Master of Science in Geography with Specialization in Geographic Information Sciences

at South Dakota State University USA

The major in Business Economics combines the analytical rigor of an economics degree with the practical skills of a management degree. Students can tailor the program to their interests by choosing from a variety of electives in areas such as accounting, business law, decision science, entrepreneurship, economics, finance, management, and marketing.  Career opportunities for Business Economics majors include management, finance, banking, sales, real estate, and marketing. The Business Economics major also serves to prepare students for graduate work in law, economics, and business.

Student Learning Outcomes
Graduates will:

• Be able to use analytical methods to make effective decisions. (Cross-curricular Skills: Inquiry and Analysis; Critical and Creative Thinking; Problem Solving)
• Be able to communicate effectively. (Cross-curricular Skill: Information Literacy)
• Be able to evaluate matters of ethics in the profession and the culture more broadly. (Cross-curricular Skills: Ethical Reasoning; Diversity, Inclusion and Equity)
• Have the requisite body of knowledge in management and economics.

Agricultural Systems Technology graduates serve an increasingly complex agricultural industry in a wide variety of ways. These individuals have a sound fundamental knowledge of agricultural and biological sciences related to the technical, mechanical and energy aspects. This background combined with a solid understanding of the interactions between agriculture and society provides AST graduates many career opportunities. Graduates use their technological knowledge, coupled with managerial and leadership skills, to increase America’s food and energy supply, security, and safety. Graduates may pursue careers in renewable energy such as ethanol and bio-diesel, farm machinery and equipment, natural resources, livestock facilities and systems, and production agriculture.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the Agricultural Systems Technology major, students will have:

• The ability to apply knowledge of mathematics and science. (Cross-curricular Skill: Information Literacy)
• An ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data. (Cross-curricular Skill: Inquiry and Analysis)
• An ability to function on multidisciplinary teams. (Cross-curricular Skill: Teamwork)
• An ability to identify, formulate, and solve problems. (Cross-curricular Skill: Problem Solving)
• An understanding of professional and ethical responsibility. (Cross-curricular Skill: Ethical Reasoning)
• An ability to communicate effectively.
• A recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning. (Cross-curricular Skill: Foundational Lifelong Learning Skills)
• A knowledge of contemporary issues.
• An ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern tools necessary to identify solutions to problems.

The Master of Science degree in Operations Management (MSOM), offered through the Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering, is a program for professionals interested in expanding their ability to manage technical functions in an organization as the next logical step in their career path.

Students may elect to pursue the traditional thesis route under Option A: this is valuable for individuals who anticipate future graduate work toward achieving the terminal degree in a related field. Most students select the research/design paper route under Option B: this requirement generally takes the form of a project in collaboration with local or regional industry to solve a problem or to improve a system or process. A third option, Option C, is a non-thesis program that provides more coursework in lieu of the research component. Option C requires approval of the faculty advisor.

Regardless of the option selected, the student works with his/her Major Advisor to develop the program of study plan, make consistent progress toward completion of the degree, and to show proficiency in integrating and applying  management concepts through the Final Oral Exam.

Student Learning Outcomes

• Able to analyze information & make appropriate decisions.
• Project management skills: Demonstrate competence in developing, managing and closing out a project (simulated, case study, or practical application).
• Effective communication: Effective use of professional communication skills including interpersonal, written, and in presentations.

The major in Business Economics combines the analytical rigor of an economics degree with the practical skills of a management degree. Students can tailor the program to their interests by choosing from a variety of electives in areas such as accounting, business law, decision science, entrepreneurship, economics, finance, management, and marketing.  Career opportunities for Business Economics majors include management, finance, banking, sales, real estate, and marketing. The Business Economics major also serves to prepare students for graduate work in law, economics, and business.

Student Learning Outcomes
Graduates will:

• Be able to use analytical methods to make effective decisions. (Cross-curricular Skills: Inquiry and Analysis; Critical and Creative Thinking; Problem Solving)
• Be able to communicate effectively. (Cross-curricular Skill: Information Literacy)
• Be able to evaluate matters of ethics in the profession and the culture more broadly. (Cross-curricular Skills: Ethical Reasoning; Diversity, Inclusion and Equity)
• Have the requisite body of knowledge in management and economics.

The history curriculum is adaptable to personal interests and needs, allowing students to explore the past and make connections to the present. Students pursuing a History Teaching Specialization may select either a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in preparation for careers in various fields related to education. The program also provides a necessary background for graduate work or other specialized training.

Student Learning Outcomes
Students with a major in History will be able to:

• Demonstrate a knowledge of the most important historical events in U.S. History, including an in-depth study of issues facing minorities within the U.S. (Cross-curricular Skill: Diversity, Inclusion and Equity)
• Demonstrate a knowledge of the most important historical events beyond the United States. (Cross-curricular Skill: Intercultural Knowledge)
• Interpret the past in context; contextualize the past on its own terms. (Cross-curricular Skill: Diversity, Inclusion and Equity)
• Develop a disciplined, skeptical stand and outlook on the world that demands evidence and a sophisticated use of information. This includes recognizing the difference between strong and weak arguments based on evidence, seeking use of proper citations and peer review in other works. (Cross-curricular Skill: Inquiry and Analysis)
• Demonstrate an awareness that knowledge is often incomplete or imperfect, and thus multiple alternatives must be considered and conclusions are subject to change. (Cross-curricular Skill: Critical and Creative Thinking)
• Know the difference between primary and secondary documents, demonstrate how and when to cite in the format of the profession.
• Identify and summarize the historical arguments of other scholars.
• Frame a historical question and develop research strategies to address it, generate historical argument that is reasoned and based on evidence selected, arranged and analyzed. (Cross-curricular Skill: Critical and Creative Thinking)
• Effectively navigate the library and online databases, as well as the archives or in the community for primary sources, peer-reviewed literature and book reviews. (Cross-curricular Skill: Information Literacy)

SDSU’s English department offers the M.A. degree in English. There are two emphases available to students:

• Studies in Literature
• Studies in Writing and Rhetoric

Within these two areas of study, the department offers three options for completing the degree:

• Option A requires twenty-four credit hours of coursework, six credit hours of thesis, a thesis project, and an oral examination. Within this option, the student may write a critical or a creative thesis.
• Option B requires thirty credit hours of coursework, two credit hours of research, a research/design project, and an oral examination.
• Option C requires thirty-six credit hours of coursework, a comprehensive written examination, and an oral examination.

Each option will support a variety of educational or professional goals. Students generally complete the program in two to three years.

Student Learning Outcomes

The English department’s M.A program prepares students for professional careers or further graduate study by developing their capacities for textual analysis, research, theory, and creative and critical writing.

Upon completing the English M.A. program, students will be able to:

• Textual Analysis: Demonstrate an advanced ability to analyze and interpret literary and cultural texts.
• Literary History: Examine significant texts, authors, periods, movements, genres, theories, and modes from literary history, interpreting the relationship between texts and their historical, aesthetic, cultural, and ideological contexts.
• Writing: Compose sophisticated argumentative, creative, and reflective texts that demonstrate focus, content, structure, evidence, style, and grammar appropriate to their rhetorical contexts.
• Theory: Demonstrate an advanced ability to apply theoretical concepts to the writing and analysis of texts.
• Research: Produce original research that advances knowledge within the discipline; generates questions for scholarly inquiry; identifies its methodological and theoretical foundations; employs library resources and discipline-specific databases; evaluates and integrates secondary criticism; and documents sources using MLA style.
• Diversity: Explain how literature both reflects and enriches the diversity of human experience through its exploration of the ways in which race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexuality, ability, and class shape identity and influence perception. (Transferable Skill: Diversity Awareness)
• Teaching: Deliver instruction that demonstrates a growing mastery of course content (cultural analysis, rhetoric, grammar, and research) and increasing skill in helping students of varying abilities improve their cultural awareness, critical acumen, reading comprehension, and writing competence. (Graduate teaching assistants only.) (Transferable Skill: Teaching/Training)

The Precision Agriculture major prepares students for careers that bridge the gaps between agronomy, agriculture machinery management, and data sciences caused by the rapid evolution of high-speed sensor technology.

Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the Precision Agriculture major, students will:

• Demonstrate foundational and specialized knowledge in crop management, environmental stewardships, and precision agriculture technologies and their integrations at local, regional, and global scales. (Cross-curricular Skill: Critical and Creative Thinking)
• Explore complex local, regional, and global issues using a precision agriculture perspective to formulate questions and draw informed conclusions that are based on critical scientific analysis and interpretation of information. (Cross-curricular Skill: Inquiry and Analysis)
• Demonstrate economic and environmental proficiency in applying the proper principles and technologies of precision agriculture and to address socioeconomic issues in Agricultural sciences. (Cross-curricular Skill: Civic Knowledge and Engagement)
• Demonstrate the ability to collect, organize, analyze, and synthesize accurate digital field maps using specialized software and have the operational knowledge for specialized precision agriculture equipment, computers, and spreadsheet applications to produce meaningful management recommendations (Cross-curricular Skill: Information Literacy)
• Effectively communicate and demonstrate openness to new perspectives and diverse others, and demonstrate the ability to reassess their personal perspective within precision agriculture activities when appropriate. (Cross-curricular Skill: Diversity, Inclusion and Equity)

Graduate work in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering leads to Master of Science in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, and Doctor of Philosophy in Biological Sciences degrees.

Students who undertake graduate studies in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering normally have as their goal a better understanding of the current theories, principles, issues, and problems in agricultural, environmental and biological systems. Graduate studies improve the student’s ability to think critically and creatively, and to synthesize, analyze, and integrate ideas for decision-making and problem solving.

The department offers students an opportunity to undertake research and advanced study in specialization areas such as food and biomaterial processing, physical properties of biological materials, natural resource engineering, precision agriculture, structures, indoor environment, waste management and machine design.

Student Learning Outcomes

• Conduct Research or Design: Conduct research and/or design projects that demonstrate an ability to model, analyze, and design agricultural and biosystems engineering processes and systems.
• Understand the principles of agricultural and biosystems engineering: The student will articulate a solid understanding of fate fundamental principles of agricultural and biosystems engineering, including the area of specialization and supporting areas.
• Communicate effectively: The student will demonstrate an ability to communicate, both orally and in writing, technical information in an effective manner.

The Data Science Specialization of the Mathematics degree program provides an outstanding educational experience to students interested in any of the wide range of excellent career or graduate school choices available in the data science. Graduates gain all the mathematical expertise associated with the B.S. in Mathematics degree program while simultaneously building substantial additional expertise in the mathematical, statistical, and computational methods of data science.  Graduates are thus prepared for any post-graduation outcome including immediate entry into the professional world or further study in a pursuit of a Master’s degree or a Ph.D. in mathematics, statistics, or data science.

Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the Mathematics major, students will be able to:

• Apply concepts and methods from Calculus and Linear Algebra. (Cross-curricular Skill: Inquiry and Analysis; Critical and Creative Thinking; Problem Solving)
• Analyze, evaluate, and create mathematically rigorous arguments.(Cross-curricular Skill: Inquiry and Analysis; Critical and Creative Thinking)
• Use contemporary mathematical, statistical, and educational software and technology to create models, analyze data, or explain concepts as appropriate for student’s focus. (Cross-curricular Skill: Critical and Creative Thinking; Problem Solving)
• Work as part of a team to solve a complex mathematical or statistical problem.
• Demonstrate mathematical independence by critically reading, understanding and re-explaining mathematical, statistical, or mathematics pedagogy resources. (Cross-curricular Skill: Information Literacy)
• Communicate complex mathematical, statistical, or mathematics pedagogical ideas clearly and succinctly both in writing and verbally as appropriate for student’s focus. (Cross-curricular Skill: Inquiry and Analysis)
• Exhibit strength in at least one career-focused or graduate school preparatory area of mathematics or statistics. (Cross-curricular Skill: Critical and Creative Thinking)
• Understand and appreciate the contributions to the field of mathematics and statistics by a diverse group of individuals and how the student fits and works in this group. (Cross-curricular Skill: Diversity, Inclusion and Equity)

The Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences offers graduate students the opportunity to earn a Master of Science Degree. The curriculum, organized through formal courses, seminars, internship experiences, and supervised research, is designed to prepare students for positions in such professional areas as planning, remote sensing, geographic information sciences, government service, research, business, and teaching. The program also is designed to provide students with the education needed to pursue further graduate study. Students seeking this degree are expected to select courses that will provide a sound foundation in geography (philosophical, physical and human, and research techniques) supported, if appropriate, by courses outside the department. Students may also seek out opportunities such as the cooperative program with the EROS Data Center and/or internships, generally available with planning districts, governmental agencies, business, and industry.

Student Learning Outcomes

• Critical thinking: Demonstrate foundational and specialized knowledge in both the physical and human sciences and their interconnectedness at local, regional, and global scales.
• Critical thinking: Interpret the ethical consequences of global issues concerning the environment to strengthen commitment to local, national, and global citizenship.
• Problem solving: Demonstrate proficiency in the application of appropriate geographical technologies and techniques to address issues in the physical and/or human sciences.
• Written communication: Communicate geographic ideas clearly and effectively (e.g., maps, writing, oral presentations, posters, photos, flowcharts, tables, graphs, and illustrations).
• Creative thinking: Apply observations from laboratory and/or field experiences to analyze problems and offer solutions.
• Creative thinking: Demonstrate the ability to collect, organize, analyze, and synthesize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial-temporal context.
• Inquiry and analysis: Explore complex local, regional, and global issues using a geographical perspective to formulate questions and draw informed conclusions that are based on critical scientific analysis and interpretation of information.