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Department of Geography
7123 Robert C. Brown Hall, 778.782.3321 Tel, 778.782.5841 Fax,
Chair
R. Hayter BA (Newcastle, UK), MA (Alta), PhD (Wash)
Graduate Program Chair
E. McCann MA (Glas), MA (Miami, Ohio), PhD (Kentucky)
Faculty and Areas of Research
See “Department of Geography” on page 173 for a complete list of faculty.
N.K. Blomley – political and urban geography
T.A. Brennand – glacial geomorphology, quaternary environments, regional paleohydrology, paleoglaciology
J.A.C. Brohman – third world development, economic geography, Latin America
R.A. Clapp – economic geography, resource conservation, forest policy
V.A. Crooks – socio-spatial process of disablement, doctor patient interactions, geographies of primary health care, social policies and programs
S. Dragicevic – geographic information science, spatial analysis and modeling
A.M. Gill – tourism and community planning, resources management
R. Hayter – regional development, manufacturing, BC’s forest economy, Japan
N. Hedley – geographic and spacial visualization, advanced interface research, geographic information systems, cartography, spatial cognition
E.J. Hickin – fluvial geomorphology
M. Holden – urban and environmental policy, sustainable development
J. Hyndman – feminist, political and cultural geography
P.T. Kingsbury – cultural geography, consumption tourism, social theory
L.F.W. Lesack – ecosystem biogeochemistry, land and water interactions, limnology
G.P. Mann – labor, natural resources, political economy, social theory
E. McCann – urban geography, urban politics and policy
J.T. Pierce – economic and rural geography, research methodology
M.L. Roseland – regional planning and sustainable communities
M.G. Schmidt – soil science, forest ecology, geographic information systems
N.C. Schuurman – geographic information science, spatial data and integration
J. Sturgeon – environmental geography
J. Taylor – history of the North American west
I. Tromp-van Meerveld – watershed hydrology, ecohydrology
J. Venditti – fluvial geomorphology, landscape dynamics, stream restoration
Associate Members
W.G. Gill, Vice-President, University Relations
M.V. Hayes, Faculty of Health Sciences
S. Markey, Explorations in the Arts and Social Sciences
Areas of Research
The Department of Geography offers MA, MSc and PhD degrees in the Faculty of Environment. Emphasis is placed on the application of theoretical frameworks to the analysis of social, economic and physical landscapes, with particular reference to western North America.
Admission Requirements
Normally, an undergraduate 3.25 CGPA is required for entry. Admission is in the fall term and applications should be completed by January 15. Admission requires a command of quantitative techniques and qualitative methodologies. Candidates lacking these will complete courses equivalent to GEOG 251 and 301. The admitted candidate works under the faculty advisor’s guidance pending the choice of a two faculty member supervisory committee, one of whom may be from outside the department. They will be chosen by the beginning of the second term.
Degree Requirements
All MA candidates are expected to complete the requirements (30 units) in six terms.
The MA program requires a thesis (18 units). The remaining 12 units consist of required and elective courses. The recommended maximum thesis length is 120 pages (including bibliography and end notes, but excluding appendices). The thesis involves the conceptualization of a problem and the collection, analysis and interpretation of empirical data. Normally, MA students present their research projects at a departmental conference (Graduate Research Day) held annually in the fall term following their entry. A written proposal should be submitted to the student’s supervisory committee, defended in colloquium and approved by the end of the second term. The completed thesis will be judged by the candidate’s examining committee at an oral defence.
Course Requirements
GEOG 600 and 601 are seminars offered each fall and spring. Grading is satisfactory/unsatisfactory. Attendance is compulsory for a satisfactory grade. GEOG 604 and 605, offered every year, are required for MA students. With the advisor’s consent, GEOG 604 can be replaced by another course. One of GEOG 620 and 640 (special topics) is normally offered each year depending on research interests. Other courses are offered less frequently, depending on demand and faculty availability.
The department offers a program leading to a master of science with emphasis on earth surface processes and environmental geoscience, specifically in aspects of geomorphology, biogeography, soils, climatology and hydrology; spatial information science, remote sensing, GIS and spatial analysis.
Admission Requirements
Normally, MSc candidates should have a BSc 3.25 CGPA in geography or a related discipline to enter the program. Admission is in the fall term. Applications should be completed by January 15.
Supervisory Committee
The MSc candidate, once admitted, works under a faculty advisor’s guidance, pending the choice of a supervisory committee. The supervisory committee, normally consisting of two faculty members, one of whom may be from outside the department, will be chosen by the start of the second term.
Degree Requirements
All candidates complete degree requirements (30 units) in six terms. The program requires a thesis (18 units). The remaining 12 units will be comprised of required and elective courses.
Course Requirements
Students complete 12 units minimum (three courses) plus GEOG 600 and 601 which are non-credit courses graded satisfactory/unsatisfactory. Attendance is compulsory to obtain a satisfactory grade. Normally, MSc students present their research projects at a departmental conference (Graduate Research Day) held annually in the fall term following their entry. Students normally complete GEOG 606 as part of the 12 units. With the advisor’s consent, another course is possible. The remaining seven units comprise two courses from the list below, or with the graduate chair’s approval, from related graduate courses in other departments such as biological sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics, earth sciences, resource and environmental management and computing science. Students with deficiencies may be asked to complete more course work.
Thesis
The MSc program requires the submission and successful defence of a thesis. Normally, MSc students present proposed research at a one-day conference (research day) held in the spring term. A written proposal is submitted to the supervisory committee, defended in colloquium and approved by the end of the second term and before substantive research. The thesis normally involves the conceptualization of a problem and the collection, analysis and interpretation of empirical data. The recommended maximum length of an MSc thesis is 120 pages (including bibliography, but excluding appendices). The completed thesis is judged by the candidate’s examining committee at an oral defence.
Courses
The following GEOG courses are offered for the MSc program: GEOG 600, 601, 606, 611, 612, 613, 614, 615, 617, 651, 653, 655, 656, 691, 697. For a full course list, see “Geography GEOG” on page 384.
For admission, see “Graduate General Regulations” on page 219. Applicants must have can MA or MSc. Those admitted without an appropriate background may have to make up specified courses. Incoming PhD students are will complete the doctoral component of GEOG 600, a seminar on geography graduate studies, offered each fall term.
Supervisory Committee
The student works under the faculty advisor’s guidance, pending formation of a supervisory committee normally consisting of three faculty, one of whom may be from outside the department, is chosen by the beginning of the second term.
Degree Requirements
The advisor, and subsequently the supervisory committee, and the student determine a study program to suit background and research objectives. After committee consultation, students can elect, or may be required to complete courses to acquire relevant knowledge and skills, including language.
Qualifying Examination
Written and oral qualifying exams establish competence to proceed with doctoral thesis research and are completed at the end of the second residence term and no later than the end of the third. Students who fail the written or oral exam may retake each once, after a one term lapse.
Both parts of the qualifying examination must be successfully completed by the end of the fourth residence term. The qualifying examination committee consists of supervisory committee members (the senior supervisor acts as chair), plus an examiner external to the supervisory committee.
Written exams comprise four papers jointly agreed by the qualifying examination committee. The oral must be held within three weeks of completion of the written examination. The student is examined primarily in topics covered by the written exams, but questions may range over the entire discipline.
Thesis
Candidates who successfully complete qualifying exams will present a thesis proposal at a department colloquium no later than the end of the fifth residence term. The supervisory committee must approve the written proposal prior to substantive research. The completed thesis is judged by the examining committee at an oral defence. If the defence fails, the candidate is ineligible for further degree candidacy. See “Graduate General Regulations” on page 219.
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