Academics / Undergraduate Program

Undergraduate Program

Become a Geographer

Geography Table at Alumni Commons on Thu Oct 31 at 12-3pm: Join us to learn more about our GEO major and minors -- as well as our interdisciplinary program in Environmental and Sustainability Studies!

Who are geographers?

Geographers work in business, government, and non-profits, leveraging data and fieldwork to understand our dynamic planet, including its environmental, economic, social, and political systems. Geographers explore the world through perspectives on space, place, and landscape. They study spatial relations, meanings of place and placemaking in our lives, and the changing urban and rural landscapes in which we live. To do so, they employ scientific methods, concepts, and theories of our social fabric, while using state-of-the-art methods in digital data analysis, mapping, and cartography.
 
Our world-class faculty offer three primary concentrations for our Geography undergraduate majors (BA and BS):
 
  1. Mapping & Geographic Information Systems
  2. Environment
  3. Cities & Societies

We also offer three minor concentrations in Geography, Mapping & GIS, and Urban Studies. These are popular with students already majoring in Environmental & Sustainability Studies, Forestry & Natural Resources, Political Science, Sociology, and Anthropology.

Students wanting to focus their studies on Mapping & GIS may also be interested in the BA or BS in Mapping & GIS (coming soon).

See if you might be a geographer!

There are many courses in geography that will satisfy your general education requirements at the University of Kentucky, what is called the UK Core. These courses are taught by our world-class faculty, and you will be able to experience how geographers think and work, all while completing the requirements of graduation (regardless if you decide to major in geography). These include:

  1. GEO109 Digital Mapping (UK Core: Art & Creativity)
  2. GEO172 Human Geography (UK Core: Social Sciences)
  3. GEO210 How the Internet Works (UK Core: Social Sciences)
  4. GEO372 Health Environment Futures (UK Core: Social Sciences)
  5. GEO130 Earth's Physical Environment (UK Core: Natural Sciences)
  6. GEO133 Science and Policy of Natural Hazards (UK Core: Natural Sciences)
  7. GEO135 Global Climate Change (UK Core: Natural Sciences)
  8. GEO310 Data Explorations and Applications in Everyday Life (UK Core: Quantitative Foundations)
  9. GEO220 US Cities (UK Core: Community, Culture, Citizenship)
  10. GEO221 Immigrant America (UK Core: Community, Culture, Citizenship)
  11. GEO342 Food Race and Environment (UK Core: Community, Culture, Citizenship)
  12. GEO160 Globalization and Social Justice (UK Core: Global Dynamics)
  13. GEO161 Global Inequalities (UK Core: Global Dynamics)
  14. GEO162 Global Environmental Issues (UK Core: Global Dynamics)
  15. GEO222 Cities of the World (UK Core: Global Dynamics)
  16. GEO255 Geography of the Global Economy (UK Core: Global Dynamics)
  17. GEO261 Global Health and Disease (UK Core: Global Dynamics)
  18. GEO316 Environment and Development (UK Core: Global Dynamics)
  19. GEO362 Conserving Global Environments (UK Core: Global Dynamics)

Interested in our coursework?

Email the Director of Undergraduate Studies Prof. Andy Wood to set up an advising appointment, or visit the Arts & Sciences Advising Center on the third floor of Patterson Office Tower in room 355. Call 859-257-8354, for more information.