School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

The School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences has a renowned history for international excellence in research and teaching. Geology at Birmingham dates back to 1881 and Geography began here in 1924. We are proud of our long history and build on our successes through our research and teaching to address the challenges of the 21st Century such as climate change, oil exploration, renewable energy and resilience.

Our research spans five major themes:

• Environmental health sciences
• Geosystems
• Society, economy and environment
• Water sciences
• Urban and regional studies (Centre for Urban and regional studies)

We welcome students and staff to a supportive interdisciplinary community of some 60 academic staff, 28 technical and support staff and 24 research staff.

We have a thriving postgraduate community, with around 90 research students and more than 150 following our acclaimed taught postgraduate programmes.
Our undergraduate teaching programmes reflect our research expertise, enabling students to benefit from staff actively involved in innovative, leading-edge research. Our teaching has been ranked ‘excellent’ in the HEFCE quality review. Our graduates are successful and highly sought after by employers.

We offer excellent facilities for postgraduate study through both taught courses and by research. Staff and students benefit from:

• Extensive map and archive facilities
• Earth Imaging Lab
• Stable-Isotope Laboratory (SILLA)
• Environmental library
• fully digital drawing office
• Environmental chemistry, sedimentology, ecology, groundwater and palaeobiology laboratories all with state-of-the-art equipment, and specialist computer facilities

We are also home to the nationally important Lapworth Museum of Geology, one of the finest geological collections in the UK. It is free to the public and open all year round.