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Northern Illinois University

Department of Geography

Davis Hall

Graduate Studies in Geography

Graduate coordinator Michael Konen

What would you call a place located:

  • on the doorstep of one of North America’s largest cities, the birthplace of modern urban studies?
  • at the northern frontier of tornado alley and at the juncture of the Great Plains, Great Lakes, and Mississippi Valley climatic regions?
  • among some of the world’s most productive agricultural soils, at-risk from both over-use and urban encroachment, but with massive natural potential for sequestering greenhouse gasses?
  • in a region renown for map and globe production, and a leader in the application of modern geographic technologies to agriculture, urban planning, environmental management, retail location analysis, transportation, emergency services and asset management, in addition to mapping?
  • at the historic ecotone between the tallgrass prairies and eastern forests, that today remains a significant natural laboratory for understanding vegetative response to climate change?
  • in the midst of one of America’s most vibrant economies, fueled by the productivity of its land and by the entrepreneurial heritage and “can do” attitude of its people?
  • less than an hour driving time from the world’s busiest all-purpose airport, with travel and freight connections spanning North America and the globe?
  • along the divide between the Mississippi River and Great Lakes drainage systems, where the loss of wetlands and rampant urbanization threaten regional water quality?
  • within a region famed for day-to-day weather changes and where the impacts of climate variability – too wet, too dry, too cold, too warm – have global as well as local significance?

How about … the ideal place for graduate study in urban geography, climatology, soil science, GIS and mapping science, biogeography, economic geography, environmental management, or climate impacts!
Welcome to Northern Illinois University,

Geographic Observatory to the World.

The Department of Geography offers graduate programs leading to the Ph.D. and Master of Science in Geography. Students may pursue the degree with a specialization in:

Physical and Environmental Geography: soils and landscape evolution, biogeography and forest ecology, environmental management, and hydrology

Climatology: hydro-climatic variability, climate impacts, synoptic climatology and hazards, microclimatology, and agro-meteorology

Urban and Economic Geography: urban geography, spatial markets, city systems, industrial geography, rural land preservation, transportation, and regional planning

GIS/Spatial Analysis: land information systems, spatial analysis, GIS and database design, remote sensing, and cartography

The department’s Undergraduate Certificate in GIS can also be earned while enrolled in a graduate degree program at NIU.

We invite applications from persons with the equivalent of a B.S. or B.A. degree in geography, agronomy, biology, business, civil engineering, earth science, environmental engineering, economics, geomatics, meteorology, planning, or soil science. If you are unsure whether your background qualifies you for graduate study in Geography at Northern Illinois University or if our program meets your interests, please feel free to call, e-mail or visit the department’s Graduate Coordinator: Michael Konen (mkonen@niu.edu), 815-753-6849.

Financial Support
The department awards a variety of graduate teaching and research assistantships consisting of a monthly stipend and a tuition waiver scholarship. Teaching assistants typically assist faculty with course preparation and grading, supervise computer labs, and teach laboratory sections of introductory physical geography, GIS, and meteorology courses. Research assistants work directly with faculty and staff on externally-funded research projects. Students appointed on a graduate teaching or research assistantships are given office space and access to department computer resources. Appointments on a teaching assistantship are normally made for two academic semesters (fall and spring), while research assistantship appointments are made at the discretion of the project director.

Persons employed by Northern Illinois University, including those appointed as graduate teaching or research assistants, must show proof of U.S. citizenship or employment authorization from the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. The State of Illinois further requires that all persons engaged in oral instruction in the classroom, including teaching assistants, possess adequate competence in spoken English. Students whose native language is not English will be required to undertake and pass an English language speaking proficiency exam prior to appointment as a teaching assistant.

The Department of Geography administers several scholarship funds supporting graduate study.

  • The Richard E. Dahlberg Scholarship provides partial support to students pursuing an education in cartography/GIS at Northern Illinois University. Applicants must be admitted to graduate or undergraduate study at Northern Illinois University and possess a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale. For more information on the application process, contact the Department of Geography by April 1st.
  • The William Morris Davis Scholarship provides financial support toward Masters thesis or non-thesis research in Geography at Northern Illinois University. Applicants must have completed at least 30 semester hours toward the M.S. in Geography and be engaged in an approved Masters thesis or non-thesis research project. Funds from the William Morris Davis Scholarship may be used for expenses related to the research, including, but not limited to: purchase of data, laboratory supplies, specialized field apparatus, field research travel, and commercial laboratory analyses.

For information on other scholarship opportunities available to graduate students, please see the NIU Scholarship Office http://www3.niu.edu/scholarships/ and the section on financial support in the Graduate School Catalog http://www.grad.niu.edu/index.shtml.

Not sure if you’re ready to pursue a graduate degree?

… do you love to learn?
… do you need more specialized knowledge to advance in your chosen career field?
… do you enjoy the process of asking questions, developing a strategy to answer the question,
... and then finding the answer?
… do you want to expand your capabilities or add new substance to what you already do?
… are you a leader?
… is it something that you’ve always wanted to do?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you’re ready! Here’s what you now need to do.
1. Visit the Graduate School (http://www.grad.niu.edu/index.shtml) for more information about the M.S. program in geography or other graduate programs at NIU.
2. Complete an application to the Graduate School (http://www.grad.niu.edu/apply/index.shtml)
3. Find out where to take the Graduate Record Exam (http://etsis4.ets.org/tcenter/) and make an appointment to take the exam.
4. Prepare a “Statement of Career/Educational Goals” and submit it to the Graduate School with your completed application.
5. Arrange to have “official copies” of all undergraduate (and graduate) transcripts sent to the Graduate School.
6. Identify three or more persons qualified to judge your academic potential and ask that they send a letter of reference, on your behalf, to the Graduate School.
7. Take the GRE and have an official record of your scores forwarded to NIU’s Graduate School. If you are an international student whose native language is other than English, you will also need to take the TOEFL exam and have those scores submitted to NIU.
8. Complete an Application for Graduate Assistantship and forward it to the Department of Geography (if interested in financial support).
9. Wait 3-4 weeks, and then you may call the Graduate School at 815/753-0395 to verify that they have received all of your application materials.

Admission to all graduate programs at NIU is handled through the Graduate School.

Deadlines
approximate date for final
receipt of all application material
- for summer semester admission:
April 1
- for fall semester admission (August) and financial support:
March 1
- for fall semester admission:
June 1
- for fall semester admission (International students):
May 1
- for spring (January) semester admission:
November 1
- for spring semester admission (International students)
October 1