UNDERGRADUATE MINOR
DISASTER MANAGEMENT
The Institute for Disaster Management offers an undergraduate minor in disaster
management that pairs well with any major, from public health and journalism to
geography and international affairs. Through the minor program, students acquire a
strong foundation in the knowledge and skills they need to apply disaster management
to their specific area of focus or to continue on in the field of disaster management.
The structure and topical focus of the minor program engages students in both applied
and scholarly work in emergency and disaster management. Coursework for the minor
in disaster management focuses on the societal impacts and causes of natural and
human-made hazards, including how these disasters can be mitigated, planned for,
and adapted to.
T: 706.542.8684
W: idm.publichealth.uga.edu
COURSEWORK
The minor consists of 15 semester hours of coursework, which must be completed with
a grade of “C” or better.
The required anchor course for the minor is DMAN 3100, “Disasters and Society.”
In this course, students explore the social contributors and impacts of disasters, and
analyze key findings related to human behavior in disaster settings.
Following the foundations provided by DMAN 3100, students take an additional 12
semester hours of coursework. At least three courses or 9 semester hours must be from
the DMAN prefix, and no more than six hours of independent study credit may count
toward the minor.
COURSEWORK
DISASTER MANAGEMENT ELECTIVE OPTIONS
DMAN 3200: Disaster Policy
Introduction to policies and practices intended to
minimize loss from disasters and hazards in the United
States. The costs posed by these hazards continue to
challenge managers at all levels of government and in
the private sector, and there is a growing demand for
this knowledge and skillset.
DMAN 3300: International Aspects of
Disasters
An overview of disasters and disaster management from
an international perspective, with a focus on social
vulnerability. Content will address a number of issues,
including the relationship between disasters and social
systems, how disasters are dealt with in different
countries, and the interactions between nations during
disasters.
DMAN 3400: Disasters, Media, and Pop
Culture
This highly interactive course focuses on representations
of disasters in media and pop culture. Issues discussed
will include disaster news, social media, symbolism,
film, music and disasters, and disaster literature.
Students will learn how these issues relate to applied
topics in disasters, such as warning communication and
policy framing.
DMAN 3750: How to Survive the
Apocalypse
Apocalypses signal an end of times, and they are seen in
the histories, present, and futures of life on Earth. In
this hands-on course, we examine what it means to
survive - and prevent - an apocalypse! Together, we
draw from diverse disciplinary perspectives, including
human-environment geography, environmental studies,
sustainability, and disaster management.
DMAN 4100: Methods in Disaster
Research* (coming soon)
Designed to prepare students for a broad range of
methods used in the study of hazards and disasters.
Topics include quick response fieldwork training, ethics,
introduction to SPSS, and basic GIS. Students will
practice forming research questions, strategies for data
collection, and conducting analyses.
DMAN 4960: Independent Study in
Disaster Management
Individual research with a faculty member. Will be
taught by Institute for Disaster Management faculty.
DMAN 4960R: Faculty-Mentored
Undergraduate Research I
Faculty-supervised independent or collaborative inquiry
into fundamental and applied problems within a
discipline that requires students to gather, analyze,
synthesize, and interpret data and to present results in
writing and other relevant communication formats.
DMAN 4970R: Faculty-Mentored
Undergraduate Research II
Faculty-supervised independent or collaborative inquiry
into fundamental and applied problems within a
discipline that requires students to gather, analyze,
synthesize, and interpret data and to present results in
writing and other relevant communication formats.
COURSEWORK
ELECTIVE OPTIONS
HIST 3242: Disasters in the Caribbean
and Latin America
Exploration of the history of notable disasters in the
Caribbean and Latin America since the heyday of
European expansion. The readings focus on
earthquakes, hurricanes, and other phenomena, such as
epidemics, that human action and inaction have at times
transformed into catastrophes. Consideration of how
historical forces have conditioned the effects of natural
phenomena, how disasters have helped spur
socio-political transformations, and how shifting
understandings of religion, science, and politics have
influenced disasters and disaster relief.
HPAM 3500: Introduction to
Healthcare Management
Public health professionals assume leadership roles in
organizations where they are responsible for planning,
organizing, staffing, coordinating, reporting, and
budgeting of activities. This course is designed to
stimulate critical thinking about modern public health
administrative issues and develop selected management
techniques and perspectives.
HPAM 3600: Introduction to Health
Policy
This introductory survey of health policy issues will
include the organization of the health system, health
care financing, the policy process in the United States,
laws and ethics related to health policy and
management, the essential features of policy analysis,
and public health communication.
INTL 4440: Strategic Intelligence
How the Central Intelligence Agency and other agencies
gather and assess information, how this information is
used by policymakers, the role of such agencies in
clandestine operations, and the safeguards against the
abuse of this secret power.
INTL 4666: The Politics of Cyber
Security
An introduction to the basics of cyber security, with a
focus on its humanistic, social, and political implica-
tions. Exploration of the empirical and normative
themes that relate cyber security to our students as
members of a community, a society, and a nation.
SOCI(INTL): Sociology of Terrorism
ADPR 5120: Crisis Communication
Students develop crisis analysis, planning, and
communication skills through class discussion, analysis
of theories, case studies, and development of a crisis
communication plan. Students will develop the skills
needed to produce or supervise production of public
relations materials needed in crisis communication.
Real-life situations will be discussed and experienced.
ANTH 3150: Water Worlds
Contemporary assessment of the multiple ways in which
societies understand, value, regulate, and engage with
water. Provides an international perspective on the
relationship between water and culture, with a focus
towards global sustainability.
ATSC(GEOG) 3130: Atmospheric
Hazards
The causes, impacts and policies regarding hazards due
to atmospheric phenomena, including hurricanes,
tornadoes, windstorms, extreme temperature and
precipitation events, and climate change.
CVLE 3470L: Civil Engineering
Laboratory - Structural
Behavior of simple structural elements and systems.
Focus on comparison with theoretical results, acceptable
discrepancies between experimental and theoretical
results, and viable explanations of these discrepancies.
Procedures and tools for data collection, analysis,
interpretation, and presentation.
GEOG 3640: The Geography of Human
Rights
An examination of how, where, and under what specific
conditions violations of human rights occur. Students
will review local and global mechanisms for addressing
human rights violations, and evaluate how international
law, national policies, and local practices are mutually
constituted. Contemporary theoretical debates regarding
violence and power, memory and history, and the
dilemmas of democratic transitions will be critiqued.
GEOG 4/6370-4/6370L: Geographic
Information Science
Principles and applications of geographic information
systems (GIS). Examines the nature and accuracy of
spatially referenced data, as well as methods of data
capture, storage, retrieval, visualization, modeling, and
output using one or more GIS software packages.
Note that not all courses will be offered each semester and inclusion upon this list does not indicate that a course will be
offered in the future. Prior approval by the host department may be required to enroll in some courses. Other electives not
listed may count towards the minor with department approval.
