It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the Department of Geography and Planning a pioneering department of the University of Jos. In 1972 Geography was one of the subjects taught in the Jos campus of the University of Ibadan up to 1975 when the Jos campus got the full status of a university. The Department runs four levels of programs, these are; Undergraduate, Post Graduate Diploma, Masters and Doctorate. All these programs cover wide areas of specialization in line with the manpower requirement of the nation. Teaching and research in the department is geared towards solving environmental problems. Attention is also given to the systematic teaching of relevant branches of geography in order to maintain professionalism in the subject.
The department enjoys a very cordial working relationship among the staff, student and staff/student relationship. Students are encouraged to join clubs and society/association guided by competent staff members. It is with pride that I inform you that the Youth Mappers Club of the department bided for an external research grant and won, culminating to an invitation to participate in an all-expense paid conference in Montenegro, Jamaica. The staff mix in the department is also very rich and this is sustained through mentorship. Research output and quality are of high academic standards, testament to this is a staff member was selected as a co-recipient of the noble prize on climate change studies. Others have received national recognition home and abroad.
Alumni of the department are trailblazers holding key positions at national, state and local government levels and they are also pacesetters in the private sector. It is no wonder the programs in the department has been attracting an ever growing number of students from across the country. The department is well endued with laboratories and modern facilities to keep abreast with the dynamic modern learning environment. The staff student ration is within the National University Commission bench mark and there are sufficient and efficient administrative staff on ground to facilitate the smooth running of the department. Once more, please accept my warm welcome as you browse through the site of the department and be rest assured that a bright future awaits you when you pass through the rigorous and intensive grooming of Geography and Planning Department.
The Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Jos in Nigeria has a rich history dating back to the establishment of the University in 1972 as a campus of the University of Ibadan; where it started as a department in the Faculty of Arts which was the only faculty at the Jos campus then. The University of Ibadan Jos campus metamorphosed into the University of Jos in 1975, maintaining the Department of Geography and Planning as one of its founding departments. In 1976 the Faculty of Environmental Science was created with the Department of Architecture, and in 1979 the Department of Building and Geography & Planning were enlisted into the faculty.
Its founding fathers were Dr A. A. Adepetu (Late) and Dr G. C. Okechukwu who joined the department in 1973, and later in 1974, Dr H. I Ajaegbu (Late) joined the Jos Campus. The department came into shape and evolved into its present form with other highly resourced persons including Dr J. O Olaniyan, Dr V.C. Ihemegbulem, Dr Anthony Nyong (Nobel Lauret) Dr John Dung-Gwom, Dr Veheshima, Dr Mendai, Dr Oshagbemi and Dr. Tahule amongst others.
Since its inception, the department has been dedicated to providing quality education in scientific geography and applying scientific methods, techniques and knowledge of geography to tackle planning and development problems in Nigeria. Over the years, with the increased staff, the Department continues to grow and evolve, adapting to changes in the field and the needs of society. When the Jos Campus of the University of Ibadan became University of Jos in 1975, the Department became a member of the Faculty of Natural Sciences. During 1977-1978 session, it admitted the first batch of post graduate students for the Master of Science in:
a. Population and Manpower Planning and
b.Environmental and Resource Planning
The first batch of undergraduate students graduated from the department with the degree of B.Sc Geography in July, 1979. While the Department tries to broaden the Geographic knowledge of the undergraduates, efforts are also made to impart skills that could be used in definite jobs and sectors of the Nigerian economy. The post graduate programmes focused on the training of the manpower required in various spots of physical, environmental and population/manpower planning as well as eventual University teaching and research. In the 2018/2019 session, the Department mounted courses of study and research leading to the award of PhD in Geography with options in Climatology, Population, Geomorphology and Transportation and Post Graduate Diploma in Tourism, Geographic Information System (GIS) and Environmental Resource Management.
As a consequence of the orientation towards and the emphasis on spatial physical and environmental planning, the Department as from the 1979/80 session moved to the Faculty of environmental Sciences as one of the foundation departments of the faculty.
LIST OF PROGRAMMES OFFERED IN THE DEPARTMENT
UNDERGRADUATE
- B.Sc Geography
POSTGRADUATE
Postgraduate Diploma:
- Environmental and Resources Management (ERM)
- Geographical Information System (GIS)
- Tourism and Recreation Management (TRM)
Master’s (M.Sc):
- Environmental and Resources Planning (ERP)
- Population and Manpower Planning (PMP)
- Geography (with specialization in Climatology or Geomorphology or Population Studies or Transportation)
Doctoral (PhD):
- Environmental and Resources Planning (ERP)
- Population and Manpower Planning (PMP)
- Geography (with specialization in Climatology or Geomorphology or Population Studies or Transportation)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE POSTGRADUATE PROGRAMMES
The Department offers postgraduate programmes leading to the degrees of Master of Science (M.Sc.), Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Environmental and Resources Planning (with options in Climatology, Geomorphology, Transportation Planning, Soils, Rural Resources planning, Urban environmental planning, and Tourism and Recreation Planning), Population and Manpower Planning, Climatology, Geomorphology, Transport geography and Population geography. The M.Sc. Programmes are full time while Ph.D. programmes are both full and part-time. The department also offers Postgraduate Diploma programmes (Full time only) in Environmental Resources Management, Geographical Information System (GIS) and Tourism and Recreation Management (TRM).
The purpose of the postgraduate programmes is to support learning activities for students to acquire intellectual, geographic-specific, transferable, and personal skills for making critical evaluation, and judging evidence in making an informed decision. The master’s and PhD programmes expose students to understanding the vast and diverse context and tools in which to explore the different aspects of the constructed, imagined, and physical geographical world of humanity that interact in impacting the environmental, social, economic, and political realities. The knowledge and skills the students will obtain in the programmes will inspire them to seek out further insight into conjuring, designing, implementing, and eventually presenting their projects proficiently in real-world situations and utilise employability-related skills and techniques in the workplace.