Geology and Physical Geography BSc (Hons)

How can we better understand the Earth we live on? Do you want to know more about the processes that shape the Earth's surface, and help solve some of the key challenges facing our changing natural world? This programme offers you the best of both Geology and Physical Geography. It integrates these subjects into an understanding of the Earth from its origin, composition and structure through to how rivers, glaciers, volcanoes, hill slopes and human impact define the modern and ancient landscape at all scales. Many people confuse geology and geography. Both of these subjects study the Earth and have some overlapping similarities. - Physical geography is the study of the physical properties on the surface of the Earth. - Geology is the study of Earth's history, as well as its composition and the processes that have affected it over time. This programme gives you an integrated scientific understanding of the Earth as a connected system, the topography of which is developed through the interaction of surface and deep Earth processes. This integrated understanding underpins research on global change and some of the world's most pressing physical environmental hazards. You will develop the skills and knowledge to interpret the landscape as a result of the interactions between tectonics and erosion. Furthermore, you will be able to understand and predict its evolution over a range of temporal and spatial scales. This programme places a strong emphasis on practical experience. You can explore a variety of techniques such as: - remote sensing - geographical information systems (GIS) - computer modelling - laboratory experiments - fieldwork in a variety of settings If you choose to study this programme at the University of Edinburgh, you will become part of an academic community in one of the leading geosciences departments in the UK, and one of the top-ranked universities in the world. You will learn from geologists and geographers who are the forefront and drivers of change and are undertaking world-leading research in a wide range of areas.