Geography (Professional Placement Year)

On this accredited Geography degree, you’ll learn how to understand, analyse and manage some of the most critical global issues facing contemporary society.

You’ll study modules that engage with topics such as climate change, urbanisation, hazards and disasters, sustainable and equitable futures, coastal and river management, exclusion and inequalities, extreme climates and environments, colonial legacies and identities, environmental management and migration.

Throughout the programme you’ll learn in a variety of settings and formats, helping you to develop the skills and knowledge to prepare you for a wide range of future careers. This includes lectures, laboratory practicals, computer-based workshops and discussion seminars.

You’ll have the opportunity to develop fieldwork skills on our beautiful Newton Park campus, in Bath, Bristol and the surrounding region, and on international trips to Italy and Spain.

Our small class sizes allow students to learn in a supportive setting, while our practical classes and fieldwork allow for hands-on experiential learning. You’ll develop sought after skills in mapping, surveying and geospatial data analysis, using up to date geotechnologies including Geographical Information Systems (GIS).

During your second year you can choose to spend an optional semester abroad at one of our partner universities in Portugal, Australia, Ireland, Canada or the United States.

In your final year you’ll undertake a dissertation research project on a topic of your choosing in either human or physical geography, under the supervision of one of our team of expert lecturers.

Throughout your degree you'll have opportunities to learn from the expertise and experience of our academic staff team. This includes topics such as long-term environmental change in Siberia and Alaska, resource extraction and indigenous communities in the Ecuadorian Amazon, flood and wildfire hazards in Ireland, adaptation to climate change in South Asia, cartographic representations of race and ethnicity, and public engagement with climate change and sustainability.

More about the Professional Placement Year A Professional Placement Year (PPY), traditionally known as a sandwich year, is where you undertake a period of work with an external organisation for between 9-13 months. The placement occurs between your second and final years of undergraduate study. You can engage in multiple placements to make up the total time and are required to source the placement(s) yourself, with support from the Careers team.