Graduate Program



 Dear Prospective Graduate Student,

     Thank you for your interest in the graduate program at The Department of Geography and Planning at California State University, Chico. Our university community is located on an alluvial fan in the Northern Sacramento Valley—to the west are the rice and orchard fields while moving eastwards you immediately climb into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. CSU, Chico has excellent access to the Bay Area (three hours), Sacramento (ninety minutes), and the recreation attractions of the Sierra and Cascade Mountains. Chico has grown to include ninety thousand residents and is a regional shopping and health care center. The university occupies a three by six block area adjacent to the downtown. Chico has been designated a “bicycle city” and a “tree city.” We have active arts community, many coffee shops, a fourteen mile long urban park running through the city, and thousands of tubers on the Sacramento River each Labor Day!


     Our department supports two master’s degree options, the Master’s Degree with an Option in Geography and the Master’s Degree with an Option in Rural and Town Planning. The master’s degree is a two-year course of study requiring thirty semester units of course work and the completion of a master’s thesis or master’s project. For the planning option there is also the choice of a comprehensive exam. The various options are described in the 2005-2007 University Catalog. Our graduate students complete most course work during their first year on campus; the second year is devoted to research for the thesis or project.


     We also offer the Certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Technology. Please note that this is a certificate program consisting of 21 undergraduate units and is not part of the graduate program in Geography. Many undergraduate and graduate students, however, elect to complete this certificate as part of their program.


     The critical component of the master’s program is the completion of the thesis or project. As a prospective graduate student you have already demonstrated that you can successfully complete course work—the key element of the master’s program is pursuing independent project or research work. This work is completed under the direct supervision of a faculty member. For this reason, it is imperative that your selected topic falls within the interests of at least one faculty member. Most topics center on aspects of Environmental Geography and Environmental Policy, Latin America, or Rural Development.


     The department awards several graduate scholarships and grants each year. Other support may be available as a research assistant working on a faculty contract or research project. We do not, however, offer teaching assistantships, research assistantships, or reader positions. Our program is small (fifteen students in residence and fifteen students working on theses) and thus is able to personalize programs. It is very important, however, that there be a match between student interests and the expertise of faculty in our department.


     Please see the checklist on this page. The department may choose to accept you as either a conditionally classified or classified student. As a conditionally classified student you will be required to complete designated course work before being advanced to classified (normal) status in the program. The degree requirements for the geography department are listed in the 2001-2003 University Catalog under the Geography and Planning Department and in the general section on graduate education.


     Please contact Dr. Fairbanks (dfairbanks@csuchico.edu) for information regarding the Geography Option and Dr. Chase (Jchase@csuchico.edu) for information regarding the Rural and Town Planning Option.


     We appreciate your expression of interest in our graduate program. We will closely evaluate your application as soon as a complete set of materials has been received.


     Sincerely,


     Dr. Dean Fairbanks

     Graduate Coordinator

 Application Checklist

     These steps must be completed prior to your application being evaluated by the Geography Department. Please submit the following materials where noted in parentheses:

  1. A graduate application (Office of Graduate Programs) with $55.
  2. All transcripts (to the grad school)
  3. GRE scores (Office of Graduate Programs)
  4. Two letters of recommendation (to the Department)
  5. A statement of purpose that describes why you want to pursue a master's degree, your qualifications that prepare you for graduate work, what research directions you would like to follow, and the professor or professors with whom you would like to work (to the Department and with your graduate application)
  6. A sample of your written work (to the Department)

     Please contact the Office of Graduate Programs to determine the status of your application.  The staff can be reached at 530-898-6880 or grin@csuchico.edu.