This document discusses the graduate programs leading to the Master of Arts (M.A.) and Master of Science (M.S.) degrees in Geography. Within these programs a student may pursue a curriculum that focuses on any geographic specialization, including the techniques, and culminates in the completion of a thesis. In addition, students interested in the techniques may elect the non-thesis Master of Science program.

Admission Procedures
The Graduate Admissions Committee requires six pieces of information from each applicant.

1. A completed application form with payment of admissions fee,
2. An official transcript of all college/university courses attempted,
3. A Graduate Record Examination (GRE) score or a TOEFL score if English is not the applicant's primary language,
4. Two letters of recommendation from instructors in substantive subject-matter courses,
5. A letter of career objectives (i.e., a letter which states why the applicant wants to enter a graduate program in Geography and how this would fit into the applicant's career plans), and
6. A Graduate Application Summary Form.

Please send the Personal Career Letter (item #5) and the Departmental Graduate Application Summary Form (item #6) to:

Graduate Program Director
Geography Department
Callcott Building
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208

Send all other information (items #1 - #4) to:

The Graduate School
University of South Carolina
901 Sumter Street, Suite 303
Columbia, SC 29208

Although the Graduate Admissions Committee assesses the entire file as a unit, it does follow certain guidelines with regard to specific aspects of the application. An undergraduate grade point average of approximately 3.0 on a 4.0 scale and a combined verbal and quantitative score of 1000 on the GRE are considered minimal by the Committee. The Committee requires a file to be complete before it will review it, and, because the GRE score often is delayed in its arrival, the applicant should schedule this examination as soon as possible. GRE and TOEFL scores should be based on tests taken as recently as possible and certainly within the past three years.

Up to twelve hours of graduate course work from another institution of approved graduate standing may be applied to degree requirements (nine hours if these courses were part of a Master's degree program at that University) if they were earned within the six-year period allowed for the Master's degree (there is no option for revalidation of such courses) and are approved by the advisor, Graduate Program Director, and Dean of the Graduate School.

* You may also refer to the Department's Graduate Admissions web page and The Graduate School.

Degree Specification
The M.S. degree is awarded when the student's program of study includes a majority of coursework in the technical and physical/environmental areas of discipline. The M.A. is awarded when the student's program of study consists of a majority of coursework in human geography or regional analysis. A student in the non-thesis program receives the M.S. degree upon graduation.

Academic Progress
A student must demonstrate satisfactory academic progress at the end of each semester and maintain a minimal "B" average in all courses and a "B" average in courses at the 700 level and above. Any student who receives less than a "B" in a graduate course will be on probation for the next semester. See the Graduate Program Director for a more detailed document on the minimum expectations for maintaining satisfactory progress. Financial assistance is terminated or reduced for a student who is on probation or who is not progressing satisfactorily. During the preparation of the thesis any student who wishes to use University facilities or to confer with the faculty must be enrolled officially in Geography 799.

Termination from the Program A serious or repeated failure to make satisfactory academic progress will result in a student being terminated from the master's program. The student should become familiar with the criteria that determine whether satisfactory progress is being made and whether a student should be placed on probation as they are detailed in the document titled Minimum Expectations for Maintaining Satisfactory Progress in the Masters Program. A student will be notified of termination, in writing, prior to the beginning of classes for a semester. Listed below are the more likely causes for terminaiton:

1. All requirements for previous degree not completed by the end of the first semester.
2. Failure to pass the Comprehensive Examination.
3. On probation for two consecutive semesters.
4. Failure to have an academic advisor at all times.
5. Receiving a total of three grades lower than B.
6. Failure to have an approved thesis proposal or research paper topic by the end of the fourth semester for full-time students or by the end of the semester in which the 36th credit is earned for part-time students.

Advisement
Prior to the first semester enrollment, a new student meets with either the Graduate Program Director or an interim advisor representing the student's declared area of concentration. This meeting reviews the goals and requirements of that area of study, identifies any undergraduate deficiencies, devises means by which these deficiencies may be eliminated, and advises the student on the selection of courses for that semester. Students are urged to choose a permanent advisor by no later than the end of the first semester of residence, who then will assume all responsibilities for advisement. Students may change advisors by written notification of the Graduate Program Director.

The diagnostic role of advisement is to evaluate the student's background in general geography and undergraduate preparation for the geographic specialization in which the student plans to study. Remedial coursework or readings may be recommended or assigned if the student's record indicates insufficient background in either of these two areas. This review may be initiated prior to the student's arrival on campus, on the basis of the application materials.

Program of Study
By the beginning of the second semester in the program a student should develop, in consultation with his/her Advisor, a Program of Study. This Program of Study must be submitted for approval to the Graduate School, through the Graduate Program Director. Should changes be made to this Program of Study during the course of the student's program, these changes should be forwarded to the Graduate School. Early in the student's terminal semester the Program of Study should be finalized with the Graduate School in preparation for graduation.

Field Excursion
All incoming graduate students are expected to participate in the field excursion scheduled just prior to the beginning of registration for fall classes. Those students entering the program in the spring semester are expected to participate the following fall. The excursion is directed by Geography faculty, and its purposes are to introduce students to the geography of South Carolina, provide opportunity for students to work together on a research project that involves field work, and allow students to meet and get to know each other and participating faculty before the semester begins. Additional information about the excursion is sent to incoming students during the summer prior to their matriculation.

Assistantships
The Department funds assistantships to support graduate students in their studies. All students accepted into the program are considered automatically for assistantships, and decisions on such awards are based on the same criteria used for admission. Financial assistance is available on a competitive basis in the form of teaching and research assistantships and fellowships. Grants are made officially for only one year, but they are renewable for up to four semesters.

Normally, a student who receives an assistantship will continue to hold that award for four semesters, assuming that the student progresses satisfactorily in the program (i.e., acceptable grades for courses and approval of thesis proposal before the end of the third semester). Student performance is reviewed by the faculty each semester, and unsatisfactory review, based on academic and/or job performance, will result in the student's being placed on probation by the Graduate Program Director. Failure to improve performance at the end of the first academic year may result in termination of the assistantship.

Assistantship duties involve the commitment of 15-20 hours a week to the Department. Graduate Teaching Assistants are expected to report to the Department at least one week prior to the beginning of classes and be available for duties in the Department until the official end of the semester. Graduate Research Assistants are expected to perform their duties throughout the period of their appointment.

Fellowships
In addition to assistantships there are a number of graduate fellowships that are available to students on a competitive basis. Students who have been admitted to our program are nominated for these fellowships by the Department on the basis of the student's academic credentials. Fellowships pay up to $15,000 per year and may be renewed up to three times.

Instructional Development Project
All new students on financial assistance for the first time, new students hoping to be on assistance sometime during their graduate program, and students who entered the program during the previous spring semester need to participate in the University's Instructional Development Project. This is a workshop for students who will be involved with teaching in one way or another as a part of their assistantship duties. All new students in Geography graduate programs who are on assistance must participate in this training. Also students who plan to be on financial assistance from the Department in the future should participate so they will be eligible for teaching assistantships when they become available. The two day workshop is offered only once a year, during the third week of August, and students must have taken the workshop to qualify for a teaching assistantship. In addition, students who do not speak English as their native language need to take an additional two day workshop which precedes the above workshop.

Areas of Study
The Department has only one program with a specific curriculum, the non-thesis Master of Science in the Geographic Techniques, which is described on the following page. All other programs of study are worked out between the student and his/her advisor according to the general requirements noted under "Program Requirements" above.

The Department offers opportunities for students to work in a wide range of systematic, technical, and regional areas, as indicated by faculty interest and expertise. These include but are not limited to the specializations listed below. Each student will be assigned an interim advisor who will provide guidance on the initial selection of course, but students should select a permanent advisor during their first semester of residence in the Department.

Specializations
• Behavioral Geography
• Cartography
• Geographic Information Systems
• Climatology
• Remote Sensing
• Cultural Geography
• Economic Geography
• Europe
• Environmental and Resources Geography
• Latin America
• Geomorphology
• Middle East
• Hazards
• North America
• Historical Geography
• South Carolina
• Industrial Location
• Southern United States
• Physical Geography
• Political Geography
• Recreation Geography
• Urban Geography

Master of Science in Geographical Information Science— Non-Thesis Option (Effective Fall 1998)
Students selecting this option must fulfill the requirements listed below and also satisfy academic progress requirements, the residence requirement, the advisement requirement, and the Comprehensive Examination requirement, all of which are detailed in this document. A total of 37 credit hours of course work is required in this option, with a minimum of 19 at the 700 level or higher.

Students must elect this option no later than the semester in which they complete 18 credit hours of course work and before attempting the Comprehensive Examination.

1. Course Work (a total of 37 credits with a minimum of 19 at the 700 level or higher)
   
   1. Required Core (13 hours)
      GEOG 531 Quantitative Methods in Geographic Research (3)
      GEOG 541 Advanced Cartography (3)
      GEOG 551 Principles of Remote Sensing (3)
      GEOG 563 Advanced Geographic Information Systems (3)
      GEOG 740 Research Trends in Geography (1)
      
   
   
   2. Breadth Requirement (6 hours)
      Approved course from each area: human/regional and physical/environmental.
   
   
   3. Approved Geographic Techniques electives (12 hours)
      GEOG 543 Computer Mapping (3)
      GEOG 554 Spatial Programming (3)
      GEOG 555 Analytical Cartography (3)
      GEOG 564 GIS-Based Modeling (3)
      GEOG 595 Internship in Geography (3-6)
      GEOG 705 Directed Individual Studies in Geography (1-3)
      GEOG 706 Selected Topics in Cartography and Remote Sensing (1Ð3)
      GEOG 731 Seminar in Quantitative Analysis in Geography (3)
      GEOG 741 Seminar in Cartography (3)
      GEOG 751 Digital Techniques of Remote Sensing (3)
      GEOG 763 Seminar in Geographic Information Systems (3)
      GEOG 805 Directed Individual Studies in Geographic Information Processing (3)
      GEOG 841 Advanced Seminar in Cartography (3)
      GEOG 851 Advanced Seminar in Remote Sensing (3)
      GEOG 863 Advanced Seminar in Geographic Information Systems (3)
      
   
   
   4. Approved electives (6 hours)
      Electives can be drawn from within or without Geography with approval of the student's advisor.
   
   
   
2. Research Paper
   The student is required to submit a seminar research paper that demonstrates research and writing skills. The paper may come from a seminar within or outside the technical areas but must include a substantial GIP component. The paper is to be put into a final, polished form similar to what is expected for a Master's thesis. The non-thesis student is encouraged to examine papers submitted by previous students to note what is appropriate as far as topic, scope, length, and style are concerned. The student should consult the document titled Guidelines for the Non-Thesis Research Paper available from the Graduate Program Director. The paper will be evaluated by a departmental committee of three faculty, and, if found acceptable, will be bound by the student and filed like a thesis in the Geography Department.

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