Geography
The Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics offers programs of study leading to the degrees of MA, MSc and PhD in Geography in the following fields:
- Environmental Management and Governance
- Biophysical Systems and Processes
- Socio-Economic Spaces and Change
Details regarding faculty, areas of research, and current research opportunities are provided on the Department's website.
Administrative Staff
Chair
Robin Roth (118a Hutt, Ext. 53525)
rroth01@uoguelph.ca
Graduate Program Coordinator
Aaron Berg (135 Hutt, Ext. 58514)
ggradcrd@uoguelph.ca
Graduate Program Assistant
Nance Grieve (151 MINS, Ext. 56721)
geograd@uoguelph.ca
Graduate Faculty
This list may include Regular Graduate Faculty, Associated Graduate Faculty and/or Graduate Faculty from other universities.
Aaron Berg
B.Sc., M.Sc. Lethbridge, M.Sc. UT Austin, PhD UC Irvine - Professor
Graduate Faculty
Benjamin E. Bradshaw
BA Trent, PhD Guelph - Associate Professor and Assistant Vice President (Graduate Studies)
Graduate Faculty
Jaclyn Cockburn
B.Sc., M.Sc., PhD Queen's - Associate Professor
Graduate Faculty
Ben DeVries
B.Sc. Toronto, M.Sc., PhD Wageningen - Assistant Professor
Graduate Faculty
Evan Fraser
BA, M.Sc. Toronto, PhD British Columbia - Professor
Graduate Faculty
Ze'ev Gedalof
BA, M.Sc. Victoria, PhD Washington - Associate Professor
Graduate Faculty
Noella Gray
B.Sc. McGill, MA Western, PhD Duke - Associate Professor
Graduate Faculty
Roberta Hawkins
B.Sc. Queen's, MES York, PhD Clark - Associate Professor
Graduate Faculty
Uwafiokun Idemudia
B.Sc. Ilorin, MA Westminster, PhD Lancaster - Professor and Dean, College of Social and Applied Human Science
Graduate Faculty
Diana Lewis
BA McMaster, MREM, PhD Dalhousie - Assistant Professor
Graduate Faculty
John B. Lindsay
B.Sc. Nipissing, MS, PhD Western - Professor
Graduate Faculty
Faisal Moola
B.Sc. Toronto, M.Sc. Lakehead, PhD Dalhousie - Associate Professor
Graduate Faculty
Eric Nost
BA Grinnell, MA Kentucky, PhD Wisconsin-Madison - Assistant Professor
Graduate Faculty
Kate Parizeau
B.A.Sc. McMaster, M.Sc., PhD Toronto - Associate Professor
Graduate Faculty
Robin Roth
BA Victoria, PhD Clark - Professor and Chair
Graduate Faculty
Jennifer Silver
BA Mount Allison, MA Western, PhD Simon Fraser - Associate Professor
Graduate Faculty
Anna Stanley
BA, MA, PhD Guelph - Adjunct Faculty, Geography, Environment and Geomatics, University of Guelph
Associated Graduate Faculty
Paul Villard
B.Sc., M.Sc. Guelph, PhD Auckland - Director/Senior Geomorphologist, GEO Morhpix Ltd.
Associated Graduate Faculty
Wanhong Yang
B.Sc., Hubei, M.Sc. Chinese Academy of Sciences, PhD Illinois - Professor
Graduate Faculty
MA Program
Admission Requirements
To be considered for admission, applicants should meet the minimum requirements of a four-year honours degree with a 75% ('B') average during the final two years of study. Applicants must submit a statement of their research interests with their application. It is essential that applicants contact potential advisors in the department prior to submission of an application. Students are admitted in September. Program offices should be consulted for admission deadlines.
Program Requirements
The MA program is distinctive in that it emphasizes interrelationships among biophysical and human systems. Scales of inquiry range from the local to the global, and students conduct research in Canada as well as internationally. In addition, the department offers a Master of Conservation Leadership.
Students enrol in one of two study options:
- thesis, or
- course work and major research project.
Thesis
Students taking the thesis option are required to complete an acceptable thesis and the Research Methods courses (GEOG*6090 Geographical Research Methods I and GEOG*6091 Geographical Research Methods II). In addition, students must take three courses (1.5 credits), from the Department of Geography.
Students must complete two courses identified as social science courses.
Course Work and Major Research Project (MRP)
Students taking the course work option must complete the Research Methods courses (GEOG*6090 Geographical Research Methods I and GEOG*6091 Geographical Research Methods II) and the Research Project course (GEOG*6180 Research Project in Geography). In addition, five other courses (2.5 credits) are required, at least four of which must be from the Department of Geography. Students must complete three courses identified as social science courses.
MSc Program
Admission Requirements
To be considered for admission, applicants should meet the minimum requirements of a four-year honours degree with a 75% ('B') average during the final two years of study. Applicants must submit a statement of their research interests with their application. It is essential that applicants contact potential advisors in the department prior to submission of an application. Students are admitted in September. Program offices should be consulted for admission deadlines.
Program Requirements
The MSc program is distinctive in that it emphasizes interrelationships among biophysical and human systems. Scales of inquiry range from the local to the global, and students conduct research in Canada as well as internationally. In addition, the department offers a Master of Conservation Leadership.
Students enrol in one of two study options:
- thesis, or
- course work and major research project.
Thesis
Students taking the thesis option are required to complete an acceptable thesis and the Research Methods courses (GEOG*6090 Geographical Research Methods I and GEOG*6091 Geographical Research Methods II). In addition, students must take three courses (1.5 credits), from the Department of Geography.
Students must complete two courses identified as biophysical science courses.
Course Work and Major Research Project (MRP)
Students taking the course work option must complete the Research Methods courses (GEOG*6090 Geographical Research Methods I and GEOG*6091 Geographical Research Methods II) and the Research Project course (GEOG*6180 Research Project in Geography). In addition, five other courses (2.5 credits) are required, at least four of which must be from the Department of Geography. Students must complete three courses identified as biophysical science courses.
PhD Program
Admission Requirements
Applicants for the PhD program should have a recognized master's degree with an 80% ('A-') average in their postgraduate studies. Applicants must submit a statement of their research interests including some evidence of experience in their chosen research area. It is essential that applicants contact potential advisors in the department prior to submission of an application. Students are admitted in September. Program offices should be consulted for admission deadlines.
Program Requirements
Doctoral students conduct research relating to these areas at various geographic scales, from the local to the global.
All students in the PhD program are required to complete the Geographic Scholarship and Research course (GEOG*6100 Geographic Scholarship and Research) during the first two semesters of study. The advisory committee may prescribe additional courses to help the student prepare for the qualifying examination and thesis research. All students in the PhD program must complete a qualifying examination and submit a satisfactory research proposal by the end of the fourth semester of study.
The qualifying examination has written and oral components and evaluates the student's knowledge of the broader scholarly field as well as the specific theoretical and empirical content of the intended research area. Submission and defence of an acceptable thesis on an approved topic completes the requirements of the PhD.
Collaborative Specializations
International Development Studies
The Department of Geography participates in the MA, MSc and PhD collaborative specialization in International Development Studies (IDS). Consult the International Development Studies listing for a detailed description of the requirements of the collaborative specialization.
One Health
The Department of Geography participates in the collaborative specialization in One Health. Master’s and Doctoral students wishing to undertake thesis research or their major research paper/project with an emphasis on one health are eligible to apply to register concurrently in Geography and the collaborative specialization. Students should consult the One Health listing for more information.