Year 1

Compulsory modules

• Introduction to Human Geography

What can geography tell us about what it means to be human and how we relate to the natural world? How can we understand the complexity of human identity and culture? In this module, you’ll gain an understanding of human geography, as you investigate key themes of space and place, environment and society. You’ll gain core analytical skills for your degree, as you consider how society and culture shape our landscapes, and how spatial differences and inequalities are generated. You’ll consider how approaches in human geography can shed light on pressing political issues today.

• Introduction to Geographical Skills and Techniques

In this module, you’ll be introduced to the techniques most widely used in human and physical geographical research, including:

 mapping
 surveying
 observational recording
 focus groups, interviews and questionnaires.

The module introduces practical geographical techniques and broader academic techniques such as literature work, citations and referencing. Although the module is largely theoretical, in preparation for the year 2 module ‘Advanced Research Skills for Geographers’, you’ll also undertake local field-based exercises, designed to demonstrate the techniques in action. You’ll be involved in tasks such as:

 making detailed, empirical geographical observations using widely employed geographical equipment
 locating and exploring geographical databases and archives
 using basic digital mapping programmes to investigate the physical and human environment.

• Investigating Geography

In this module, you’ll gain core skills you need to succeed in your Geography degree. You will undertake the first steps as a researcher in geography, and report on a range of geographical topics. You’ll learn how to address pressing global challenges through key geographical techniques, as well as scientific, economic and political investigation.

• Introduction to Physical Geography

In this module you’ll examine key themes and topics in physical geography, using climate change as an overarching context. You’ll gain a geographical grounding in climate change science and examine core areas that relate to climate change in physical geography, including environmental processes, systems and management linked to climate change. You’ll explore recent and future developments in physical geography.

• Geographical Perspectives

What makes a geographer? What does a practising professional geographer do? This module will help you answer these questions, as you discover more about geography as a discipline, a set of spatial practices and a profession. You’ll explore concepts associated with geographical keywords (such as space, place and landscape), and cover topics from geographical histories to contemporary issues. You’ll look at how human and physical geography features in the news and current debates. You’ll learn more about research and writing about geography for a range of audiences.

• Sustainability and Development

How can we build sustainable environments in which we can live, work and relax? In this module, you’ll learn about sustainability and the three overlapping issues of sustainable development - environmental, social and economic. You’ll examine how infrastructure and resource-use affect the sustainability of England’s built and natural environment.

You’ll gain knowledge of the land-use planning system in England, and how it can help to deliver a more sustainable environment. You'll explore sustainable development through a broad focus, to consider bio-physical components (land, water, biodiversity, buildings), social issues (such as quality of life and equity) and economic issues (such as how to understand the value the environment brings to a sustainable economy).

Year 2

Compulsory modules

• Advanced Research Skills for Geographers

Field work is at the heart of our geography course and this module helps you develop the practical and research skills you’ll need. During this module you will develop essential knowledge and skills in research methods and data analysis. With guidance, you’ll undertake a substantive piece of research, which you’ll conduct during the residential field trip. The research capabilities you build will be invaluable, both for your dissertation and your career after Oxford Brookes.

• Development and Global Change

Why are some countries rich and others poor? What does development mean exactly - economic growth, social justice, or environmental sustainability? Does development help countries, or stop them growing? How do grassroots movements emerge, and how do they resist global inequality? In this module, you’ll look at geographical approaches to international development (the idea that different countries have differing levels of ‘development’ internationally). You’ll understand issues, including:

 histories of international development and globalisation
 political geography and colonialism
 theories of development
 international development institutions, such as the United Nations
 poverty and inequality
 social development and social justice
 participatory and community-based approaches
 sustainable development
 climate change adaptation
 vulnerability to natural disasters.

• Environmental Hazard Management

In this module you will develop an understanding of the way that environmental processes can become potential hazards. You will study how hazards sometimes become disasters and the measures used to manage disasters and mitigate risk. You will explore contemporary approaches to environmental hazard / disaster management including: the efficacy of Aid; the role of the military in disaster relief; whether forecasting really saves lives; and the role of the mass media and new technology in disaster management. You will get to investigate real case studies and present your work individually and as part of a team.

Optional modules

Biogeography

How can a knowledge of the world’s species help solve climate change and conservation issues? In this module, you’ll get to know biogeography (the study of species and ecosystems through time and space). You’ll explore the scientific background of ecosystem research, focusing on freshwater and terrestrial (land) environments. You’ll investigate the distribution of species and ecosystems in response to past, current and future environmental changes. Your learning will be informed by the latest global research, and your assignments based upon the most recent scientific publications.

Cities: Geographies of the Urban Experience

In Cities: Geographies of the Urban Experience, you will be introduced to urban geography. Throughout the module, you will explore a range of ways in which cities shape, and are shaped by people. From the modern architectural movement, to protest and public space, you will learn about the central role that cities play in politics and everyday life. Central to the module is understanding the ways in which inequality is built into urban life, and what we can do to challenge it.

Conservation and Heritage Management

In this module, you’ll explore heritage landscapes, and their identity as places of cultural or community value. You’ll study some of the world’s most magnificent heritage as you consider how heritage landscapes have evolved over time. You’ll look at their conservation and management, and the physical and human impact upon them. You’ll get to grips with the core concepts and themes of environmental conservation, heritage management and sustainable development. You’ll understand the rules and regulations, as well as the roles of advisors, in how we protect sites. You’ll also build up knowledge of different ecosystems, their origins and how human interactions impact their development.

Geographies of Migration

Study and explore one of the most fundamental processes of human-environment relations - migration. You will focus on contemporary examples of migration across a range of contexts. You will develop a critical understanding of the ways in which migration shapes the:

 social
 political
 cultural
 economic
 and environmental geographies.

You will also look at the ways in which migration patterns and experiences are shaped by the geographical.

Earth Systems

In this module, you’ll gain an understanding of The Earth as a global system. You’ll consider it in terms of spheres: the geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere, each interacting in different scales of time and space. You’ll gain core information you need to succeed in physical geography, as you understand how these spheres underpin the character and behaviour of the global system that we observe. You’ll explore each of these spheres in detail, gaining a whole picture of the global system. To do this you will engage with a range of disciplines, including:

 geology
 hydrology
 micro- and macro-ecology
 atmospheric chemistry
 physics
 computer modelling.

Geographical Information Systems

This module gives you a grounding in the concepts, components and functions of Geographical Information Systems (GIS). You’ll develop knowledge and understanding of spatial data, including methods for data capture and spatial analysis within a GIS environment. You’ll acquire extensive practical experience using the industry standard GIS software, developing skills in creating and editing digital maps and incorporating third party sources of spatial data. You’ll be able to use this data for spatial analysis, modelling and decision support, and gain valuable skills for your future career.

Independent Study: Work and Community Related Learning

In this module, you’ll have the chance to do some work experience closely linked to your Geography course. You might be an intern with a company, or working as a volunteer in the local community, or you might have a role in the university, for example as a student ambassador. Your tutors will advise you, but you’ll be in charge of the direction you take and the learning opportunity involved.

With careful thinking about what you want to achieve and how the work you do will support your learning, you’ll gain a better understanding of the world of work. You may also develop a stronger sense of the career you’d like after Brookes. Whatever the focus of your independent study, you’ll notice the benefits, whether it’s the satisfaction gained from volunteering, the new knowledge you’ve gained or the skills you’ve improved.

Political Geography: Place and Power

What are the connections between place and power? This module introduces you to political geography and geopolitics. You’ll look at both historical and ongoing debates to enable you to understand the spatial and material relations of political power, including territory, borders, mobility, security, nations, nationalism, sovereignty and environmental politics. You’ll interrogate and challenge common assumptions about geopolitics and explore geographical ideas in the light of current events, emphasising the relevance and real-world application of political geographical thought.

Quaternary Environmental Change

Sea levels are rising; glaciers are melting; Arctic sea ice is thinning and weather events are becoming more extreme. We are in the grip of global warming. But how do these changes compare with the environmental changes that have occurred in the past? What does the past teach us about how natural and human factors may interact to change our climate and environment in the future?

In this module you’ll examine changes to the physical environment throughout the Quaternary: the last 2.6 million years of geological history and time during which humans have evolved and spread across the earth. You’ll examine the causes of climatic and environmental change over different timescales and the complex interactions between human impacts and natural processes, gaining perspective on current environmental and climatic concerns.

Year 3 (optional year abroad)

Optional modules

Optional Year Abroad

This module provides you with the opportunity to apply and test your subject knowledge, skills and competencies in a new context.

The opportunity can be approached in 2 different ways:

Study Abroad

Attend a non-UK higher education institution for a full academic year. You can choose modules in your own subject or in a subject you consider would benefit your overall course of study. You may choose to deepen your knowledge of your degree subject, or enhance it by developing complementary skills.

Work-based Learning

Undertake a work placement or work-related project based on your interests and existing skills. You will produce a Study Abroad Plan that shows clearly how your proposed placement or project links with your academic and/or professional aims.

Choosing this module will allow you to exhibit the development of self-management and working or studying in unfamiliar contexts, alongside practising cross-cultural communication and interpersonal skills.

Year 4 (Or year 3 if no year abroad)

Compulsory modules

• Geography Dissertation

This module gives you the chance to do an independent investigation on a topic that fascinates you. Whether you’re creating a field-based, computer-based, laboratory-based or library-based topic, you’ll gain core skills for your future career and shape your project around your passions.

Optional modules

Sustainable Futures

On this module, you will look at current and future global challenges that face geographers.

You will draw on academic research expertise. You will look at physical, human and environmental geographical issues related to a sustainable future.
You will explore what geographers can contribute using your geographical skills:

 the geographical imagination
 ethical subject-hood
 integrative thinking
 spatial thinking
 and a structured exploration of place.

Arid Zone Environments

What is the nature and extent of arid environments and how do they interact with the global climate system? In this module you’ll gain knowledge of:

 long-term and short-term variations in climate
 the nature and extent of drylands
 the rates and types of processes operating in these environments.

You’ll also look at human impacts on drylands, including desertification, salinization (increasing salt content in soils) and deforestation, and consider the impact that future climate change may have on arid systems.

Climate Change: The Physical Basis

You will develop a broad understanding of climate science. By examining evidence from a range of observation, process, modelled and paleoclimate data.

You will explore how the chemical and physical changes. Which is often driven by human activity and has global and regional impacts. You'll also look at how this leads to informing the climate policy-making process.

Cultural Geographies of Nature

What is nature? Where is nature? From gardens and museums to animals and genes, in this module, you’ll examine the social and cultural significance of nature in Britain and North America. You’ll use social and cultural theories to investigate a range of historical and contemporary case studies, exploring diverse topics, issues and locations. You’ll gain important analytical skills for your degree and future career as you interpret a range of media, sources and local field study to gain a critical understanding of the connections between nature, society and space.
Dawn of Civilization

How did the modern world come to be? The answer to this question lies in an understanding of the relationships between climate, landscape and society in Southwest Asia between 20,000 and 5,000 years ago. At the beginning of this period, during the height of the ice age, human communities existed as nomadic hunter gatherers. But by the end of this time, during the warmer Holocene period, many inhabitants of the region were living in the world’s first cities, engaging in agriculture, long distance trade and warfare.

In this module, you’ll examine the archaeological and palaeoclimatic evidence for these complex transformations. You’ll look at how, when and where they took place, focusing on the role of climate change and landscape on social, technological and economic processes. You’ll develop key skills in evaluating evidence, theories, methods and analytical techniques.

Future Cities

What will cities look like in fifty years? What did thinkers from the mid-nineteenth century to today propose about how to reconstruct and manage urban life? From global warming to ageing populations, you'll examine the trends that are shaping the cities of the future, and gain key analytical skills as you consider how cities might best adapt to these challenges. As with the Year 2 Cities module, we’ll focus on urban society as much as on city form, regarding people and place as inseparable.

Independent Study in Geography

This module gives you the chance to carry out independent research on a topic that fascinates you. You’ll have the help of an expert tutor, as you decide on a topic based on a unique and interesting subject. You’ll gain core research and project management skills for your future career, as you create, manage and complete your own project.

Oceans and the Marine Environment

In this module you’ll explore the physical nature of oceans, from their chemical composition and circulation to the influence of oceans on the global climate system. By understanding the way in which oceans behave, we can comprehend how all of the components of the Earth’s systems fit together. You’ll explore topics ranging from the physics and biology of oceans to records of past ocean change, from marine pollution to ocean policy and governance of our marine environment.

Political geographies of borders: past, present and future

An introduction to political geography and geopolitics. You will explore the connections between place and power. You will also look at the debates at how to understand spatialities and materialities of political power.

You will then interrogate common assumptions about (geo)politics. Highlighting not only the power of geography but also geographies of power.

You will explore ideas, in light of current events. Stressing empirical relevance and real-world application of political geographical thought.

Disasters, Development and Society

Why are some people and places more vulnerable to disasters than others? What are the origins of this inequity, and what can we do about it?

You'll explore the relationship between disasters, environment and society. And learn why disasters are not ‘natural’, but are rather produced by their development context. You'll learn why uneven development breeds uneven vulnerability to risk, and vice versa.

You'll gain knowledge of development geography and political ecology. And examine why a physical hazard-focused approach to disaster risk management is problematic and the need for alternatives that address systemic root causes of risk.

We will look at the workings of power and politics at all stages of disaster (before, during and after) at a range of scales. You'll assess current practice in disaster risk reduction throughout the module. Along with examining the role of climate change in shifting geographies of vulnerability.

You'll examine these issues through a range of case studies.