University of Stirling

Anyone studying history/environmental geography with education at Stirling?

What is the course like?
Would you recommend it?

I studied geography with education for my first year and half my second year. Ive just returned to uni for my second semester of second year and have decided to change to Sociology.

If you’re 100% sure you want to be a teacher - definitely go for an education course. In my short time doing it I found the lectures and seminars so helpful and there’s so much help and opportunities on offer. You get a placement every year which helps massively as you really learn how to teach by experience. Microteaching in particular (completed in semester 1 of second year) is so so helpful as you get a class of around 10 1st year students and teach them a 20 minute lesson. It’s very relaxed and actually quite fun. However, keep in mind that the education courses are very very strict about attendance due to minimum amount of hours required to be qualified. Lectures in second year are compulsory and a register is taken.

The geography side was the reason I changed courses. I hated my geography modules so much as they’re extremely science based opposed to human based how it is in school. If you’re into geology, soils, farming etc you’ll enjoy it but if you prefer topics like population then you may struggle. None of what you learn in the modules is particularly similar to anything learnt or taught in schools.

Also, both history and geography with education will require you to also qualify in modern studies teaching - regardless of if you want to or if you’ve done it before. I found this easy as I done mods till higher level, but many of the others in my course had never done modern studies and have struggled to get their head around teaching a course they don’t know much about. You only complete two mods related modules (Sociology or politics in first year - hence how I have been able to switch over) and you don’t get to study anymore in the next 3 years.

The good thing is that Stirling are very flexible with degrees. If you arrive and in the first 3 weeks you think it is not for you, you can change to any other degree. If it takes a bit longer to realise it’s not for you, you can also do something similar to me and switch to maybe only Environmental Geography or Sociology or Politics.

Good luck :smile: