Teaching and learning
The Learning environment
Our cutting-edge teaching programme is built on a foundation of over a hundred years of research and teaching excellence.
You will shape your own intellectual development with us through a range of study methods, and the learning experience extends way outside of the lecture theatre. Fieldwork, both in the UK and overseas, is an essential element of our degree programmes. As well as tutorials and practical classes you will have access to extensive educational facilities across the School and University including our brand new £60million library resources, state-of-the-art laboratories and IT facilities.
We are also home to the Lapworth Museum of Geology, brimming with more than 250,000 specimens some over 500 million years old.
Inthe video below our Geography students talk about Learning and Living at the University of Birmingham
Video transcript here
Facilities
Dedicated facilities for Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences students are also available including:
Modules involve both individual and group project work, and fieldwork is an integral aspect of all our degree programmes. You will learn to work under your own initiative and as part of a team. As your degree progresses, the modular system allows you greater choice and flexibility. This enables you to follow the subject areas that interest you most and build up a personal profile to equip you for future employment.
Transferable skills
Our graduates have exciting and varied career paths. Our degrees are designed with employers in mind enabling you to develop a unique blend of general, specialist and, crucially, transferable skills.
Whether your future lies in environmental consultancy, urban planning, geoengineering, finance or research our degree programmes are designed to nurture your talent and equip you with an optimal skills-set. You will learn how to present information both by giving oral presentations and producing professional quality reports, whilst field training gives you self-reliance and teamwork skills that are highly valued, and will enhance your employability in the competitive job market.
Our graduates all have a perspective that encompasses the global, regional and local environment, another trait that is extremely useful in future employment.
Assessment
Assessment typically involves an essay, project or practical work together with an examination. Each module is assessed separately and typically involves a combination of examination and practical work or projects. Exams are held in May, with resits in the late summer. First year exams are for qualifying only and do not count towards your degree grade, but all exams taken in later years do count towards the final result. We place a strong emphasis on individual project work including your dissertation and the results of this significantly influence the degree grade you achieve. You will be assigned a supervisor to advise and support you throughout your project.
Fieldwork
Fieldwork is an integral part of all our degree programmes. It offers you the chance to travel, work independently we well as in a group and learn valuable technical skills.
Discover more about fieldwork, including a destinations map and videos