Geography degree course guide

It's very possible that some of this century's most important figures will be geographers?Photo: KPA/Zuma/Rex Features

"One touch of nature makes the whole world kin." William Shakespeare, Troilus and Cressida

What qualification do you leave with?

As geography covers areas of anthropology, chemistry, biology and history and many other diverse subjects, both BA and BSc degrees are available.

Three years is the standard length but the opportunities to study abroad and/or learn a language to aid the research process means students can easily extend their degree by one year.

What does it cover?

In the first year, students are usually taught the basics behind the two major areas of geography: human and physical. This might mean studying immigration and urban development as well as theories behind earthquakes and cloud structure. The vast array of fields of study mean that second and third year are often dominated by elected options where students can concentrate on subjects such as deforestation, climate change, earth history and tectonics. Oxford University offers courses in the geographies of finance and studies in post-Communist Russia in latter years and the London School of Economics' whole department concentrates on studying societies, history and other areas of human geography. Sussex, meanwhile, offers a final year course in the biogeography of tropical rainforests as part of their BSc programme.

What can you expect?

Gone is the stereotype of the boring geography lessons that plagued older generations' school lives. Thanks to climate change, globalisation and events such as 2011's Japanese earthquake, geography has become political and moved to the cutting edge of scientific research.

What are the usual A-levels you need?

Geography, for most places, is a must. Other A-level requirements are usually dictated by the areas of study on which a student wishes to focus. A BSc programme that looks into declining polar bear numbers might not look too kindly on a sociology qualification but it would be useful for a programme that concentrates on urbanisation and developing economies.

Career prospects

Individuals who can advise local government or business on being more environmentally friendly are extremely valuable and the growing importance of climate change and conservation in the political arena means that 'green' industries are growing rapidly. This focus also makes a career in research – exploring the world's most interesting corners – a very real possibility for many graduates.

Top places to study

The Complete University Guide rates Cambridge, Oxford, LSE, Durham and Bristol as the top five universities for geography and environmental science according to an index based on student satisfaction, entry standards, an assessment of the quality of the university's research and graduate prospects.