Departmental Unit № 1
School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (SGSUP)
PhD in Geography / Urban Planning
100% Full Funding Guaranteed (5 Years)
Funding Package: Full tuition waiver + 9-to-12 month living stipend (~$26,000–$31,000/yr) + comprehensive student health insurance guaranteed through Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA) and Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA).
Fall Priority Deadline: December 15 (Priority)
GRE Policy: Not required / Waived
English Minimums: TOEFL iBT 80 minimum or IELTS 6.5 minimum (Speaking 26 for TA certification)
MA in Geography (Thesis Track)
100% Full Funding on Thesis Track!
Funding Reality: ASU SGSUP routinely fully funds admitted MA thesis students via departmental Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA) in GIS and physical geography! Excellent funded Master's target.
Application Deadline: December 15
Admissions Advisory: If full funding is required and MS is self-funded, students are strongly advised to apply directly to the PhD track.
Vetted Matched Scholars (2 Profiles)
Prof. B. L. Turner II
Regents Professor of Geographical Sciences; Member, National Academy of Sciences
In Plain Terms · What This Scholar Does:
A member of the National Academy of Sciences; he pioneered the science of studying how humans clear forests and change the surface of the Earth, changing regional climate and rivers.
Core Research Topics: Land change science, human-environment geography, satellite remote sensing of land degradation, tropical forest vulnerability, spatial vulnerability.
Recent 2024–2026 Works & Grants: Member of the US National Academy of Sciences and pioneer in Land Change Science. Researches how global climate change, rural agriculture, and urban expansion alter regional water supplies and land systems across the tropics.
Laboratory Instruments & Methods: Satellite remote sensing, spatial econometric models, GIS land cover classification, spatial vulnerability mapping.
Recruiting Context: Regents Professor and National Academy member. Direct match for a BSc in Geography and Environmental Science.
Candidate Match:
GeographyRemote SensingGISEnvironmental Science
Tailored Cold-Email Opening Hook:
"Discussing your background in geography and environmental science, expressing admiration for his foundational contributions to land change science and spatial vulnerability."
Prof. Elizabeth A. Wentz
Professor of Geographic Information Science, SGSUP
In Plain Terms · What This Scholar Does:
She uses computer mapmaking algorithms to track how desert cities consume millions of gallons of water, showing city leaders where watering restrictions will save municipal reservoirs.
Core Research Topics: GIScience, spatial analysis, urban water conservation, spatial decision support systems, remote sensing of urban environments.
Recent 2024–2026 Works & Grants: Author of foundational spatial analysis textbooks. Directs urban water modeling projects across the arid US Southwest, using spatial GIS algorithms and remote sensing to evaluate municipal water conservation and drought resilience.
Laboratory Instruments & Methods: GIS spatial statistics, spatial multi-criteria decision models, urban water balance models, Python/R spatial workflows.
Recruiting Context: Senior leader in Geographic Information Science at ASU.
Candidate Match:
GISSpatial AnalysisWater ResourcesGeographyPython
Tailored Cold-Email Opening Hook:
"Connecting your GIS spatial analysis and water resources coursework with her research on spatial decision support systems and urban water conservation in SGSUP."
Departmental Unit № 2
School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment (Hydrosystems)
PhD in Civil, Environmental and Sustainable Engineering (Hydrosystems)
100% Full Funding Guaranteed (5 Years)
Funding Package: Tuition waiver + 12-month stipend (~$32,000–$36,000/yr) + health insurance.
Fall Priority Deadline: December 31
GRE Policy: Not required
English Minimums: TOEFL iBT 80 or IELTS 6.5
MS in Environmental Engineering (Thesis Option)
GRA Eligible on Research Track
Funding Reality: Thesis MS students frequently funded as Research Assistants on faculty grants.
Application Deadline: December 31
Admissions Advisory: If full funding is required and MS is self-funded, students are strongly advised to apply directly to the PhD track.
Vetted Matched Scholars (1 Profiles)
Prof. Enrique R. Vivoni
Fulton Professor of Hydrosystems Engineering and School of Earth and Space Exploration
In Plain Terms · What This Scholar Does:
He uses flying drones and computer flood models in desert river basins to predict deadly mountain flash floods that strike dry canyons without warning.
Core Research Topics: Ecohydrology, distributed hydrologic modeling, UAV drone remote sensing, flash flood forecasting in drylands, land-atmosphere interactions.
Recent 2024–2026 Works & Grants: Directs the Vivoni Hydrosystems Group. Deploys drone multispectral sensors, eddy covariance towers, and distributed hydrologic models (tRIBS) across the southwestern US and Mexico to forecast desert flash floods and groundwater recharge.
Laboratory Instruments & Methods: tRIBS distributed hydrological model, UAV drone remote sensing, eddy covariance flux towers, GIS terrain analysis, Python/MATLAB.
Recruiting Context: Prominent endowed chair with extensive research grants in hydrology and remote sensing. Direct match!
Candidate Match:
HydrologyFlood ModelingRemote SensingGISPython
Tailored Cold-Email Opening Hook:
"Discussing your background in GIS, remote sensing, and flood hydrology, presenting your interest in his distributed hydrological modeling and drone ecohydrology in the Vivoni Group."