BA (Hons) Geography, Culture and Identity Bachelor's degree at Royal Holloway, University of London

Develop an understanding of the factors that control the physical, biological and chemical forces which shape the Earth's surface. Cover oceanic and atmospheric processes, plate tectonics, hydrology and coastal processes, glaciation, and arid environments.

Engage with key issues in human geography. Consider human geography as a distinctive way to approach the world, examining key questions about globalisation, inequality, identity and the nature of place.

Address planetary challenges through both social and physical science lenses. Explore the physical science basis of climate change, biosphere integrity and chemical pollution. Connect contemporary environmental issues to the history of exploration, colonialism and industrial expansion. Explore how geographers can shape fair and just solutions to environmental issues.

Bring together human and physical geography perspectives to understand the functioning of diverse global ecosystems, the impact of human activity on ecosystems and the challenges of sustainability. Cover biodiversity loss, food security, ecosystem services and environmental governance.

Introduction to the methods for collecting, interpreting and presenting physical and human geographical information, in both the field and in the laboratory. Conduct fieldwork activities including surveying and mapping, vegetation sampling and identification, soil and water analysis, data analysis, questionnaire design, interviewing, and visual and textual interpretation.

Introduce students to key data collection and analysis techniques in human geography. Develop skills in questionnaire design, observation, interviewing, and qualitative and quantitative data analysis. Use lectures and practical classes with students working as individuals and in small groups.

Divided into three sections: Study skills for Geographers (critical reading and writing, finding and evaluating source material, referencing, academic integrity, research ethics, generative AI); Geography beyond university (skills development, careers, RHUL careers service); Statistics and data visualisation (introduction to statistical analysis and methods of presenting quantitative data visually).

Develop practical research skills on a week-long field-trip to Andalusia in Southern Spain. Spend four days looking at specific local examples of physical, environmental, social, economic and cultural processes. Spend two days conducting a short piece of original research on a topic of your choice in small groups.

Develop skills in research design, data collection and analysis. Learn how to handle and process advanced human or physical geography data sets. Further ability to apply geographical information systems (GIS) techniques. Start to plan your dissertation, thinking about proposal design, and risk and research ethics assessments.

Develop skills and abilities introduced in Geographical Techniques and Geographical Field Research and Techniques. Provide training in research design and research management in a field situation. Develop skills in a variety of field-based research techniques. Provide advice and experience in preparation for completion of independent dissertations. Provide experience of specialist research in the field in relation to social, cultural and historical geographies.

Provide an introduction to the use of remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems in physical and human geographical research. Introduce theoretical concepts underpinning geospatial data storage and analysis through lectures. Demonstrate applications of GIS for answering a range of geographical research questions focused on global challenges. Students gain experience of using ArcGIS Pro. Cover rasters, vectors, data tables and map projections. Explore cartography and map design. Introduc

Cover themes related to how space, landscapes, and knowledge are contested, within a curriculum focused on power, place and geopolitics.

Provide an introduction to key social geographies themes, focusing particularly on the mutual constitution of space and society, and how identities are created, experienced and challenged in different spaces. Consider issues of residential segregation, mobility and inclusion/exclusion through examination of key social characteristics such as class, gender, ethnicity, disability, age and sexuality.

Concerned with the character of place and culture in the modern world. Explore both the material cultural transformations wrought by processes of modernisation and how people understand and imagine the places, spaces, times and environments they inhabit. Address issues of global geographies of cultural change, place, identity and landscape, the significance of place and space in the invention of modern traditions, and nature-society relations.

Focus on the use and management of resources, in the context of inputs and outputs to environmental systems, with an emphasis on processes and the impacts of human activities. Students develop an understanding of resource use and waste impacts at a range of levels, particularly global, regional and local, and over a range of time scales.

Focus on two overall themes: 1) the earth surface processes responsible for shaping the physical landscape and 2) natural hazards, where extreme earth surface process events pose a societal risk. Centre on geomorphological systems: slopes, rivers, glaciers and dunes. Cover key hazards including landslides, floods, glacier lake outburst floods and dust storms.