Skip to Main Content

The University of Tennessee

University of Tennessee College of Arts and Sciences

Frequently Used Tools:



Welcome! » Graduate Program


Graduate Program

The faculty, with extensive world-wide experience (Latin America, the Caribbean, Southern and Eastern Asia, Europe, Africa, the American West, and the American South), is exceptionally qualified to direct graduate research in geography of the natural environment (especially biogeography, paleoclimatology, and geomorphology), spatial analysis (especially location analysis, environmental modeling, and geographic information science), and human geography (especially economic, urban, transportation, population, and cultural).

Graduate Student Handbook(2011-2012; in pdf format)
UT's "Guide to the Preparation of Theses and Dissertations"

How to Apply for Admission

How to apply for admission to the Graduate School and to a graduate degree program in Geography

Please note that completion of a Master's Degree is expected prior to full admission into a Ph.D. program. To apply for admission to a graduate degree program in geography is a two-stage process. First, you must be admitted into the Graduate School of the University. After the Graduate School certifies that you meet its requirements, you may then be considered for admission to a graduate degree program in geography. Normally these processes occur simultaneously, but to get them underway you should finish documentation as follows:

Submit to the Graduate Admissions Office, 201 Student Services Building (SSB):

  1. Application for Admission to the Graduate School (inside front cover of the Graduate Catalog, or enclosed in the Graduate Admissions Guide, or can be filled out and submitted online)

  2. The $60.00 application fee

  3. One official transcript (or statement of your University standing) submitted by the records officer of the University. If obtaining documentation in advance of receiving your degree presents problems, please let the department know so that we can ask the Graduate Admissions Office to mark your application for special handing.

  4. One official copy of your Graduate Record Examination scores, submitted by the GRE Office at Princeton directly to the University of Tennessee. They keep test records for five years; thus, tests taken more than five years ago cannot be used. (If you have not yet taken that exam, you should make arrangements to do so as soon as possible).

  5. Foreign students must also submit TOEFL scores, and meet all other requirements as outlined in the Admission Guide for International Students

Submit to the Head, Department of Geography, 304 Burchfiel Geography Building

  1. Department application for admission to a graduate degree program in geography (available online)

  2. Letters of recommendation (or copies of the rating form enclosed in the Graduate Admission Guide) from at least three persons who are well-acquainted with your recent academic work. [Do not send letters of recommendation to the Graduate Admissions Office]

  3. Affirmative Action/Identification Information Form

Admission Deadlines:

• Applicants are advised to consult the admission deadlines published by the Office of Graduate and International Admissions (http://graduateadmissions.utk.edu/dates.shtml). Spring Semester: application packages for domestic and international applicants must be complete and submitted to the Office of Graduate and International Admissions by June 15th. Summer Semester: The Department of Geography does not normally admit new graduate students for Summer Semester. Fall Semester: To be assured consideration for first-round departmental funding offers (Graduate Teaching Assistantships) for Fall Semester, all application materials for domestic and international applicants must be received by January 10th (please note that this date precedes the deadline for the Office of Graduate and International Admissions of February 1st). The absolute deadline for receiving completed application packages is April 15th. Applications for funding received after that date will be considered as opportunities become available. Because funding offers are made on an annual basis, we do not normally offer initial funding to students who wish to enter the program in Spring or Summer Semesters.

Information for International Applicants:

International applicants are required to submit additional documentation for issuance of the I-20. As a result the following deadlines are required.

Term Application Deadline File Completion Deadline*
Fall February 1 May 15
Spring June 15 October 1
Summer November 1 March 15

* File Completion Deadline means that by the date listed, all application materials must be received, the department must make a decision, and any conditions placed on an offer of admission must be satisfied by this date.

 

Note to All Applicants:

If there is no record of your matriculation within approximately six months of the date for which you have been admitted to a graduate degree program, or if your application remains incomplete following the date of intent to matriculate, the Graduate Admissions Office is likely to destroy your file. If you decide to change your matriculation date, therefore, you should inform the Office of Graduate Admissions, in writing, prior to the date originally noted on your application form.

Accepting/Declining An Assistantship:

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville adheres to the following resolution by the Council of Graduate Schools:

Acceptance of an offer of financial aid (such as graduate scholarship, fellowship, traineeship, or assistantship) for the next academic year by an actual or prospective graduate student completes an agreement which both the student and graduate school expect to honor.  In those instances in which the student accepts the offer before April 15, and subsequently desires to withdraw, the student may submit in writing a resignation of the appointment at any time through April 15.  However, an acceptance given or left in force after April 15 commits the student not to accept another offer without first obtaining written release from the institution to which a commitment has been made.  Similarly, an offer by an institution after April 15 is conditional on presentation by the student of the written release from any previously accepted offer.   It is further agreed by the institutions and organizations subscribing to the above Resolution that a copy of this Resolution should accompany every scholarship, fellowship, traineeship, and assistantship offer.

Online Application Forms & Information Request

For requests of application package, graduate catalog and housing information:

The Graduate School at UTK will mail out the graduate school application package (for US addresses only), graduate catalog (for US addresses only), international student application package (for international addresses only), and housing information upon requests.  You can make the request through the UTK Graduate School's online service.

Online application forms:

  1. Graduate School's application form (This form is filled out and submitted online).

  2. Geography Department's application form:  You can either fill out and submit this application form online OR download and print this application form in Adobe Acrobat PDF format (You can download a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader).

  3. Affirmative Action/Identification Information Form (This form is in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.  Please print a hard copy, fill it out, and mail it to the Geography Department.)

For further information write to:

Professor Carol Harden
Chair, Department of Geography
304 Burchfiel Geography Building
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-0925
Phone (865) 974-6029
Fax (865) 974-6025
E-mail: utkgeog@utk.edu.

The Master's Program

The Master's Degree emphasizes development of professional competence as a geographer, and offers opportunities to acquire substantial depth in a subfield. The degree requires a minimum of 30 hours of approved graduate credit. Required courses include Introduction to Geographical Research, Research Design and Field Methods, Quantitative Methods, a minimum of three hours in a research seminar, and participation in the departmental Colloquium. Students without a sound undergraduate background in geography may require additional credit hours. No more than six hours of thesis credit may be counted toward the degree. A final examination is required. Although a non-thesis degree option does exist, the thesis approach is strongly recommended for most students.

The Doctoral Program

The Ph.D. is granted to candidates who complete a dissertation that makes a significant and original contribution to geography. Additionally, candidates must demonstrate proficiency in conducting independent research. Completion of a Master's Degree is expected prior to full admission into a Ph.D. program . Course requirements are determined by the student's doctoral committee, but must include the basic graduate courses (Research Design, Geographic Concept and Method, Topics in Quantitative Methods), 12 hours of credit in related fields outside the department, several doctoral seminars, and participation in the departmental Colloquium. Competence in cartography, statistical methods, and other methodologies pertinent to the student's research specializations (including foreign languages, when appropriate) are also required. Admission to candidacy is granted following successful completion of written comprehensive examinations and an oral examination over the student's program and dissertation proposal.

Minor in Environmental Policy

The program is designed to give Master's level graduate students an opportunity to develop an interdisciplinary specialization in environmental policy. While administered through the Economics Department, the program is coordinated by a committee of representatives from the following participating departments: Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology; Civil and Environmental Engineering; Ecology; Economics; Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries; Geography; Management; Political Science; and Sociology.

Students may request admission to the minor following admission to the Master's program in one of the participating departments. Students in good standing in one of these programs may apply for admission to the minor in environmental policy. The coordinating committee will consider the admission of interested students. Applicants should have a background in both natural and social sciences evidenced by prior coursework or experience. One course in environmental studies from the student's Master's discipline and one course in quantitative methods are required. These requirements may be fulfilled before or after admission to the minor. All students admitted to the minor will be required to register for at least three hours of Economics 579, Environmental Policy Research Workshop, and to complete successfully the following:

  • Ecology 520 or Plant and Soil Sciences 414 or Geography 433 or an equivalent course approved by the coordinating committee.
  • Six hours of coursework outside the Master's discipline approved by the coordinating committee.

Academic Plan, Admission Requirements, & Financial Aid

The University of Tennessee operates on a semester system. General information on admission requirements may be obtained from the Director of Admissions, 201 Student Services Building, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-0220. Students interested in graduate studies should write to the department.

Although new graduate students may begin during any term, the fall term is strongly recommended. A 3.0 (4.0 scale) or higher undergraduate grade point average is normally required for admission to a graduate degree program. Official transcripts of all previous college work, a minimum of three letters of recommendation, and Graduate Record Examination scores are required. No single criterion will dominate but the aggregate should provide strong evidence of ability and potential. Foreign students without degrees from an English speaking institution must submit TOEFL scores (minimum of 550 required for admission). Admission to the geography graduate program is subject to the availability of space and faculty advisors.

Several types of financial aid are available, including teaching and graduate assistantships that include stipend and tuition waiver. Research grants and contracts provide additional opportunities for support, and part-time research positions are often available through various campus research units and through the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Tennessee Valley Authority. Applications for fellowships may be obtained from the Director of Graduate Admissions, 218 Student Services Building, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-0220. Additionally, University housing (furnished and unfurnished apartments) is available at modest prices.

Academic Common Market

The Academic Common Market is an agreement among Southern states for sharing unique programs. Participating states can make arrangements for their residents who are fully admitted to specific programs at the University of Tennessee to enroll on an in-state tuition basis if these programs are not available in the state of residence.

Cooperating states in the Academic Common Market are Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.

Residents of member states who seek further information on approved programs should contact the Southern Regional Educational Board, 592 Tenth Street, N.W., Atlanta, GA 30318-5790, (404) 875-9211, FAX (404) 872-1477, http://www.sreb.org; or Norma Harrington, Office of Undergraduate Admissions, (865) 974-2184.