BSc (Hons) Geology (Environmental Geoscience)

This Environmental Geoscience pathway through the Geology degree combines the study of the geological aspects of the Earth, including its structure, formation, composition, history, processes, hazards, and materials, with key topics in environmental science, including climate change, contaminated land, and remediation, water, soil, and air quality, and the sustainable use of resources. Environmental Geoscience is a practical subject with an emphasis on critical analysis and problem-solving. The learning environments we use include the traditional lecture setting, but you will spend more time with hands-on learning in labs, practical classes, and fieldwork using a wide variety of equipment and software. A diverse range of specialist topics are covered, and you will conduct your own research projects.

Year 1

• Minerals and Rocks
• Earth Structure
• Academic, Professional, and Fieldwork Skills
• Environmental Management
• Climate Change: The Scientific and Societal Context
• The Earth System
• Stratigraphy and Palaeontology

Year 2

• Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology
• Human Impact on the Environment, Scientific Perspectives
• Employability Training: Engaging with the Workplace
• Field Skills
• Reconstructing Past Environments
• Environmental Analytical Methods
• Geoscience and Society

Year 3

• Environmental Geoscience – Independent Project
• Global Environmental Change
• Frontiers in Environmental Geoscience
• Hydrological and Engineering Geology
• The Science of Soil

Optional Modules

• Glaciers and Glacial Geomorphology
• Natural Hazards
• Advanced Topics in Sedimentology
• Applied GIS
• Ecotoxicology and Risk Assessment
• Water Resources
• Micropalaeontology: Principles and Applications
• Coastal Environments

Employability

Modern living demands sustained and significant human interaction with the Earth. The resources we use, such as minerals, hydrocarbons, water, metals and stone are all geological in nature, and their extraction and use all impact the environment. Environmental Geologists play a key role in society’s development, they are equipped to find and understand natural resources but also to identify and resolve the environmental impact of activities related to the extraction and use of those resources.

Jobs that a graduate of this course could go on to do:

• Exploration Geologist
• Geological Engineer
• Geoenvironmental Engineer
• Survey Geologist
• Geophysicist
• Volcanologist Geotechnical Engineer