Geography B.A.


The general geography B.A. degree (without option) is very flexible.  In addition to meeting the core requirements for all geography majors, students may take a wide range of electives in geography (minimum 11, maximum 35 elective credits).  Electives may be chosen from the fields of regional geography, geographic methods and techniques, or systematic geography  (physical geography, human-environment interaction, or geography and society).

Bachelor of Arts - Geography

College Humanities & Sciences

Catalog Year: 2016-2017

Degree Specific Credits: 36

Required Cumulative GPA: 2.5

Introduction to Geography

Rule: Must complete all of the following courses:

Show All Course Descriptions Course Credits
Show Description GPHY 111N - Intro to Physical Geography
Offered autumn and spring. Introduction to the earth’s major natural environmental systems, their spatial distribution and interrelationships, including weather and climate, vegetation and ecosystems, soils, landforms, and earth-surface processes.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 112N - Intro to Phys Geography Lab
Offered autumn and spring. Prereq. or coreq., GPHY 111N. Introduction to concepts and techniques needed to understand and analyze the information contained in various types of maps, graphs, aerial photos, imagery, and other graphics and geographic data sets. This is prerequisite to GPHY 385.
 1 Credits
Show Description GPHY 121S - Human Geography
Offered autumn and spring. Introduction to Human Geography focuses upon the linkages between geography and society including analysis of regions, ethnic groups, urban landscapes, migration and population change, geopolitics, economics, and cultural differences.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 7 Total Credits Required

Regional Geography Course

Rule: Must complete at least 1 of the following courses

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Show Description GPHY 141S - Geography of World Regions
Offered autumn and/or spring. An overall view of how the lands and peoples of the world are organized into coherent geographical regions, how landscapes differ from region to region, and how the people differ in terms of their traits, beliefs, ways of life, and economic livelihood.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 144 - Montana's Mountains
Consent of Instructor. A field-based course offered during winter session in the winter splendor of the North Fork of the Flathead River and Glacier National Park. Topics addressed include physical geography, geology, winter ecology, national park management, environmental history, and the changing economy of the region.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 241 - Montana
Offered autumn.  The physical, cultural, economic, political,  and historical geography of the state including Montana’s mountains and the prairies.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 243X - Africa
Offered intermittently. A survey of the biophysical and cultural geography of Sub-Saharan Africa. Emphasis is on the region's cultural-historical development and current ecological, demographic, and economic patterns.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 245X - The Middle East
Offered intermittently. A survey of the biophysical and cultural geography of Southwest Asia and North Africa. Emphasis on environmental change; prehistory; patterns of cultural and historical change; issues of socio-economic, religious, and political diversity; and the broader political significance of the region.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 342 - North America
Offered intermittently. Physiographic regions of North America; highlights of historical geography blended with physical and cultural aspects of the continent. Lesser known places are explored.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 344 - Crown of the Continent
Offered autumn. The study of the geographical setting of the Crown of the Continent of North America, including the richness of physical geography, history, culture, and models of conservation. Examines ongoing research initiatives, impacts of climate change, regional transformations, and the relationship between people and this mountainous environment.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 347 - Regional Geography (Mult Reg)
(R-9) Offered intermittently. Selected regions will be listed as appropriate in each Class Schedule.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 348 - Field Studies in Geography
(R-12)  Offered autumn and spring.  Through extended backcountry travel, experiential examination of regional landforms, climate, hydrology, soils, and patterns of vegetation and wildlife.  Local landscapes, natural-resource endowment, and societies with particular emphasis on human-environmental interaction.  Geographical skills and techniques, including map reading and navigational skills.  Offered by the Wild Rockies Field Institute as part of a semester-long, 12-credit field experience with corequisite courses in allied fields.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 442 - Regionalism & Rocky Mtn West
Offered intermittently. Investigation of regionalism as a concept and its future in the Rocky Mountain West. Regionalism as a geographical, economic, political, and cultural entity.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 444 - High Asia
Offered intermittently. A study of the geography and mountain-society interactions in High Asia.  The course includes attention to the theory and methodology of mountain geography, with attention to physical and human systems and their interaction.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 445 - Regional Geography
Offered intermittently. In-depth treatment of a geographic region, a particular regional problem, or the methodology of regional geography. Topics vary.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 3 Total Credits Required

Geographic Methods

Rule: Must complete all of the following courses

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Show Description GPHY 284 - Intro to GIS and Cartography
Offered every term. Basic computer competency required. This course is designed as a practical introduction to the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for storing, retrieving, analyzing and displaying spatial data. It will also cover the history of cartography and the conventions of the modern map-making process. Students need to register for a required lab section.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 385 - Field Techniques
Offered autumn and intermittently in spring. Prereq., GPHY 112N or Consent of Instructor. Field techniques used by geographers and planners in making field observations and in collecting data.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 6 Total Credits Required

Upper Division Systematic Geography

Rule: Must complete the following subcategories of courses

Minimum Required Grade: C-
9 Total Credits Required

Physical Geography

Rule: Must complete at least 1 of the following courses

Show All Course Descriptions Course Credits
Show Description ERTH 303N - Weather and Climate
Offered spring. Same as CCS 303N. Origin, composition, structure, and dynamics of the atmosphere, gas and radiation laws, energy budget and balance, weather elements, North American weather systems, and climate change. To succeed in this course students should have comfort with basic algebra.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 311N - Biogeography
Offered intermittently. Changing patterns of plant and animal distributions in space and time. Combination of historical and ecological approaches to biological species and communities. Study of external causes of plant and animal distributions, especially climatic change and human impacts.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 314 - Global Mountain Environments
Offered autumn odd-numbered years. The study of mountain environments and their physical processes around the globe: Andes, Appalachians, East African Mountains, European Alps, Hindu Kush-Himalaya-Karakoram, Pamir, Rocky Mountains, Southern Alps of New Zealand, Tien Shan, and others. Topics include mountain building, alpine glaciers, mountain geomorphology and climatology, mountain watersheds, mountain biogeography, and mountain hazards such as earthquakes and mass movements.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 317 - Geomorphology
Offered autumn even-numbered years. Prereq., GPHY 111N or GEO 101N. Important landforms and landscapes, their biophysical processes, and their formative elements.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 438 - Mountain Field Study
(R-6) Upper-division or graduate standing and consent of instructor. Examination of aspects of the study of mountain geography through a two-week field course based in a mountainous country and/or region. Possible areas of focus include, but are not limited to, the Northern Rocky Mountains, the Alps, the Himalaya, and the Andes.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 525 - Adv Physical Geography
(R-9) Offered intermittently. Advanced topics in climate and global change, paleo-environments and biogeography, landform analysis, soils, and other selected topics. Topic titles will appear in the Class Schedule. Level: Graduate
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 3 Total Credits Required

Geography and Society

Rule: Must complete at least 1 of the following:

Show All Course Descriptions Course Credits
Show Description GPHY 323S - Econ. Geog. of Rural Areas
Offered spring odd-numbered years. Study of the location of economic activities, including agriculture, industry, and services.  Focus on the changing nature of rural areas.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 421 - Sustainable Cities
Offered spring even-numbered years. Prereq., upper-division or graduate standing. Same as CCS 421. A discussion of sustainability efforts in cities around the world.  Topics include, for example, urban sprawl and smart growth, alternative energy, public transportation, integrated waste management, integrated water management, green architecture, and urban agriculture.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 434 - Food and Famine
Offered intermittently. Exploration of the production, distribution, and consumption of food; the causes and consequences of hunger; and measures that might be taken to relieve hunger.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 443 - Cultural & Global Competence
Offered intermittently.  Prereq., upper-division or graduate standing.  Designed to increase awareness of student’s own culture and increase cross-cultural sensitivity.  Understanding the perspectives of other cultures and resolving possible conflicts.  Examination of the role of perception, belief systems, social structures, and culture practices.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 515 - Adv Human Geography
(R-9) Offered intermittently. Advanced topics in cultural and historical geography, gender issues, migration and population change, economic geography, urban and settlement geography, and other selected topics. Topic titles will appear in the Class Schedule. Level: Graduate
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 3 Total Credits Required

Human Environment Interaction

Rule: Must complete at least 1 of the following:

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Show Description GPHY 335 - Water Policy
Offered autumn. Prereq., WRIT 101 or WRIT 201, and one Intermedite Writing Course or consent of instructor. Exploration of water resources issues facing the public, resource managers, and water users in the western United States today. Examines concepts, terms, and regulatory environment which provide the foundation for modern water management and policy.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 336 - Exploration & Discovery
Offered intermittently. Emphasis on the evidence of language, genetics, material culture, and transoceanic plant and animal exchanges in assessing mobility and population distributions in prehistory; factors that motivate exploration; the history of navigation; the impacts of exploration upon science, society, economics, and government.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 338 - Mountains and Society
Offered spring. Physical and cultural aspects of the mountains of North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Emphasis on combining the physical landscape with an overview of the indigenous people who inhabit the worlds’ heights.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 432 - Human Role Environ Change
Offered intermittently. A systematic examination of the ways in which the major physical systems and ecosystems of the earth have been modified by human activity, and approaches to the rehabilitation of these systems.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 433 - Cultural Ecology
Offered most springs. Prereq., WRIT 101 or WRIT 201 and one Intermediate Writing Course or Consent of Instructor. Examines issues related to culture and the natural environment. Topics include cultural origins and diversity, geography of religion, geolinguistics, plant and animal domestication, livelihood systems, folk and popular culture, ethnic geography, political patterns, demography, industries, urban genesis, and the transformation of environmental systems.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 3 Total Credits Required

Degree Electives

Rule: Must complete 10 credits of GPHY electives to fulfill the 36 degree credit total

Note: Students must fulfill the degree credit total of 36 credits plus the university requirement for 39 upper division credits.

Minimum Required Grade: C-
10 Total Credits Required

Capstone

Rule: Seniors must complete the following course

Note: Seniors must enroll in GPHY 400 in fall, attend GPHY 500 in fall, and complete course requirements in spring.

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Show Description GPHY 400 - Geography Capstone
Offered autumn. Prereq.,Senior standing. Exploration of current research, projects, and programs of geographers and scientists/practitioners in allied disciplines and fields, and preparation of a professional portfolio. Student preparation for post-graduate professional and academic careers is emphasized.
 1 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 1 Total Credits Required

Upper Division Writing

Rule: Must complete 1 of the following courses

Note: GPHY 335 or GPHY 433 will also count toward the upper division core requirements
GPHY 499 will also count toward upper division elective credits.

Show All Course Descriptions Course Credits
Show Description GPHY 335 - Water Policy
Offered autumn. Prereq., WRIT 101 or WRIT 201, and one Intermedite Writing Course or consent of instructor. Exploration of water resources issues facing the public, resource managers, and water users in the western United States today. Examines concepts, terms, and regulatory environment which provide the foundation for modern water management and policy.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 433 - Cultural Ecology
Offered most springs. Prereq., WRIT 101 or WRIT 201 and one Intermediate Writing Course or Consent of Instructor. Examines issues related to culture and the natural environment. Topics include cultural origins and diversity, geography of religion, geolinguistics, plant and animal domestication, livelihood systems, folk and popular culture, ethnic geography, political patterns, demography, industries, urban genesis, and the transformation of environmental systems.
 3 Credits
Show Description GPHY 499 - senior thesis / capstone
(R-6) Offered autumn and spring. Senior standing and consent of instructor. Independent research project in any geographical topic supervised by a faculty member, and leading to completion of the baccalaureate degree.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 3 Total Credits Required

General Ed Symbolic Systems

Rule: Must complete either 1 year of a foreign language or STAT 216 Introduction to Statistics

Note: Gen Ed credits do not count towards degree credits.

Minimum Required Grade: C-
3-10 Total Credits Required