Geography
Globalisation, environmental economics, conservation and ecology, hurricanes, coastal geomorphology, the future of Africa and other developing areas, the geography of health, cultural differences - just some of the topics you can study on the Cambridge Geography course.
| UCAS code | L700 BA/G Please note that you graduate with a BA (the University does not award BSc degrees) |
| Duration | Three years |
| Colleges | Available at all Colleges except Pembroke and Peterhouse |
| 2011 entry | Applications/places: 3 Number admitted: 106 |
| Open days and events 2012 | College open days (arts) Cambridge Open Days - 5 July, 6 July Subject Masterclass - Geography and Land Economy |
| Related courses | |
| Contact details | 01223 333385 undergraduate.enquiries@geog.cam.ac.uk www.geog.cam.ac.uk |
Overview
A wider world
All societies rely on relationships with each other and the physical environment. Increasingly these are fragile interdependences presenting intellectual and practical challenges. Our Geography course tackles these issues from a broad base, but also allows you to specialise.
Facilities and resources
We have one of the UK's largest geography libraries, containing around 17,000 books, journals and periodicals, and the Scott Polar Research Institute is an integral part of the Department. There are extensive computing resources, where you receive formal teaching in geographical information technology including geographical information systems and remote sensing, and the Department's intranet provides further online resources.
Fieldwork and travel
Fieldwork is an important part of our course and there are several one-day excursions and field trips in Years 1 and 2. A compulsory field class in Part IB leads to a piece of assessed practical work. Recent locations include Switzerland, Dublin, Berlin, Morocco and Mallorca. Some financial help is available but students are required to contribute to the cost of these field trips.
Your Part II dissertation requires basic research in the summer vacation at the end of your second year. Dissertation subjects and locations vary widely: some students travel abroad, others stay in the British Isles.
Many students organise their own overseas expeditions, often with the Cambridge University Expeditions Society. Some Department and College travel awards are available for this.
Careers
While Geography isn't directly a 'vocational' degree, Cambridge Geography graduates are trained to deal with multivariate problems, are skilled in information retrieval, data management and computing, and are used to working on their own initiative, and as such are highly employable in a variety of professions.
Our graduates enter many different careers, including industry and commerce, planning, teaching, finance, social work, environmental management and conservation, the media, politics, and the Civil Service.
Course outline
You typically have six to eight lectures each week (with associated reading). You normally have three supervisions a fortnight at which you discuss a topic, usually following preparatory reading and essay-writing. In the first and second years, you also have laboratory or practical classes, and field classes.
Year 1 (Part IA)
You're introduced to key themes and issues by studying two core papers:
- Human Geography - topics include globalisation; Fordism and welfare; ecological, economic and political perspectives on resources
- Physical Geography - topics include tectonics and volcanism, hydrological and geomorphological processes, atmosphere and climate
You're assessed at the end of the year by one written examination for each paper.
You also take the Geographical Skills and Methods paper that covers numerical methods; survey techniques; documentary and archival data; spatial data; and field, laboratory and desk-based skills.
Year 2 (Part IB)
All students take a core Geographical Ideas and Themes paper relating to global change, which is assessed through both coursework and written examination.
In addition, you can begin to specialise and select three papers from a choice of six, which are also assessed by a combination of coursework and examination. Each year, three human geography papers and three physical and environmental geography papers will be available. The lists below give examples of Part IB papers that may be offered.
Human geography
- Cities
- Contemporary Geographies of Capitalism
- Development
- Geography and Public Policy
- Culture and Society
Physical and environmental geography
- Processes in the Climate System
- Glacial Processes, Landforms and Sediment
- Environmental Hazards
- Biogeography
- Rivers and Coasts
Building on Part IA Skills and Methods, you also undertake project work involving a range of field, laboratory and computer skills and techniques.
All students participate in a one-week residential field class during the Easter or summer vacation. This is essential for your final year dissertation research, both in terms of inspiring your choice of topic and in acquiring specific field research skills. A piece of submitted work on the field class forms part of your second-year assessment.
Year 3 (Part II)
You can either specialise further or maintain a balance across the subject as a whole. You select four papers from 12, which are assessed by either written examination or by a combination of written examination and coursework. Papers on offer vary each year but recent examples include:
- Europe and Beyond: Politics, Societies and Economies
- The Human Geography of the Arctic Regions
- Contemporary India: The Politics of Society, Environment and Development
- Geographies of Discipline and Social Regulation in the Nineteenth Century
- Biosedimentary Coastal Systems
- Biogeography
- Glacial Environments
You also write a dissertation of 10,000 words on a topic of your choice, which you start work on during the summer vacation between your second and third years. The topic must be defined by the second term of Year 2 and the proposal is assessed as part of your second-year coursework.
Entry requirements
Typical offers require
A Level: A*AA
IB: 40-42 points, with 776 or 777 at Higher Level
For other qualifications, see our main Entrance requirements pages.
Course requirements
Essential No specific subjects
Useful A modern language
There is no single combination of subjects that is especially good for students wishing to study Geography; the teaching programme for Geography is broad enough to encompass those whose primary interests are in the humanities, the social sciences, the natural or the environmental sciences, or any combination of these.
It isn't even essential to have studied geography at A Level (although in practice nearly all our students have done so). If you are particularly interested in contemporary human geography or historical geography, then Economics, English Literature, History, and Sociology are helpful, as are courses in world development.
If you are interested in physical and environmental geography, then Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Mathematics and Physics are useful supporting subjects, as is Environmental Science. However, there is no distinction between 'human' and 'physical' geographers in terms of their GCE A Level subjects, as, for instance, an interest in studying the environment and global development issues typically calls for understanding of both social and physical sciences. Wherever your interests lie, though, knowledge of a foreign language will also help you understand developments in this international discipline, and to gain a greater insight into regional geographies.
Girton College encourage Mathematics to AS Level (or equivalent) though this is not essential.
Check College websites for College specific requirements. See also Entrance requirements and our Subject Matters leaflet for additional advice about general requirements for entry, qualifications and offers.
Admissions tests and written work
The table below sets out the ways in which each College assesses applicants for this subject. For more information about these methods of assessment and why we use them, see the main Admissions tests and written work page.
| College | Assessment of applicant for this subject |
|---|---|
| Christ's | School/college essay |
| Churchill | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Clare | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Corpus Christi | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Downing | Preparatory study at interview |
| Emmanuel | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Fitzwilliam | School/college essay; Preparatory study before interview |
| Girton | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Gonville & Caius | School/college essay |
| Homerton | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Hughes Hall | Test at interview |
| Jesus | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| King's | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Lucy Cavendish | Test at interview |
| Magdalene | School/college essay |
| Murray Edwards | Test at interview |
| Newnham | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Pembroke | Not available at this College |
| Peterhouse | Not available at this College |
| Queens' | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| Robinson | School/college essay; Preparatory study at interview |
| St Catharine's | Preparatory study at interview |
| St Edmund's | Interview only |
| St John's | Interview only; Interviewees will be asked to make comment on a graph/diagram |
| Selwyn | Preparatory study at interview |
| Sidney Sussex | Preparatory study at interview |
| Trinity | School/college essay |
| Trinity Hall | School/college essay |
| Wolfson | Interview only |
How to apply
If you are interested in applying for this course, please see our Applying section for more details.
Further Resources
Find out more about Geography at Cambridge
- Course website - Explore Geography in more detail on the course website.
- Course guide - A detailed guide to the Geography degree.
- Course FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions about the Geography course.
- Facilities - Information about the facilities available to Geography students.
Tools to help you with your Geography application
- Geography and your College choice - Guidance on selecting a College at which to study Geography
Geography and your future
- Career opportunities - Information about the career opportunities available to you after studying Geography at Cambridge.
The student experience
- Student profiles - Some current students describe their experience of studying Geography.
- CUGS – the student society - Find out more about the Cambridge University Geographical Society and what they get up to.