Interpretation (3)
GEOG 489, Geography Capstone (2)

Required Advanced Courses (14-20 credits to be chosen with advisor):
Advanced Regional Geography (3-5 credits)
Advanced Physical Geography (4-5 credits)
Advanced Human Geography (3-5 credits)
Advanced Techniques Geography (4-5 credits)

Specializations for the 60-credit Geography Major

Please consult with your advisor for help in choosing electives that help to sustain your course of study in any of these four specializations.

Geotechniques

The Geotechniques Specialization emphasizes techniques of geographic analysis, preparing graduates to support professionals in many fields. Most graduates within this specialization work for government agencies, particularly planning, resource management, and environmental departments. We encourage students to gain a comprehensive understanding of not only geotechniques, but also an application area such as planning, environmental studies, resource management, geology, biology, anthropology, or business.
Required Introductory Courses (18 credits):
GEOG 101, World Regional Geography (5)
GEOG 107, Introduction to Physical Geography (5)
GEOG 108, Introduction to Human Geography (5)
GEOG 203, Map Reading and Interpretation (3)
Required Advanced Courses (10-13 credits chosen with advisor)
Advanced Regional Geography (4-5)
Advanced Physical Geography (4-5)
Advanced Human Geography (4-5)
Suggested Advanced Techniques Courses (18 credits from following chosen with advisor):
GEOG 303/403, Introductory GIS (5)
GEOG 409, Quantitative Methods (4)
GEOG 410, Airphoto Interpretation (4)
GEOG 413, Computer Cartography (4)
GEOG 425, Field Methods in Geography (5)
Elective Technique Courses (7-12 credits from following, chosen with advisor):
Geography: GEOG 404, Intermediate GIS (5); GEOG 417, Advanced GIS; GEOG 430, Remote Sensing (5); GEOG 448, Resource and Environmental Analysis (5); GEOG 479, Geography of the West (1-5) (geotechniques focus); GEOG 485, Topics in GIS/Remote Sensing (4); GEOG 490, Cooperative Education (geotechniques focus) (1-5); GEOG 493, Geography Field Experience (geotechniques focus) (1-5); GEOG 496, Individual Study (geotechniques focus) (1-5)
Geology: GEOL 432, Field Geodetic Techniques
(other courses will be considered by advisor and chair on an individual basis)
Required Capstone Course (2 credits)
GEOG 489, Geography Capstone (2)
B.A. degree total: 60 credits in major program

Please see the online CWU Catalog for more detailed information.

Physical Geography

The Physical Geography Specialization emphasizes an understanding of past, present, and future physical environments and their components, including weather, climate, water, landforms, soils, and biota. This specialization is designed for those students interested in preparing for careers in environmental analysis and environmental resource management, or for those students wishing to pursue graduate studies in physical geography. We also encourage students to accompany the major with a minor in Anthropology, Biology, Geology, or Earth Sciences.

Required Introductory Courses (18 credits):
GEOG 101, World Regional Geography (5)
GEOG 107, Introduction to Physical Geography (5)
GEOG 108, Introduction to Human Geography (5)
GEOG 203, Map Reading and Interpretation (3)
Required Advanced Courses (12-15 credits chosen with advisor):
Advanced Regional Geography (4-5)
Advanced Human Geography (4-5)
Advanced Techniques Geography (4-5)
Suggested Advanced Physical Courses (20 credits from following chosen with advisor):
GEOG 382, Hydrology (5)
GEOG 386, Geomorphology (5)
GEOG 361, Soils (5)
GEOG 388, Climatology (5)
GEOG 389, Ecosystem Geography (5)
Physical Geography Electives (5-8 credits mutually chosen with advisor):
Anthropology: ANTH 323, Field Archaeology
Biology: BIOL 450, Ichthyology; BIOL 461, Community Ecology; BIOL 462, Wildlife and Fisheries Ecology; BIOL 463, Limnology; BIOL 464, Terrestrial Plant Ecology; BIOL 466, Conservation Biology
Geography: GEOG 454, Wetland Analysis; GEOG 476, Advanced Geomorphology; GEOG 477, Advanced Soils; GEOG 478, Advanced Climatology
Geology: GEOL 410, Snow Sciences: The Physics of Avalanches; GEOL 445, Hydrogeology; GEOL 474, Quaternary Geology; GEOL 570, Fluvial Geomorphology
(other courses will be considered by advisor and chair on an individual basis)
Required Capstone Course (2 credits)
GEOG 489, Geography Capstone (2)
B.A. degree total: 60 credits in major program

Please see the online CWU Catalog for more detailed information.

Planning

The Planning Specialization allows a focus on coursework that will benefit students seeking careers in local, regional, or urban planning are best developed through this specialization. It normally places heavy emphasis on interdisciplinary perspectives and the application of geographic skills to problems typically encountered by the planner or developer. It is appropriate for students interested in careers with public and private planning agencies or land development firms. The major program will normally include GEOG 305, Introduction to Land Use Planning, and additional coursework in physical geography, techniques, economics, geology, and sociology.

Required Introductory Courses (18 credits):
GEOG 101, World Regional Geography (5)
GEOG 107, Introduction to Physical Geography (5)
GEOG 108, Introduction to Human Geography (5)
GEOG 203, Map Reading and Interpretation (3)
Required Advanced Courses (13-15 credits chosen with advisor)
Advanced Regional Geography (4-5)
Advanced Physical Geography (5)
Advanced Techniques Geography (4-5)
Suggested Foundation Planning Courses (10 credits):
GEOG 304, Economic Geography (5)
GEOG 305, Introduction to Land Use Planning (5)
Planning-Related Electives (15-17 credits from following chosen with advisor):
ADMG: ADMG 355, Workplace Administration (4); ADMG 374, Project Mgmt (4)
Business: BUS 452, Real Estate Finance and Investment (3)
ENST: ENST 303, Environmental Management (5)
Geography: GEOG 310, Intro to Landscape Analysis; GEOG 361, Soils (5); GEOG 405, Advanced Topics in Land Use Planning (3); GEOG 446, Land Use in the United States (3); GEOG 450, Arid Lands (4); GEOG 451, Mountain Environments (4); GEOG 452, Coastal Environments (4); GEOG 453, Wetlands Analysis (4); GEOG 481, Urban Geography (5); GEOG 490, Cooperative Education (planning focus) (5)
Geology: GEOL 380, Environmental Geology and Natural Hazards (4)
History: HIST 354, American Environmental History (5)
POSC: POSC 320, Public Administration (5); POSC 325, Introduction to Public Policy (3)
RT: RT 302, Leisture and Freedom (3)
Sociology: SOC 380, Social Ecology; SOC 382, Sociology of the Future; SOC 415, Urban Sociology (4)
(other courses will be considered by advisor and chair on an individual basis)
Required Capstone Course (2 credits)
GEOG 489, Geography Capstone (2)
B.A. degree total: 60 credits in major program

Please see the online CWU Catalog for more detailed information.

Resource and Environmental Management

The Resource/Environmental Management Specialization is intended for students interested in natural resource-related careers or graduate school. The recommended curriculum emphasizes resource management classes as well as coursework in related disciplines that will augment a student's knowledge of specific resources. We also encourage students to accompany the major with a minor in Anthropology, Biology, Earth Science, Geology, or Public Policy.
Required Introductory Courses (18 credits):
GEOG 101, World Regional Geography (5)
GEOG 107, Introduction to Physical Geography (5)
GEOG 108, Introduction to Human Geography (5)
GEOG 203, Map Reading and Interpretation (3)
Required Advanced Courses (16-20 credits)
Advanced Regional Geography (4-5)
Advanced Physical Geography (4-5)
Advanced Human Geography (4-5)
Advanced Techniques Geography (4-5)
Suggested Advanced Resource/Environmental Courses (18 credits from following)
GEOG 343, Energy Resource Alternatives (3)
GEOG 350, Resources, Population and Conservation (4)
GEOG 373, Water Resources (4)
GEOG 440, Ecology and Culture (4)
GEOG 443, Energy Policy (5)
GEOG 445, Natural Resource Policy (4)
GEOG 446, Land Use in the United States (3)
GEOG 448, Resource and Environmental Analysis (5)
GEOG 453, Wetlands Analysis (4)
GEOG 473, Watershed Analysis and Planning (4)
Advanced Resource/Environmental Electives (3-6 credits from the following):
Biology: BIOL 461, Community Ecology; 462 (3); Wildlife and Fisheries Ecology; 462 (5), Limnology; 463 (5); Terrestrial Plant Ecology; 466 (5); Conservation Biology (5).
Economics: ECON 462, Economics of Energy, Resources, and Environment (5)
Environmental Studies: ENST 444, Environmental Policy Form. (4); 455, Environmental Literature (3)
Geography: GEOG 305, Introduction to Land Use Planning (5); 405, Advanced Planning (3)
Geology: GEOL 380, Environmental Geology and Natural Hazards (4)
History: HIST 454, American Environmental History (5)
(other courses will be considered by advisor and chair on an individual basis)
Required Capstone Course (2 credits)
GEOG 489, Geography Capstone (2)
B.A. degree total: 60 credits in major program

Please see the online CWU Catalog for more detailed information.

Internships, Writing and Speaking Skills, Language Study, Math & Science Preparation

• In addition to the foregoing specific requirements, we would like to recommend several courses that will make you more "marketable." For example, we strongly encourage you to try to arrange an internship as part of your education. Such work experiences for which you receive course credit are very helpful-occasionally they lead directly to jobs. Even if an internship does not result directly in employment, many employers look upon an internship as that all-important "first real job" when they see it on your resume.
• The university's requirements for competence in the use of the English language are more than simple routine harassment. We have found that the greater our graduates' abilities to write and speak correctly and articulately, the better the jobs that they are able to secure. It is for this reason that we place a great emphasis on your ability to write and speak.
• Studying a foreign language may not sound appealing, but it too can be helpful in getting a job. As you learn a second language, you also have to learn more about your first language, its structure, its vocabulary, and the categories it imposes on your thoughts. The ultimate expression of multiculturalism is to learn another's language.
• Similarly, the more supporting work you take in mathematics, science, and statistics courses; or economics and political science, the more competitive you will be in the employment market.

Overseas Study

Finally, we want to encourage you to think seriously about spending a quarter or two studying outside the United States. Central is linked to foreign study programs in more than seven different countries in Asia, Latin America, and Europe. Foreign study and travel is much less a luxury than it was even ten years ago. With the increasing globalization of nearly everything, it is more important than ever to develop a working knowledge of how people in other countries think and work. Studying overseas is also the best of all ways to learn another language.

What We Will Expect of You as a Major

Above all else, we want you to walk out the door of this institution an educated person. As a Geography Major, there are some basic skills, knowledge and understandings that you need to develop:

• Excellence in written and oral communication.
• Ability to think logically and critically about the world around you.
• Ability to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information using a spatial perspective.
• Ability to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments.
• Ability to analyze and describe the spatial organization of people, places and environments on the Earth's surface.
• Ability to analyze and describe the physical and human characteristics of a place.
• Knowledge of how people create regions to help them interpret the Earth's complexity.
• Understanding of how culture and experience influence peoples' perceptions of places and regions.
• Understanding the physical and human processes that shape patterns on the Earth's surface.
• Understanding the characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on the Earth's surface.
• Understanding the characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on the Earth's surface.
• Understanding of the characteristics, distribution, and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics.
• Understanding the patterns and networks of economic interdependence on Earth.
• Understanding how forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of the Earth's surface.
• Understanding how human actions modify the physical environment.
• Understanding how physical systems affect human systems.
• Understanding the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources.
• Understanding how to apply geographical thinking to interpret the past.
• Understanding how to apply geographical thinking to interpret the present and plan for the future.

Student Organizations and Activities

The Geography Club is the service and social club for geography students. It sponsors activities such as field trips, pizza feeds, visiting speakers and other things that relate to what geographers do. The Environmental and Resource Management Association (ERMA) is the graduate student service and social organization. In addition to these geography organizations, we encourage you to become involved in other organizations and activities that interest you. Each year general students are presented with the Brooks/Shaw Award, which provides limited support to geography majors during the academic year.

Facilities

We maintain an excellent collection of USGS topographic maps of Washington and adjacent states. These are available for you to use with the approval and supervision of a departmental faculty member. We also have a large archive of aerial photographs of Kittitas County and neighboring counties. This collection spans more than 50 years of record and is extremely useful in assessing historic environmental changes in the region.

CWU has one of the finest Geographic Information System (GIS) teaching and research facilities in the Northwest. The University has an ESRI site license and is running the latest version of ArcGIS, as well as ArcView 3.3. In addition to ESRI products, ERDAS Imagine is available for image processing research. Corel Draw is used for detailed cartographic/graphic work. Scanners, digitizers, and both small and large format printers are also available to students.

Students in the program have access to the GIS laboratory (21 computers) housed in the Department of Geography and Land Studies.

Policies

• FEES: Some of our laboratory courses require modest fees to cover materials. These are in addition to the computer usage fee required by the university.
• PHOTOCOPYING: The University Library, The Copy Shop, and other local merchants make copying facilities available at nominal cost. We request that you use them. The departmental photocopier is only available for faculty and staff use.
• EQUIPMENT: The department has some field equipment that can be checked out by students engaged in research projects.
• WAITING LISTS: Several of our courses have limited enrollments and require the instructor's permission for registration. Instructors maintain waiting lists for these classes on a first come, first served basis, but graduate students have priority for some courses. Plan your schedules carefully and make sure you're signed up on the appropriate list.
• FINAL EXAMS: In line with University policies, it is our policy to give final exams only at the scheduled time. The Examination Schedule is printed in the schedule of classes published each quarter. Please plan your breaks accordingly.
• GRADING: We follow University policy on grades and grading. We all try to evaluate your performance in courses as fairly as humanly possible and assign grades accordingly.. Please keep in mind that a C represents satisfactory, but not outstanding, performance. It is not a failing grade, nor is it a reflection upon your worth as a person.
• PLAGIARISM and CHEATING: The department adheres strictly to university policies on plagiarism and cheating. Any such incidents will be dealt with according to university regulations.

Written Paper Requirements & Referencing Style

One of the most important skills you can develop in college is the ability to write clearly and cogently. Being able to produce well written, grammatically correct, concise reports is an invaluable employment skill. Therefore, the professors in this Department will always evaluate your written work on style as well as content. The following suggestions should help you prepare professional style papers.

Paper Style

• Spelling and grammatical errors are unacceptable. Use spell checkers AND carefully proofread. If necessary, take your paper to an editor in the Academic Skills Center before turning it in.
• Use headings and subheadings to separate sections of your paper. This organizes the paper better and makes it easier to follow.
• If you include maps or figures in your paper, label them (Figure 1, etc.) then refer to them in the text (see Figure 1). Don't just stick them at the end of the paper where they won't be found. Type your sources of information on the figures.

Paper Format

• Papers should be typed, preferably on a word processor, in 10 or 12 point type and double spaced (or leaded to 24-30 points).
• Margins should be approximately one inch on all sides. Use a wider left margin if you plan to put your paper in a binding.
• Do not use "block justification" (straight right and left margins).

Referencing

References serve two purposes. First, they acknowledge and give credit to the person whose data or ideas you are borrowing, thereby avoiding plagiarism. Second, they provide information enabling your readers to locate the same sources you used. The field of geography does not have a standard referencing style (unlike some other disciplines). This Department, however, has chosen to require a standard format for referencing: In-text citations with an alphabetical listing of references at the end of the paper. Footnotes are no longer acceptable, fortunately. Some examples of the appropriate format are given below. For more details consult a reliable style manual, such as the Chicago Manual of Style.

Citations

• The author's last name, the year of publication and the page number are placed in parentheses within the text. If there is no author, use the title of the document, or in the case of government documents use the agency name.
• Page numbers are not mandatory, but they provide useful information to the reader.
• Examples:
  1. These reasons have been cited for why states do not allow private individuals to hold water rights for instream flows (Wahl1990, 201 or Wahl 1990: 201); or
  2. Some rivers were found "eligible, but not suitable for designation as Wild and Scenic Rivers" (Palmer 1986, 157); or
  3. The hearings revealed that many people objected to a Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (U.S. Congress, Senate, Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs 1965, 159).
• Citations should immediately follow first reference to the cited material. Don't just stick them at the end of the paragraph-unless the entire paragraph is from the same source.

References

• References should be listed alphabetically by author starting on a separate page at the end of the paper.
• The titles of books and journals should be underlined or italicized.
• References should include only those sources actually cited in the paper.
• Standard format for references calls for the first line to be flush with the left margin and subsequent lines to be indented. They should be single-spaced.

Examples of acceptable reference style:

As stated under University and Department Policies, the Department has a zero tolerance policy toward plagiarism. Therefore you should be certain to cite sources of information used in your papers properly. Direct quotes are not the only things which must be cited. Any information which isn't your own original thought, or common knowledge (e.g. there are 50 states in the United States), must be cited.

Please see the online CWU Catalog for more detailed information.