Environmental Geography with a Year of Study Abroad

Are you passionate about finding solutions to the most urgent environmental threats facing our planet today? Our scientific understanding of the natural and physical environment is key to addressing issues like climate change, pollution, and land degradation.

On our Environmental Geography course, you will explore how the Earth functions and the science behind human impact on the planet over time. You will study environments across the world and the pressures they face today and in the future. You will learn about a wide range of environments, from the extreme poles to tropical coral reefs. You will use the latest technologies and develop skills in geographical mapping, research, analysis and problem-solving.

We make the most of our location and take regular day trips to Gower, the Glamorgan Heritage Coast and the Brecon Beacons in South Wales. There will also be opportunities to do overseas trips, in the past we’ve been to the Netherlands and Switzerland.

On this four-year programme, you can spend one academic year studying at one of our partner universities abroad. Studying abroad is a fantastic opportunity to experience other cultures and viewpoints, learning the different styles and approaches to your subject in another country and exploring new physical environments, landscapes and coastlines. You will get the chance to make new friends and contacts from around the world. Plus, you will have the opportunity to develop a wealth of life skills and strengths that will help you to compete in an increasingly global workplace, such as adaptability, resourcefulness, and resilience.

Our Regrow Borneo project allows you to offset your flight’s carbon emissions by making an affordable donation to support our tree-planting project in the Lower Kinabatangan rainforest, Sabah, Borneo.

Students on this course are usually concerned about the health of the planet and want to make a positive difference. Graduates leave with the skills to solve a range of complex environmental problems and with experience of hands-on fieldwork and cutting-edge research with world-leading scientists.

Distinctive Features of the Programme

Year Abroad opportunity - Learn while you travel and experience the landscapes or coastlines, education and culture of a different country with the opportunity to complete a year studying at a university abroad.

Student satisfaction - Belong to a small and friendly community voted top among all Russell Group Universities in the main category of Overall Satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2018. In 2019 our Environmental Geography and Marine Geography degrees were jointly ranked 1st out of 63 Physical Geography and Environmental Sciences undergraduate courses.

Flexible degree schemes - all of the School’s degrees have a common first semester that introduce you to geosciences and geography. You can then decide whether to stay with your chosen degree or switch to another in the same School. You don’t need to commit to a university abroad until your second year, so there’s plenty of time to consider your options and decide where you would like to explore.

Hands-on fieldwork in the UK and overseas - you will get plenty of opportunity to develop your fieldwork skills with regular day trips and residential trips in Wales and overseas. Wales is like a playground for environmental geographers. From impressive mountains in the north to a biodiverse tidal estuary in the south, we have a huge range of natural environments to explore.

World leading experts and facilities – you will be taught by world-leading scientists and have access to: the latest technologies in surveying and mapping equipment, chemical laboratories, laboratories with GIS (Geographic Information System) and a 12-metre research boat, the RV Guiding Light.

Industry connections - we have excellent links with our alumni working across the world and with external partners including employers and regulators.