Uni for geography?

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Quiksilver

have you looked considered an BA in economics and geography at somewhere like St Andrews - its analogue economics (ie without a great deal of maths) and does not require economics or maths A Level

I do think it's a bit of a risk though, taking up something at uni you might not enjoy, or even detest.

If you're not a fan of Economics I'd recommend you do what I've done - do the Geography degree, and figure out what kinda career you want to go into by your 2nd year, get some decent work experience. And maybe do a Masters afterwards.

Reply 41

Quiksilver

TheWolf

ahh cool, same gcse grades as u, i thought itd give out ABB offers for geography and economics..hmm , did you apply for similar course in LSE?..what other unis did u apply for> :smile:

i applied to:
Cambridge (Land Economy) - rejected
LSE (geography and economics) - BBB [insurance]
UCL (economics and geography) - AAB [firm]
St Andrews (economics and geography) - ABB [declined]
Exeter (economics and geography) - BBB [declined]

I would reccommend UCL above LSE since both the departments are 5* rated at UCL and you get an Bsc(Econ) rather than a Bsc(geog) - greater employability.
The interview at UCL is far more informal compared with cambridge, which im sure you will be pleased to hear :biggrin:

Reply 42

TheWolf

Quiksilver

hey mate - have you got your ps here, itd be cool if i could read it, only written half of it, and i think its pretty crap atm :eek:

Reply 43

Quiksilver

Jools

the good thing about joint honour degrees is that you can decide what you want to study - if she found that economics wasn't for her, it would be relatively easy to focus on the geography modules (compared with transferring from another subject entirely)

Reply 44

Quiksilver

TheWolf

hey mate - have you got your ps here, itd be cool if i could read it, only written half of it, and i think its pretty crap atm :eek:

im really sorry but ive got a new pc now and have lost all of the hard copies of it :eek:

I basically wrote about my interests in both subjects, and the brilliant opportunity i would have in combining them at university. Always talk about the relevance of both subjects in the world today, and your desire to incorporate economics with studies in geography; both to diversify your studies and possibly incorporate both professionally in a subsequent career.

sorry i cant remember very much - it was such a long time ago :redface:

ps - have you got any good work experience? I spent two weeks at the European Commission in Brussels, which helped me "understand the way that economics underlie many different aspects of social and commercial activities" blah blah blah. It may be helpful if you get some relevent placements over the summer :smile:

Reply 45

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Quiksilver

The down side is that you're not a member of a single department and organisation on combined subject courses can be atrocious with many lecturers assuming previous knowledge from a module that you haven't studied and only covering half of the content within each subject so it's more difficult to get a broad understanding of all areas and come up with new ideas (the sort of learning you need to show to get a high 2i/1st).

I wouldn't even recommend a with (1/3) course to anyone unless you're commited to both subject areas and the subject areas are VERY complementary (the only combined courses I've known to be well organised and taught well have been geology and physical geography and geography and oceanography).

Oh and sociology is NOT considered mickey mouse by anyone who understands the content of it...it certainly isn't considered mickey mouse within universities and only a few employers are ignorant enough to discount it at postgrad level.

Reply 46

Aimée123

Geog's all I've ever wanted to do though! Is it really that unemployable? I'd like to go into management consultancy.

Reply 47

undiscovered

Aimée123

Geog's all I've ever wanted to do though! Is it really that unemployable? I'd like to go into management consultancy.

No, you can do loads of things, but it would just be more difficult to get a job at a blue-chip firm than if you had a more 'respected' degree.

Reply 48

baileyblake

SiAnY

No, you can do loads of things, but it would just be more difficult to get a job at a blue-chip firm than if you had a more 'respected' degree.

I have been lurking here and now feel compelled to say something. To get a job these days you have to decide what you want to do and then plan for it. So many geography students at university do not have any idea what they want to do, and so they do nothing to prepare for their employment. This, and not the degree subject, is why, in my opinion, so many end up traveling, drifting, or going into teaching. With a bit of imagination and preparation geography students can (and do) get *good* jobs, which may or may not be in "top 10 firms".