Geography - BA(Hons)

This course initially provides a solid grounding in geography before you choose a selection of areas to specialise in. These specialisms include resource management, urban studies and sustainability, and cultural geographies such as migration, identity and tourism. Alongside, you will also develop key analytical, communication and business skills.

Year 1

You will develop fundamental geographical knowledge and skills within the following core modules:

• Environmental Challenges
• Culture, Society and Place
• Geographies of Globalisation
• Geographical Field Study
• Geographical Skills

Year 2

You can start to tailor your course to suit your interests. You will take two core modules:

• Researching Human Geography
• Professional Development for Geographers

And five optional modules:

• Rural Change and Development
• Regenerating Cities
• Migration, Policy and Society
• Culture, Geography and Tourism
• Geographies of Security
• Managing Global Resources
• Practising Sustainability

Optional Placement Year

All students are encouraged to spend their third year in a work placement. Undertaking a placement is a fantastic opportunity to gain a foothold on the employment ladder. The curriculum in the second year provides support in securing a relevant placement.

Final year

As well as completing an independent final year project on a subject of your choice, you will have flexibility to study the aspects of human geography which are of most interest to you by choosing a further three modules:

• Transforming Cities
• International Development, Tourism and the Environment
• Society, Youth and Ageing
• GIS and Remote Sensing Applications
• Advanced Geographic Expedition
• Environmental Management in the Global South
• Integrated Water Management
• Renewable Energy
• Managing National Parks

The University continually enhances our offer by responding to feedback from our students and other stakeholders, ensuring the curriculum is kept up to date and our graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need for the real world. This may result in changes to the course. If changes to your course are approved we will inform you.

Our lecturing staff achieve consistently high scores on the National Student Survey and provide a friendly, enabling environment for learning. They are active researchers or industrial consultants and aware of modern advances in the discipline. Staff are also active within third sector groups and work with organisations such as the Royal Geographical Society/Institute of British Geographers and the Geographical Association.

The course is taught through a blend of learning activities, which include lectures, seminars, small group work, debates, laboratory classes, and fieldwork and practical work such as IT and internet skills, and conference organisation.

Through our Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) scheme, first year students receive mentoring and support from second year students. Find out how we use PAL to enhance the learning experience across our courses.

Find out more about our department's approach to learning and teaching.

'The teaching staff were well organised and inspiring, so I really enjoyed lectures.' BA Geography student.

For more details see our full glossary of learning and teaching terms.

Lectures, workshops/seminars, group project work, and tutoring account for 12 hours of contact time per week. However, as a full-time student, you will be expected to spend at least as much time again in essential independent study and preparation for assessments.

Modules are assessed through various combinations of examinations, coursework, essays, projects, presentations and field exercises. Most coursework is undertaken individually but there are some group assignments. Examinations take place in the first, second and final years.

For more details see our full glossary of assessment terms.