[Apologies for cross-posting] The Department of Geography & Environmental Systems (GES) at UMBC offers graduate degree programs (M.S. & Ph.D.) that are broadly integrative, but with a common mission to advance research and outreach on human-environment relationships. Research interests among our faculty span a broad range of topics in human geography and environmental science and management, including ecology and biogeography, global change science, hydrology and geomorphology, meteorology and severe storms, GIS and remote sensing, urban geography, public health, environmental history, political ecology, natural resource conservation, and environmental policy.
We utilize a broad range of methodological techniques that include field and laboratory studies, modeling, GIS and remote sensing, spatial statistics, historical research, ethnography, interviews, and document analysis. Our research seeks to contribute to cutting edge debates across the natural and social sciences, as well as inform policy through our empirical findings. Our program of graduate study is designed to train and mentor our graduate students to accomplish these same goals. Graduate students at UMBC are a small, but collaborative and dynamic group. Each graduate student cohort receives training in a common set of core courses in which they are introduced to guiding theories of human geography, physical geography, and environmental science. In addition, students receive training on research methods techniques and the art of proposal writing. Funding & financial support: A number of graduate teaching assistantships are available each year to qualified students. These provide tuition remission, a monthly salary, and health insurance. Many students are also funded on faculty research grants, ranging from the NSF, NASA, EPA, to US Forest Service. Students are also provided with dedicated office and lab space. Local & international research opportunities – collaborations: In addition to financial support, there are a number of opportunities for research collaborations through partnerships established with our Department. · A number of our faculty have established international research programs in Central America (Costa Rica, Guatemala), the Caribbean (Jamaica), and South America (Ecuador, Peru, Brazil), and China. · Several faculty have developed research collaborations & community outreach initiatives with organizations based in Baltimore City, spanning projects focused on mosquito abatement, community urban forest management, urban farming, and working with the Green Prisons Initiative to study biodiversity on vacant lots. · UMBC is the field headquarters of the Baltimore Ecosystem Study, one of only two NSF Urban Long-term Ecological Research Sites in the country. · The Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education (CUERE) is located at UMBC. CUERE is focused on the environmental consequences of social and environmental transformations associated with urban development. · GES has a partnership with NASA’s Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology (JCET). This cooperative institute focuses on earth systems science and using remote sensing technologies to monitor the earth’s atmosphere and surface. · UMBC is also host to the U.S Geological Survey Water Science Center & the U.S. Forest Service Northern Research Station. To Apply: The application deadline for Fall 2016 admission to our graduate program is February 1, 2016. Applications can be completed online through the Graduate School’s web page: http://www.umbc.edu/gradschool/admissions/apply.html **We highly encourage all applicants to connect with a potential faculty mentor prior to application.** For more information, please visit our website: ges.umbc.edu, and contact our graduate program director or department chair with any questions. Jeffrey Halverson ([email protected]) Graduate Program Director, GES, UMBC Matthew Baker ([email protected]) Department Chair (Interim), GES, UMBC GES faculty research expertise includes: Dena Aufseeser ([email protected] ): urban geography, critical poverty studies, children’s geographies, children’s rights Matt Baker ([email protected]): watershed ecology, riparian ecosystems, ecosystem/landscape ecology, watershed hydrology & biogeochemistry Dawn Biehler ([email protected]): historical geography of public health in U.S. cities, environmental justice, urban & feminist political ecology, housing, human-animal interactions Erle Ellis ([email protected]): global ecology, landscape ecology, biogeochemistry, land-use change & sustainable land management Matthew Fagan ([email protected]): landscape ecology, GIS & remote sensing, conservation biology, causes/consequences of habitat fragmentation, sustainable land-use Jeff Halverson ([email protected]): severe storms, meteorology & climatology of the Mid-Atlantic region Maggie Holland ([email protected]): human dimensions of land use change, influence of governance & tenure on land use & livelihoods, conservation/development strategies, natural resource management David Lansing ([email protected]): rural livelihoods, political ecology, environmental governance, climate change policy Andy Miller ([email protected]): hydrology, geomorphology, water resources, urban environment Colin Studds ([email protected]): animal migration, biogeography, population ecology, quantitative ecology Chris Swan ([email protected]): community ecology, biodiversity, urban ecology, ecology of rivers & streams
