Department of Geography
Courses
This critical thinking course provides a systematic examination of contemporary concepts and processes of human geography in global perspective, including economics, geopolitics, culture, nationalism, urbanization, governance, agriculture, population, and migration.
Systematic survey of earth-sun relationships, land-surface form, climate, soils, water, natural vegetation, and other natural content as a background for human geography.
Introduction to GIS concepts including GIS components, spatial and tabular data, database elements, data formats, and map design; hands-on experience with a GIS.
Introduction to photogrammetry and remote sensing through the hands-on investigation of aerial photographs and satellite imagery using the latest technology.
Principles of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS); using your smartphone for Global Positioning Systems (GPS)/GNSS orientation, and data collection.
Students learn to build web maps, share GIS data on the internet, and create web GIS applications.
A systematic examination of world economic geography with a focus on population, agriculture, transportation, land use, urbanization, industry, energy, and the environment.
A survey of the geography of West Virginia including landforms, climate, settlement patterns, population, economics, resources, politics, and environmental changes.
Students explore the physical and human geography of ancient Palestine and assess how geography informs our understanding of people, events, and places described by Jewish and Christian scriptures.
Environmental issues have great emotional, political, and economic significance. The dynamics of global environmental problems, their complex interactions, and effects on potential stakeholders will be examined at the international scale.
Students employ GIS, GPS, Remote Sensing, and Drones for spatial data collection and analysis and investigate how the tools function for studying human and physical Earth systems.
Introduction to the composition of the atmosphere and weather phenomena, including thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hurricanes.
Provides an introduction to research methods in geography. Topics addressed include: data sources; sampling; data collection, storage, and management; descriptive measures and data visualization techniques; qualitative and quantitative analysis.
Pre-req: STA 225 with a minimum grade of D or STA 150 with a minimum grade of D or STA 150B with a minimum grade of D or MGT 218 with a minimum grade of D or PSY 223 with a minimum grade of D or SOC 345 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 440 with a minimum grade of D.
Survey of physical, historical, population, economic, political, cultural, and regional geographies of Canada and the United States, including an analysis of the multi-cultural nature of the societies.
World regions examined using a synthesis of physical and human geographical themes including environment, culture, landscape, climate, landforms, globalization, population patterns, urbanization, economies, and political geography.
Basics of earth and atmospheric hazards including flooding, earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, and volcanic eruptions, and how to mitigate the impacts.
A study of atmospheric conditions on aeronautical operations. Topics include atmospheric properties, aviation hazards including thunderstorms, wind shear, turbulence, and icing, and weather flight resources.
Pre-req: GEO 230 with a minimum grade of D.
A study of the geography of Appalachia, including landforms, climate, settlement patterns, population, economics, resources, politics, and environmental changes.
An examination of the geography of Europe focusing on contemporary issues, including climate, culture, economics, environmental change, everyday life, international relations landforms, language, politics, population, religion, and urbanization.
A systematic and regional survey of world political problems and international relations stressing current geopolitical conflicts.
An examination of contemporary patterns, processes, and problems of population geography in global perspective, including fertility, mortality, demographic change, migration, malnutrition, urbanization, natural resource sustainability, and future projections.
A study of settlement, transportation, manufacturing, agriculture, geopolitics, and natural resources of South and Middle American countries.
Study of the evolution, morphology and land use, functions, and problems of urban areas, with emphasis on governance, planning, and the social and environmental impacts of urbanization.
An examination of contemporary issues and problems in health and medical geography, including the spatial aspects of global health, health care policy, and disease origins, diffusion, and ecology.
A study of geographic concepts, methods, and technologies essential for effective teaching of geographic content for K-12 social studies teachers and college educators.
This course is an introduction to cartography and is the cornerstone of Geographic Information Science. In this class you will learn basic map design, map interpretation and appreciation. We will explore the nature of spatial data, and learn what maps can and cannot represent. We will study maps as a data source for Geographic Information Systems, and as a graphic tool for scientific visualizations.
A geographic analysis of transportation and its spatial organization. Concepts, models, and analytical methods related to traffic demand, network configuration, and allocation of transport facilities are covered.
A study of elements of weather and climate, methods of climatic classification, and the distribution and characteristics of world climate regions.
Introduction to Geographic Information Systems (GIS) principles, techniques, and applications for the social and natural sciences with emphasis on foundational geographic principles in a lecture/lab format.
Students automate GIS analyses and workflows by building repeatable models, programming with Python, and using other concepts and techniques within both desktop and web GIS applications.
Pre-req: GEO 423 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 426 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 429 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 430 with a minimum grade of D or NRRM 423 with a minimum grade of D or NRRM 433 with a minimum grade of D.
Concepts, models, and methods of geographic location analysis of natural resource extraction, manufacturing, services, retail and market area analytics, and logistics using GIS.
Environmental Applications of GIS raster analysis, including local, neighborhood, and zonal operations, terrain analysis, distance modeling, and surface interpolation, data collection and input, and advanced spatial analysis using GIS.
Pre-req: GEO 426 or GEO 429 or IST 423.
Scientific study of the earth using images and data captured using satellite- or aircraft-borne sensors, with emphasis on issues of acquisition, photogrammetric interpretation, spatial analysis and application.
Pre-req: GEO 426 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 429 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 430 with a minimum grade of D or IST 423 with a minimum grade of D.
Application of principles of flood hazards preparation, disaster management, and mitigation using Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
Statistical methods applied to problem solving in geography and using GIS for display and analysis. Primary focus on descriptive and inferential spatial statistics, mapping, and spatial analysis of data.
Basics of extreme weather phenomena including hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, droughts, blizzards, and how to mitigate the impacts.
Learn FAA rules and safety procedures; prepare for Remote Pilot licensing exam; operate drones to collect remote sensing data; process imagery for analysis; integrate sUAS imagery with existing GIS data.
Introduction to reading weather maps and meteorological analysis techniques including satellite and radar image interpretation and numerical weather prediction.
Cooperative learning experience with regional employer/government agency.
This senior capstone course combines research methods, data collection, and analysis to produce original research on questions and problems in geography. Par I: Pilot Project.
Pre-req: GEO 300 with a minimum grade of D and (GEO 423 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 426 with a minimum grade of D).
This senior capstone course combines research methods, data collection, and analysis to produce original research on questions and problems in geography. Part II.
Pre-req: GEO 426 with a minimum grade of D and (MTH 225 with a minimum grade of D or GEO 440 with a minimum grade of D or MGT 218 with a minimum grade of D or PSY 223 with a minimum grade of D or SOC 345 with a minimum grade of D or ANT 301 with a minimum grade of D or EDF 417 with a minimum grade of D).