1. Background

Geography is the study of the physical features of the earth and its atmosphere, and of human activity as it affects and is affected by these physical features, including the distribution of populations and resources, land use, and industries, urban and rural linkages only to mention some (Bonnett, 2008). It bridges the physical and social sciences.

In recent decades, the earth and its systems are being exposed for numerous physical and human environmental challenges resulting in changes in resource availability and disaster risks. These changes require understanding of the changes and the dynamics to enable sustainable resource management. The most important of these changes include environmental change, land resource degradation, climate variability and change, and urban and population related crises.

As nations continue advancing and as they adopt new technologies and management methods, as new sources of energy, new modes of transportation and new sources of livelihood appear, regional inequalities and urbanization will tend to attain a highly explosive stage. Integrative and equitable development of urban areas with their surrounding rural areas is demanding in the current world. Thus, urban and regional development in the perspectives of geography and environmental studies will contribute and thereby attract academician and researchers.

The school has been offering Master programs nearly for a decade that made it to have a good experience and capabilities of managing the academic, research and community engagement affairs of its post graduate program by producing qualified graduates in the area of specializations. Therefore, it is imperative in the SGeES at HrU to develop and initiate a PhD program in GeES to provide opportunities for many MA/MSc graduates to improve their qualification and academic rank in different areas of specialization. The PhD program is planned to be started on September 2018 with two specializations namely, Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management and Urban and Regional Development Planning.

2. Rationale of the PhD Programs

The need for trained manpower at PhD level in Ethiopia has increased tremendously following the opening of 35 HEIs which is also planned to be raised to 50 HELIs. Furthermore, there is an ever increasing need of professionals in the field of GeES, who can serve as practitioners, environmentalists, planners, managers, consultants and decision makers in different governmental, non-governmental and community organizations as well as public and private academic and research institutions. This demand is confirmed by the needs assessment study conducted in some selected institutions as depicted below.

Launching the PhD program in GeES thus becomes most important and relevant due to:

  • The need for professional leaders in the growing environmental and socioeconomic problems of the country such as climate change, resource degradation, environmental pollution, rapid population growth, income and development inequalities, and migration crisis who acquire quantitative reasoning, critical thinking and advanced scientific skills that enable to solve them scientifically based on knowledge;
  • Meet high demand of man power as per the GTP II of the country as it proposed the ratio of academic staff in higher educational institutions to be 0-60-40;
  • The establishment of higher learning and research institutions that are possible areas of employment opportunities for highly qualified geographers;
  • The expanding needs for high level geography and environmental studies graduates in various sub-fields;
  • Expanding professional horizons and supplementing academic staff expertise in the school itself;
  • HU is striving to be one of research universities in the country where such research based PhD training can contribute its share to be considered for selection ; and
  • The school in particular and the country in general have been experiencing difficulties in finding proper higher learning institutions for terminal degree training.

That is why, now, there is a strong felt need to start a PhD program in Geography and Environmental Studies at Haramaya University.

3. Admission Requirements

The applicants should apply to the Office of the Registrar of the University by fulfilling the necessary requirements. The Registrar will send the application documents to the SGeES. Subsequently, the School Graduate Committee (SGC) of the SGeES will select the applicants for the program on the basis of a sound undergraduate and postgraduate academic record, and a concept paper or synopsis that encompasses a convincing statement of purpose having clear description of academic interest in the program and intended area of research.

Candidates are expected to meet the following requirements or equivalent criteria:

  • The Admission of PhD students will be implemented according to Article 100 of HUSL (2013:145), which states that the applicant must be in possession of a master’s degree in case of admission to PhD programmes, from the University or any other accredited institution of higher learning. Given the availability of places, admission to the Postgraduate Program shall be on a competitive and competence basis.
  • According to the legislation, the applicant must satisfactorily pass entrance examination to be administered by the School of Geography and Environmental Studies. Foreign applicants should present academic records from HERQA that justifies the equivalence of the records to accredited Ethiopian Higher Learning Institutions and pass entrance examination.
  • The School’s Graduate Committee may include additional admission requirements in conformity with University’s rules and regulations and upon approval by the Council of the Postgraduate Program (CPGP), including:
    1. the applicants must have MA/MSc/MEd Degree in Geography (and/or Environmental Studies), Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management, Environmental Sciences, Natural Resources Management, Demography, Environmental Change Management, Climate Change and Development, Earth Sciences, Geographic Information System and Remote Sensing (GIS and RS), Urban and Regional Development, Geospatial Sciences, Development Studies, and/or an equivalent degree in other related fields of study from recognized universities;
    2. applicant is required to have CGPA of 3.0 and above, and submit his/her own PhD concept proposals for research showing its innovativeness including research questions and testable hypotheses based on existing scientific theory and general laws at the time of his/her application for admission;
    3. aapplicant should submit at least three recommendation letters: two from his/her instructors and one from concurrent employers; and

4. Graduation Requirements

The applicants should apply to the Office of the Registrar of the University by fulfilling the necessary requirements. The Registrar will send the application documents to the SGeES. Subsequently, the School Graduate Committee (SGC) of the SGeES will select the applicants for the program on the basis of a sound undergraduate and postgraduate academic record, and a concept paper or synopsis that encompasses a convincing statement of purpose having clear description of academic interest in the program and intended area of research.

Candidates are expected to meet the following requirements or equivalent criteria:

  • The Admission of PhD students will be implemented according to Article 100 of HUSL (2013:145), which states that the applicant must be in possession of a master’s degree in case of admission to PhD programmes, from the University or any other accredited institution of higher learning. Given the availability of places, admission to the Postgraduate Program shall be on a competitive and competence basis.
  • According to the legislation, the applicant must satisfactorily pass entrance examination to be administered by the School of Geography and Environmental Studies. Foreign applicants should present academic records from HERQA that justifies the equivalence of the records to accredited Ethiopian Higher Learning Institutions and pass entrance examination.
  • The School’s Graduate Committee may include additional admission requirements in conformity with University’s rules and regulations and upon approval by the Council of the Postgraduate Program (CPGP), including:
    1. the applicants must have MA/MSc/MEd Degree in Geography (and/or Environmental Studies), Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management, Environmental Sciences, Natural Resources Management, Demography, Environmental Change Management, Climate Change and Development, Earth Sciences, Geographic Information System and Remote Sensing (GIS and RS), Urban and Regional Development, Geospatial Sciences, Development Studies, and/or an equivalent degree in other related fields of study from recognized universities;
    2. applicant is required to have CGPA of 3.0 and above, and submit his/her own PhD concept proposals for research showing its innovativeness including research questions and testable hypotheses based on existing scientific theory and general laws at the time of his/her application for admission;
    3. aapplicant should submit at least three recommendation letters: two from his/her instructors and one from concurrent employers; and

5. Degree Nomenclature

  1. Doctor of Philosophy in Geography and Environmental Studies (specialization in Environment and Land Resource Management) (“የፍልስፍና ዶክትሬት ዲግሪ በጂኦግራፊና አካባቢ ጥናት ” ትኩረት በአካባቢና የመሬት ሃብት አያያዝ)
  2. Doctor of Philosophy in Geography and Environmental Studies (specialization in Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management) (“የፍልስፍና ዶክትሬት ዲግሪ በጂኦግራፊና አካባቢ ጥናት” ትኩረት በአየር ንብረት ለውጥና አደጋ ተጋላጭነት አያያዝ
  3. Doctor of Philosophy in Geography and Environmental Studies (specialization in Urban & Regional Development Planning) (“የፍልስፍና ዶክትሬት ዲግሪ በጂኦግራፊና አካባቢ ጥናት” ትኩረት በከተማና ክልላዊ ልማት ዕቅድ)
  4. Doctor of Philosophy in Geography and Environmental Studies (specialization in Population, Environment and Development) (“የፍልስፍና ዶክትሬት ዲግሪ በጂኦግራፊና አካባቢ ጥናት” ትኩረት በህዝብ አካባቢና ልማት). The specializations of the PhD program shall be mentioned in brackets.