Geography (Hons)

Overview

You'll investigate how we can preserve both the natural environment and the social and economic wellbeing of human populations. When you graduate, you'll have what you need to work in a wide range of areas, such as within urban or environmental planning, the energy sector, teaching or research.

What you’ll experience

• Create your own bespoke final year to match your interests and career ambitions by choosing from a fully optional list of modules, including environment and society, gender and development, and transport and sustainability
• Use industry-standard laboratory tech, including laser survey technology, drones, GIS and photogrammetry equipment and our environmental simulation cabinet – a controlled lab area that simulates different environmental conditions
• Experience some of the societies, cultures and landscapes you’re studying through fieldwork, including in places such as Berlin, Malta, Sicily and Uganda

• Choose to study abroad at one of our partner universities in Canada, Australia, Germany, Malta, Slovakia, Hungary and France, or build experience on a work placement at an organisation like the Environment Agency or Natural England

Work experience and career planning

On this BA (Hons) Geography, you’ll learn how to sustainably develop urban areas, and how governments, business and individuals can help protect the planet for future generations. You’ll examine themes such as conservation, sustainability, geopolitics, and economic and urban development, and hunt for answers to big questions about the world and society. 

Geography graduates are valuable in all sorts of job roles. As well as learning skills to help you understand and engage with the world, you’ll develop as a professional. You’ll come away as a confident communicator, able to solve problems, make good decisions and work well with others.

When you graduate, you'll be ready for a career in a wide range of important fields and sectors, with technical and professional skills many employers are looking for. Our previous students have gone onto work in areas such as transport planning, engineering, civil services, teaching and research.

As the Royal Geographical Society state, 74.8% of geography graduates enter professional-level jobs after graduation, compared to an average of 60.8% for the social sciences in general.

It also notes data from the Department for Education that puts geography among the top subjects for graduate earnings.

BA Geography or BSc Geography?

Our BA (Hons) Geography focuses on human geography – the ways in which communities, cultures and societies interact with the environment, while BSc (Hons) Geography is more to do with the science of the natural physical world.

Whichever you choose, you'll study both types of geography in your first year, before picking modules on either (or both) in years 2 and 3.

Your module choices will determine whether you graduate with a BA or a BSc Geography, so it helps to know which area interests you most and suits your career aspirations better before choosing which degree to study. 

What jobs can you do with a geography degree?

Roles our graduates have taken on include:

• geo-environmental consultant
• transport planner
• urban planner
• GIS analyst
• spatial analyst
• operations watchkeeper
• geography teacher

Graduate destinations

Organisations our graduates have gone on to work for include:

• Mott McDonald
• AECOM
• Savills
• Bulb
• Department of Business and Energy
• Thames Water
• Hampshire County Council

You could also go on to study at postgraduate level.

Ongoing careers support

After you graduate, you can get help, advice and support for up to 5 years from our Careers and Employability Service as you advance in your career.

Teaching

Teaching methods on this course include:

• lectures
• seminars
• one-to-one tutorials
• workshops

You can access all teaching resources on Moodle, our virtual learning environment, from anywhere with a Web connection.

How you're assessed

You’ll be assessed through:

• coursework
• examinations
• contributions to electronic discussion forums
• web page design
• posters
• projects
• presentations
• portfolios

You’ll be able to test your skills and knowledge informally before you do assessments that count towards your final mark.

You can get feedback on all practice and formal assessments so you can improve in the future.

The way you’re assessed will depend on the modules you select throughout your course. Here's an example from a previous year of how students on this course were typically assessed:

• Year 1 students: 50% by written exams, 14% by practical exams and 36% by coursework
• Year 2 students: 20% by written exams and 80% by coursework
• Year 3 students: 7% by written exams, 8% by practical exams and 85% by coursework