Geography AS and A Level

Course Code: S0751-S0702 Course Length: One year for AS and two years for a full A Level Full Description:

Geography is the study of the earth’s surface and atmosphere, human responses to them and, increasingly, the effects of human activity upon them. It will give you an insight into issues that affect your everyday life, from coastal erosion and global warming to rising global population and food supply.

Topics include:

• Forces influencing our natural environment, from global tectonic processes to the smaller scale landscape processes of coasts and rivers
• Issues affecting people and the places where they live, including how cities and the countryside are changing
• How people are affecting the environment
• Decisions about the use of resources and who makes them
• Current events and problems such as natural disasters, the plight of refugees and the problems of food supply
• Fieldwork investigation, including collecting and analysing evidence.

As well as working in class, you will carry out practical fieldwork and take part in events such as the biodiversity conference held at Norwich Castle each year.

Assessment is through two written exams in each year.

An A Level in Geography could lead on to a related degree, but the skills you will learn such as thinking and writing clearly and logically and interpreting different kinds of data will be useful in a wide range of other subjects. Geography is identified by selective universities as one of the subjects they prefer applicants to have studied at A Level.

Geography can also help you move on to a variety of careers, such as; conservation and environmental management, town planning, teaching or international development.

Geography can be taken with any other subjects, but Geography goes particularly well with; Mathematics or Science subjects as well as; Business Studies, Government and Politics, Sociology and other humanities and social science subjects.

Entry requirements:

• Five GCSEs at grades A*-C including English and Mathematics
• A GCSE average points score of more than 5.0 (see page 16 for details of how this is calculated)
• You do not need to have studied Geography before, but if you have, you will need to have a GCSE at grade A*- C or equivalent.

Please contact the Advice Shop for details of costs and start dates.

Please note that although the information given is believed to be correct at the time of publication, course information, costs where applicable and attendance details may change.