Geography - A Level

Are you interested in how the world works and the natural environment? Do you have an interest in the economy and global affairs?

Geography is a subject that is useful to any student as it encourages them to develop a range of skills including essay and report writing, analysing and solving problems, working with statistics, interpreting data and text and presenting data. The geography department runs a range of field trips to apply your emerging knowledge and skills.

COURSE CONTENT

The course is an even split between human and physical Geography. Topics you will cover include coastal landscapes and factors which affect their formation, Earth’s Life Support Systems with water and carbon cycles, ‘human’ topics that explore our use of space and place and how towns and cities across the world are changing, migration and examining contemporary patterns and challenges of the 21st Century, power and borders and reflecting on issues of conflict and state fragility in the 21^st Century, climate change is an important topic throughout the programme and a topic called ‘Hazardous Earth’ focuses on why some places are more at risk from hazards than others.

PROGRESSION ONTO YEAR 2

Progression to the second year of this A Level course will be dependent on having made satisfactory progress in the first year of the course, including achieving at least an E grade in a formal late spring assessment, as well as the maintenance of a good level of attendance and commitment throughout the year.

FINAL ASSESSMENT AT END OF YEAR 2

Three written exams on topics covered over the two-year programme. The first explores physical systems, the second explores human interactions, and the third explores geographical debates. There is also the non-exam coursework assessment.

MINIMUM ENTRY CRITERIA

For an A Level programme of study, we require students to have a range of at least five to seven GCSE passes at grade 5 or higher, including a minimum of a 4 in English and Mathematics, but students must also satisfy the minimum entry criteria for A Level Geography below.

Grade 5	GCSE Mathematics
AND
Grade 5	GCSE English Language or English Literature
AND
Grade 5	In at least one other predominantly written based GCSE subject (from subjects such as English Language, English Literature, History, Religious Studies or Sociology)

WHAT CAN I DO AFTER STUDYING A LEVEL GEOGRAPHY?

Geography can lead to a career in many different areas; some jobs may relate directly to a geography degree whereas other jobs will require you to use the skills that you have developed on the course.

FURTHER INFORMATION

It is recommended that students purchase the A Level Geography textbook which is used for both years of the course. The newest version will be signposted at induction.