Incoming first-year students are encouraged to take one of two First-Year Experience seminars offered by G&ES:

G&ES 109A: Geography of Metropolitan Chicago or
G&ES 109B: Environmental Chicago

Not all urban students take the G&ES FYE seminar. Most just head straight for the 200-level introductory course. This is a very important course --the cornerstone for all the rest of the urban courses offered by the department-- and students are strongly urged to take it early on as an introduction to the field. This course is offered every Fall semester:

G&ES 217 Urban Geography

Next up is a course offered every Spring semester. This is a great follow-up to G&ES 217 and also strongly recommended to any student serious about the urban concentration:

G&ES 303A Social Geography

With this solid background in urban geography, there is a long list of courses that a student can choose from to fulfill the six major elective courses that a major in geography needs:

G&ES 346 Global Chicago (every Summer)
G&ES 347 Gentrification and Urban Redevelopment (every other Spring semester)
G&ES 348 Latino Metropolis (every other Spring semester)
G&ES 349 Environment and Urbanization (every other Fall semester)

G&ES 355 Metropolitan Transportation (every other Fall semester)
G&ES 359 Environmental Planning (every other Fall semester)
G&ES 361 Urban Planning (every other Spring semester)
G&ES 370 Regional Economic & Social Development (every other Fall semester)
G&ES 389 Urban Design Studio (every other Fall semester)

G&ES 109A - Geography of Metropolitan Chicago

G&ES 109A is a First Year Experience (F.Y.E.) course designed specifically for incoming first-year students. The course focuses on extensive guided fieldwork in selected topics in Chicago-area geography. Students are expected to work individually as well as in teams that study assigned neighborhoods or specific issues. The Chicago metropolitan area is, perhaps, the best laboratory in the world for the study of modern urbanism, and has a long history of being the object of research and analysis. This class requires a couple of fieldtrips to Chicago communities during the semester.

G&ES 217 - Urban Geography

G&ES 217 is a comprehensive survey of ideas and issues that introduces the student to the fascinating field of urban geography by focusing on the processes and outcomes of urbanization, as well as on the varied dimensions of urban life. The course addresses the dramatic changes that have been unfolding in the metropolitan landscape and encourages students to develop a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the city and the sociospatial processes that characterize it. G&ES 217 is the foundational course in the urban geography/urban planning concentration at NEIU's Department of Geography & Environmental Studies.

G&ES 303A - Social Geography

G&ES 303A is a course that introduces students to major theoretical concepts and research approaches in the geographical subfield of social geography. It investigates the ways in which social relations and spatial practices are linked in the contemporary world by examining such categories as gender, race, ethnicity, class, sexual orientation, disability, and age from a distinctly geographical perspective and with an emphasis on urbanism and urbanization.

G&ES 346 - Global Chicago

G&ES 346 examines the place of Chicago in the global urban network. It focuses on the interaction between capital and politics, and their effect on urban sociospatial change. The point of departure is the notion that cities are spaces that act as catalysts for --as well as embodiments of-- broad cultural, economic, historical, political, and social processes. The course will explore neoliberalism, globalization, and transnationalism in the context of emerging urban spatialities at the global and local scales, always zooming-in on the greater Chicago metropolitan area.

G&ES 347 - Gentrification & Urban Redevelopment

G&ES 347 is an intensive examination of the processes implicated in gentrification and urban redevelopment. Much of the emphasis of the class is on exploring the current restructuring process and its effects on communities in metropolitan Chicago. The students become thoroughly familiar with the research literature on gentrification and urban redevelopment. Furthermore, they have the unique opportunity to closely study cases of gentrification and displacement in the field, in neighborhoods such as Uptown, Wicker Park, Near West Side, Albany Park, etc. This class requires some fieldtrips to Chicago communities during the semester. Generally, such fieldtrips will take place during classtime.

G&ES 348 - Latino Metropolis

G&ES 348 explores the processes of Latino urbanization in the United States and the spatialization of Latino identities, particularly in the context of the Chicago metropolitan area. As more Latinos live and work in urban spaces, they are gradually transforming the social relations and spatial practices that manifest the geographical and historical legacies of previous waves of urbanization, to suit their varied needs and to express their own diverse values. Concurrently, these urban Latino communities adjust to the influences of the built environments they encounter, as well as to the social fabric upon which they now imprint themselves. As U.S. urban spaces become the loci that constitute, constrain and mediate Latino identity formation and contestation, they yield new potential for political and social change and they shape new claims on the urban future. This class requires some fieldtrips to Chicago Latino communities during the semester. Generally, such fieldtrips will take place during classtime.

G&ES 349 - Environment & Urbanization

G&ES 349 focuses on issues of international urban planning and development with an emphasis on the connections and intersections between urbanization and the environment. In this context, the inexorable growth or urban areas in the core industrialized regions but, even more so, in the global semi-periphery and periphery, necessitates a rigorous consideration of the dynamics of the processes involved and an assessment of the implications for a livable present and future.

G&ES 361 - Urban Planning

G&ES 361 serves as an introduction to the field of urban planning as it is practiced today in the United States and in the Chicago metropolitan area. The course provides insights into the process of planning, and examines the interplay of politics, law, money, and interest groups. It focuses on the fundamental theoretical perspectives, as well as on the common regulatory and procedural tools utilized by planning professionals. The course examines the historical context and evolution of the planning profession, and aims to develop an understanding of the complex issues associated with urbanization and of the role of planning in contemporary society. Special attention is given to alternative approaches, especially in ensuring equity and democratic participation in planning and policy. G&ES 361 is an important stepping-stone to careers in urban planning. This class may require one or two fieldtrips during the semester.

G&ES 389 - Urban Design Studio

G&ES 389 is a studio course where students gain an appreciation for theoretical and applied dimensions of urban design, and get hands-on training with computer assisted design projects. Students will become familiar with the current literature in the field, as well as the design techniques and standards used by practitioners to alter the built environment. They will gain hands-on experience using computer assisted design technology and other appropriate methodological tools.