Wednesday, 20 February 2013

Ph.D. in Geography: The great career path for faster job growth

The Ph.D. degree programs are generally based to give specific training to the students about the geographic principles and let them to be prepared to find the career path to become academics or researchers. When there is rare chance of education online degree in this field, the students are required to join the coursework of research, writing and presentation of dissertation and to pass the preliminary exams and to complete around 80 credits of academy. And most Ph.D. degree programs are preliminary based on conducting research on various geographical fields. Previous master’s degree is required in most predominantly Ph.D. degree programs and various areas of geography. And there are many students get admissions on other schools who are bachelor’s degree holders.

The pros and cons of the program
Benefits
1. The academia career requires a Ph.D.
2. Since Ph.D. programs are highly flexible, the students are free to concentrate on the subject of their interest.
3. The Ph.D. students are offered to focus on assistantships or other financial area.

Drawbacks
1. As compared to master’s degree in geography, the requirements are more rigorous for a doctoral degree.
2. The Ph.D. degree in geography requires candidates of master’s degree in geography.
3. Even if you have an advanced degree, the professional experience is highly preferred by the employers. Otherwise it may be difficult for you to find your first employment.

Basic requirements in coursework
In most cases, you will have to complete the coursework as a candidate of Ph.D. degree program in which you will have to conduct research and gain the passing credits in a preliminary exam. In addition, students have to prepare for doctorate dissertation in which they research, write and give presentation to faculty panel. For at least a semester, the students are motivated to become a teaching assistant. Typically, in a geographical Ph.D. degree program, here are some coursework for students:
1. Latest geographical trends.
2. Progress in human geography.
3. Practical and theory in geography.
4. Qualitative geographical methods.
5. Geographic data analysis.

Options of online degree
Recently, there are less options of online doctoral degree in geography and they are not available widely. In case you find accredited online Ph.D. degree program in any institution like Breyer State University, make sure you are provided with an approved and physical site for conducting research. But since December 2012, the on-campus degree programs are best option to gain Ph.D. degree in geography.

Career prospects
According to the statistics of US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the expected job growth of geographers is going to grow up by 35% through 2020 which is quite faster than other occupation’s average growth. Regardless of faster-than-average career prospect, the employment opportunities are less than 1000 over this decade. At least a master’s degree is required by most employers in this industry and most students prefer doctoral degree for higher studies and higher job prospects. Most geographers qualify for entry-level positions while the candidates of master’s degree qualify for work in academia or research fields and some hold the position out of federal government.
Via

Breyer State University

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