Global Studies and Human Geography
Humans have lived on the earth for millennia. Examine the interrelationships between people, places, and the environment.
Global Studies and Human Geography, Human Geography Concentration, B.S.
The Human Geography Concentration is designed for students who want to understand the World, its people, communities, and cultures – placing emphasis on spatial distribution of human and physical systems, patterns, interactions, and interrelationships and their broader implications. With a wide range of topics from cultural practices, socio-economic and political systems, population and migration, cities to rural communities, the scale of analysis ranges from the local to the global. A degree in Human Geography provides comprehensive academic training in the human dimensions of the environment, particularly how people interact with, modify, adapt to, and also harm the environment.
While physical geographers are more concerned with natural earth phenomena such as climate, water, forests, and land, Human Geography is more about people, communities, and cultures. . Human geographers employ specialized geographic techniques and technologies such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing, Global Positioning Systems (GPS), and cartography to represent, analyze, and explain various aspects of the human dimensions of the World. Knowledge gained from the Human Geography concentration is valuable as contemporary societies are interacting globally with one another as never before. Human geographers identify and comprehend these changes and find solutions to contemporary sociocultural problems.
The Human Geography Concentration is unique in several ways
- All Human Geography students complete an internship or field experience. Incorporated into the curriculum, this ensures all students graduate with practical experience and networking contacts.
- All Human Geography students complete a ‘Professional Skills’ cognate in place of a more traditional minor. Students work with their faculty advisor to choose inter-disciplinary skills courses—GIS, cartography, digital media, management, and so on—to best prepare them for their preferred career choices.
- Our Human Geography faculty bring experience working in the field, both domestically and internationally, for both non-profits and government agencies.
Nearly all courses in the Human Geography Concentration incorporate hands-on and experiential components. Classes conduct field research, work with Geographic Information Systems, create story maps, and interact with practitioners. Students merge theory and practice in their courses.
The Human Geography Concentration thus prepares graduates to move smoothly into successful careers. Many Human Geography graduates work in city and regional planning, parks and tourism, with both non-profits and government agencies focusing on issues such as migration, human trafficking, and development, and/or go on to graduate study.
News Briefs
Tanzania: Newest addition to our suite of signature study abroad programs
In summer 2023, faculty member Dr. Francis Koti added our newest study abroad program when he traveled with students to Tanzania to learn about the cultures and physical landscapes of Tanzania. In the photo, students are seen examining fossils in Ol Duvai Gorge in Northern Tanzania. The summer 2024 Tanzania Study Abroad program has been announced. For details, follow this link.
Fulbright Scholarship Winner
Brittney Johnson (Global Studies, '20) was awarded a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship to teach in Spain. Fulbrighters meet, work, live with and learn from the people of the host country; the program facilitates cultural exchange through direct interaction to gain an appreciation of others' viewpoints and beliefs. While an undergraduate, Brittney also won the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to study in Chile for a semester.
News Briefs
Tanzania: Newest addition to our suite of signature study abroad programs
In summer 2023, faculty member Dr. Francis Koti added our newest study abroad program when he traveled with students to Tanzania to learn about the cultures and physical landscapes of Tanzania. In the photo, students are seen examining fossils in Ol Duvai Gorge in Northern Tanzania. The summer 2024 Tanzania Study Abroad program has been announced. For details, follow this link.
Fulbright Scholarship Winner
Brittney Johnson (Global Studies, '20) was awarded a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship to teach in Spain. Fulbrighters meet, work, live with and learn from the people of the host country; the program facilitates cultural exchange through direct interaction to gain an appreciation of others' viewpoints and beliefs. While an undergraduate, Brittney also won the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to study in Chile for a semester.
Global Studies and Human Geography Careers
The study of Global Studies and Human Geography opens many doors. Students develop transferable work skills that are highly valued by employers, including analysis, research, writing, problem solving, and, especially, knowledge of other cultures and languages.
Global Studies and Human Geography students are well prepared to move into professional careers. All students in the Global Studies concentration go abroad at least once and have a proven ability to thrive and succeed in a cross-cultural, globalized environment, and all students in the Human Geography concentration complete an internship and a series of professional skills courses.
Typical Career Paths
Global Studies students graduate with skills valued by employers with global reach, and a majority move into:
- The non-profit sector, working in executive positions in domestic or global organizations dealing with a wide range of issues, including human trafficking, political refugees, migration, development, and trade.
- The for-profit sector, working both domestically and around the world for businesses with international operations.
- International education, teaching abroad.
- Graduate school.
Human Geography students graduate with skills that apply across multiple sectors, but valued a majority move into:
- City and regional planning, working with consulting firms or government agencies.
- The non-profit sector, working in executive positions across a wide range of domestic or global organizations dealing with migration, development, medical geography, and more.
- The parks and tourism industry.
- Graduate school.
For more information, read Building a Career in Global Studies and Human Geography.
Employers of MTSU alumni include
- SALT International
- Foreign Service
- Multinational corporations
- Peace Corps
- Nonprofit organizations
- Service agencies
- International education
MTSU offers a teacher licensure in Global Studies and Human Geography. The requirements for this are listed in the Requirements drop-down above.
The Human Geography teacher licensure program offers a comprehensive skill set designed to understand the diversity of cultures and socio-geographic complexities found in human societies. Human geographers seek to understand how humans uniquely create, manipulate, and adapt to the places they inhabit by examining natural environments, cultural practices, and economic and political systems.
Knowledge gained from the Human Geography concentration is valuable as contemporary societies are interacting globally with one another as never before. Human geographers identify and comprehend these changes and find solutions to a variety of sociocultural problems taking place. This marketable skill set is attractive to a wide range of employers in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.
Geography is offered in nearly all high school curriculia, and AP Human Geography is now taken by over 15,000 students each year. There is a real demand for qualified geography secondary education teachers.
Students in the licensure program complete the Secondary Education Minor and choose an additional minor in:
- History
- Political Science, or
- Economics
Human Geography Teacher Licensure students thus earn their primary license in geography, but are also well prepared an add-on endorsement in one of these other content areas, increasing their marketability.
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