Faculty of Geography

Dean: Acad. Nikolai S. Kasimov

Geography has been taught at Lomonosov Moscow State University for over 200 years. In 1884 a prominent geographer and educator Dmitry N. Anuchin founded the Department of Geography and Ethnography and 1938 saw the establishment of the Faculty of Geography. Our students learn how various natural and social and economic phenomena spread and develop.

Today geography studies the laws of formation and development of the environment and natural, historical and economic factors behind the territorial distribution of productive forces. Our graduates work to protect and improve the environment, their profound theoretical knowledge and practical skills in modern scientific methods are combined with their ability to see various geographical issues in their interrelation with nature and environmental issues..

Our undergraduates are offered 26 specialist areas within our 8 major fields: geography, cartography, hydrology, meteorology, ocean science, management of natural resources, eco-geology, tourism.

Our Master?s Degree program offers 5 major fields: geography, hydrometeorology, geography and cartography, ecology and management of natural resources, tourism. There is MBA program in Tourism opened in 2008. Our Bachelor?s Degree program covers 4 major fields.

Every year the Faculty of Geography offers 150 undergraduate scholarships, students whose entrance score is not high enough are to pay their tuition. On a number of programs all students are to pay fees, among them Petrol and Gas Eco-geology, Landscape Planning, Regional Policies, and an international program Management of Natural Resources and Law (Geneva, Switzerland).

The Faculty has 15 departments and 8 research laboratories, 4 research stations and 28 department laboratories. We also have several computer rooms and analytical laboratories and a laboratory of mathematic modeling.

The Department of Biogeography teaches specialists with an expertise in modern methods of studying the vegetation cover and land animals. Our graduates have skills and knowledge to solve various problems of nature conservation, to study the laws of distribution and use of biological resources, to use bio-detectors for environmental estimation and monitoring, to study the spreading of local infections and changes in the environment and human health.

The Department of Geomorphology and Paleogeography trains specialists who use modern methods to study the origins and evolution of land, sea coast and seabed, to search for oil fields and alluvial mineral deposits, to do research for city planning and construction of water-engineering systems, hydroelectric stations, ports and roads, and to tackle soil erosion in agricultural areas. Specialists in Paleogeography study climatic and environmental conditions of the past.

The Department of Landscape Geochemistry and Soil Geography trains specialists equipped with the skills and knowledge to estimate the condition of the environment and to search for mineral resources; they are also experts in soil studies and mapping.

The Department of Land Hydrology trains specialists who study the groundwater runoff, hydrological and hydrochemical regimes of rivers, lakes and reservoirs. Our students master modern methods of aquatic studies and hydrological and water-management design and prognosis, used in construction of hydroengineering facilities and for rational use of water resources. They also learn to use electronic instruments and to apply mathematical methods of data processing.

The Department of Cartography and Geoinformatics trains specialists in field cartography equipped with the skills of creating and editing thematic and geographic maps and atlases, using aerospace data and automation in geographical studies.

The Department of Cryolithology and Glaciology teaches comprehensive studying of high-altitude areas and territories with ever-frozen soil, to explore the possibility of their development. As graduates are to work in areas where climatic conditions are very often unfavorable, only physically fit applicants are enrolled in the department.

The Department of Meteorology and Climatology trains specialists in meteorological studies and the analysis of atmospheric processes, which requires the application of mathematical methods and the latest supercomputers.

The Department of Oceanology trains specialists in aquatic and marine systems (dynamics, thermals, hydrochemistry, hydrobiology, acoustics, etc.), marine navigation and the use of marine biological and mineral resources. Oceanology students learn to use computerized mathematical methods for data processing.

The Department of Environmental Management teaches specialists in environmental conservation, assessment and control of the environment, to ensure effective use of natural resources for social and economic development.

The Department of Physical Geography and Landscape Science trains specialists who study the nature of various Russian regions, who are able to tackle national economic problems, physical and geographical zoning issues and to give geographic prognosis.

The Department of World Physical Geography and Geoecology trains specialists in environmental conditions of various countries and their natural resources. All graduates are to master two foreign languages.

The Department of Geography of World Economy trains specialists in the international division of labor and geographical factors that affect it, regional economies and their branches. We study the influence of modern technology on the international division of labor and the roles of regional economies in the global development.

The Department of Social and Economic Geography of Foreign Countries trains specialists in the natural resources, population and economy of foreign countries. In our curriculum special stress is on foreign language studies.

The Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia trains specialists who estimate the natural conditions and resources of various Russian regions to forecast ways of development and rational distribution of their resources and population.

The Department of Recreational Geography and Tourism trains specialists for tourist industry, with expertise in geography, economics, technology and management for tourism. Special emphasis is on foreign languages and practical skills in the field..

The Program "Landscape Planning"

The Program "Landscape Planning" is jointly supported by three departments: the Department of Geomorphology and Paleogeography, the Department of Environmental Management and the Department of Physical Geography and Landscape Science. We equip our students with skills and knowledge of multi-level ecological territorial planning and design of landscapes, cities, manors, recreational areas and historic sites.

The Program "Geo-ecology of Oil and Gas Industry"

The Program "Geo-ecology of Petrol and Gas", supported by the Department of Landscape Geochemistry and Soil Geography, focuses on ecological aspects of managerial decisions, geo-information technologies, assessment of industry impact on the environment and the population health, ecological management, ecological insurance and audit in oil and gas industry.Our students are sent out to their field placements to oil companies Lukoil, TNK-BP.

The Program "Regional Policies"

The Program "Regional Policies", supported by the Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, trains students in economic, social and political geography (75% of the syllabus) and applied disciplines (25% of the syllabus). Our graduates are employed by governmental bodies of different levels, international organizations, by federal and regional centers for social, economic and political analysis, management and marketing, by investment and consulting companies, banks, various industrial and commercial organizations, research institutions.

The international program "Law and Management of Natural Resources"

This program, taught by the Faculty of Geography in Geneva, Switzerland, leads to Specialist?s, Bachelor?s or Master?s Degree. Our sudents study management of natural resources, the economics of the environment management, ecological policies, law and audit. Our graduates are employed by state and private companies working in management, assessment and conservation of natural resources.

The Faculty of Geography offers 5-year Specialist?s Degree programs, 4-year Bachelor?s Degree programs and 2-year M aster? s programs.

The disciplines taught at the Faculty can be arranged in 4 groups: the humanities, fundamental scientific and geographic disciplines and the special geographic disciplines. The humanities include economics and territorial organization of the society, the economy of environment management, philosophy, sociology, the history of Russia, etc. The natural sciences include higher mathematics and programming, geoinformatics, the basics of ecology, biology, physics, chemistry. The geographical disciplines are the introduction to geography, geomorphology and the basics of geology, meteorology and the basics of climatology, general hydrology, biogeography, geography of soils, landscape study, geography of the population and the basics of demography, area studies, topography, cartography, physical geography of continents and oceans, physical geography of Russia and cross-border regions, geography of the world economy, economic and social geography of Russia, economic and social world geography, etc. The departments offer courses in special geographic disciplines.

An important role is given to fieldwork. Our first-year students are sent out for their 9-weeks field work to an educational and research station in a picturesque area near the village of Satino, in the Borovsky District of the Kaluga Region. There they acquire the practical skills in topography, geology and geomorphology, soil science, biogeography, meteorology, hydrology and landscape study. Our second-year students do their 9-week field work in various Russian regions. The majority of third-year students go on expeditions lead by the Faculty academics. In their fourth year our students are sent out to their field placements in research and industrial organizations, and some of them abroad. The results of their field work are used tusually presented in their graduation papers.

The Faculty graduates are employed by the institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the CIS academies of sciences, by research institutions and ministries departments, educational institutions, Hydro-meteorological Service, Ruscartography, business companies in the field of ecology, resources, tourism, etc.

The Faculty of Geography offers a wide variety of post-graduate programs leading to Candidate?s or Doctor?s degrees in Geography.

The Faculty also offers various programs of further education and in-service training, including distance education programs.