Geography Minor
Geography focuses on the interrelationship between humans and their natural environment and has often been referred to as the academic bridge between the natural and social sciences. Explaining the processes that have led to the spatial distribution and spatial interaction of natural and social phenonena across the earth's surface is at the heart of geographic inquiry. An understanding of geographic principles and techniques allows the geographer to analyze issues of global and regional significance.
The overlap between Geography and other disciplines, the connections that Geography draws between different world regions, and the emphasis on mapping of spatial data makes the minor in Geography an eminent choice for individuals pursuing a wide variety of majors in fields of Secondary Education, Business, Physical Sciences, Computer Sciences, and Social Sciences.
SVSU offers the Teacher Certification Minor in Geography and Technical Minor in Geography. All students preparing for the minors will become proficient in the four geographic areas described below. The emphasis in each category will depend upon the student's goal in the program.
- Physical Geography focuses on the biological, meteological, and geological interplay of the environment and how humans affect this environment.
- Cultural Geography focuses on patterns of social, economic, political, and cultural activities, and the processes that led to the distribution of these phenonena.
- Regional Geography courses examine the patterns of physical and cultural phenomena and how these vary from place to place.
- Technique courses train the student in GIS, Remote Sensing, and Spatial Analyses of data.