Undergraduate study awards and prizes

School of Geography, Geology and the Environment

Alan Walton Memorial Prize

Award type: BACS
Amount: £50

This prize is awarded in memory of Alan Walton, Lecturer in the Department of Geography from 1954 until his death in 1979. It is awarded annually to students on one of the Geography courses within the School, of sufficient merit at the conclusion of their first year in the School.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

Alexander and Dorothea Farquharson Fund Field Studies Prizes

Award type: Cheque
Amount: £100

The prizes are derived from the assets of the Institute of Sociology and Le Play House Press, which were made over to the University College by the Institute of Sociology in 1955. The Institute of Sociology was founded by Alexander and Dorothea Farquharson, and the prizes are intended to promote the objects for which the Institute of Sociology was incorporated. The prizes will be awarded to students on one of the Geography courses in the School, for the best original account of Geography fieldwork.

This prize will be listed on both the student transcript and the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

British Geophysical Association Prize

Award type: Cheque
Amount: £100

This prize, established in 2013, is provided by the British Geophysical Association. The prize will be awarded to the best dissertation on a geophysical topic. The British Geophysical Association is a Joint Association of the Geological Society of London and the Royal Astronomical Society, the aims of which are to promote the subject of geophysics, and particularly to strengthen the relationship between geology and geophysics in the UK.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

Burnaby Memorial Prize

Award type: Cheque
Amount: £50

This prize is awarded in memory of Dr Thomas Patrick Burnaby, Senior Lecturer in Geology, who died in 1968. It will be awarded annually on the recommendation of the Head of School for the best essay mark in the first year Geology Honours course.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR.

Elsie Beaver Prize in Geography

Award type: Cheque
Amount: £100

This prize was established in 1974 by the Donation of Mrs Elsie Beaver, who was Map Curator in the Department of Geography, and the wife of the first Professor of Geography.

The prize is awarded for the best piece of individual fieldwork submitted by a final year Geography student as part of the degree requirements, other than those awarded the Farquharson Prize.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

Exley Prize

Award type: Cheque
Amount: £50

This prize, intended to honour the long and distinguished service of Dr Colin S Exley, Senior Lecturer in Geology, was established in 1986 from donations by his colleagues and former students. The prize will be awarded annually to the student submitting the best piece of independent geological mapping as part of the Geology Honours degree course.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

Ian Harmer Memorial Prize

Award type: Cheque
Amount: £50

This prize was established in 1979 to commemorate Ian Harmer, a student in his second Principal year, who was tragically killed in October 1978. It is awarded to a student reading Principal Geography and Geology, or who is combining any of the Geography routes (Geography/Human Geography/Physical Geography) with Geology, who has completed their penultimate year of study.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

The John Myers' Awards

Award type: Cheque and Medal for Winner, Cheque for Runner-Up
Amount: £150 for Winner, £50 for Runner-Up

This prize is administered by the North Staffordshire Group of the Geologists' Association (NSGGA) in honour of the distinguished geoscientist and teacher John Myers BSc FRGS FGS. The NSGGA evaluates selected dissertation project work to select two winners of the award, one from the three-year Geology/Geoscience degree programmes and the other from the four-year MGeoscience.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

The Micropalaeontology Society Student Award

Award type: One year membership of the Micropalaeontology Society
Amount: N/A

This award is to encourage and reward student engagement and achievement in the field of micropalaeontology. It is awarded to the student who demonstrates the best performance in the module 'Micropalaeontology: Principles and Applications'.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR.

The Mineralogical Society Student Award

Award type: Two years membership of the Mineralogical Society and certificate
Amount: N/A

Instituted in 1876, the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland has the general object of advancing the knowledge of the science of mineralogy and its application to other subjects including crystallography, geochemistry, petrology, environmental science and economic geology. Thus award is given to the student with the best performance in mineralogy in the first two years of their degree.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR.

The Palaeontological Association Student Award

Award type: Two years membership of the Palaeontological Association
Amount: N/A

The Palaeontological Association was founded in 1957 and has become one of the world's leading learned societies in this field. The Association is a registered charity that promotes the study of palaeontology and its allied sciences through publication of original research and field guides, sponsorship of meetings and field excursions, provision of web resources and information and a program of annual awards. This award is given to the student with the best performance in palaeontology in the first two years of their degree.

This prize will be listed on the HEAR.

The Victoria Bentley Memorial Prize

Award Type: Cheque
Amount: £50

This prize is dedicated to the memory of Victoria Bentley, who completed her degree in Geography at Keele shortly before her death in 2016. The prize is awarded annually, to the final year student in any of the Geography, Human Geography or Physical Geography degree courses, who has made an exceptional contribution to the academic community of Geography at Keele, including contributions to the student experience, course development and academic engagement.

The prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.

The Wynne Student Prize

Award type: Cheque and Lead Crystal Bowl
Amount: £100

This prize is awarded by the Institute for Materials, Minerals and Mining and the Western Institute for Mining and Minerals, and sponsored by local engineering and environmental consultants Wardell Armstrong LLP. The prize is given in memory of Mr F H Wynne CBE of Staffordshire who died in 1943. Mr Wynne was a well-known Mining Inspector and became the Chief Mine Inspector for Staffordshire in 1938. Mr Wynne was also an early and active member of the North Staffordshire Institute of Mining Engineers, which now forms part of the IMMM. The prize is awarded to the best Master of Geoscience dissertation relevant to materials, minerals and mining. 

This prize will be listed on the HEAR, and will be announced at graduation.