Environment and Sustainability

Course overview

This course crosses the traditional divide between the natural and social sciences, providing the necessary holistic perspective to understand environment and sustainability issues, and to develop strategies to work towards a more sustainable future.

Key facts

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Rosemary Ward, Environment and Sustainability

"My BSc Environment and Sustainability provided me with a good sound basis for writing essays and in the work life, writing reports."

Chloe Robison-Smith, Environment and Sustainability

"Keele is a great place to study. I spent the best three years of my life there, made lifelong friends and got a career out of it too!"

Benjamin Wallbridge, Environment and Sustainability

"The variety of elective modules I was able to choose from really helped me to shape the kind of education I wanted, which has helped me to gain a competitive advantage in the workplace. The work placement module has also proved to be invaluable, as it laid the groundwork for a job offer once I graduated."

Gemma Needham, Environment and Sustainability

"Keele University is such a welcoming and exciting place to study and work. I gained so much more than a degree during my 3 years at Keele."

Alex Davies, Environment and Sustainability

"As soon as you arrive, you’re in the Keele bubble and you’ll never want to leave. It’s a great place to learn but also a great place to live and make lots of friends."

Year One

The first year is a broad-based introductory programme that provides a platform from which knowledge, understanding and skills are developed. During the first year, you will gain an understanding of different environmental problems and sustainability issues through both natural and social science perspectives. In addition, you will develop skills in the practical application of this understanding, including how these issues are tackled within different business environments. All students experience a North Wales residential field course to the Parys Mountain former copper mine, a classic case study of environmental impacts, and to Snowdonia National Park.

BSc/BA Environment and Sustainability students have a residential field trip to the Centre for Alternative Technology in Wales too. In addition to the core modules you have a wide range of option modules to choose from which have previously included: Global Warming or a New Ice Age, Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Introductory Environmental Chemistry, Entrepreneurship, Living together: Behaviours, Cooperation and Conflict,or you can learn a language, or take any other free elective run by the University.

Year Two

In the second year a more in depth understanding of specific environmental and sustainability disciplines is gained, including a more detailed examination of corporate social responsibility, the links between health and the environment, the politics and international relations of the environment and the scientific study of human impacts on the environment. You will also take a 2-week work placement with personalised
intended learning outcomes to gain invaluable workplace experience and professional development. In addition, you will continue to develop practical-based research skills to help prepare you for your third year independent research project and learn about environmental and sustainability impact assessments. The second year also includes a residential field course e.g. to the Lake District or Bordeaux (see ‘Field Courses’), providing exciting opportunities to study environment and sustainability issues in the ‘real world’.

Year Three

The third year facilitates greater specialisation in your areas of interest. With support from a research project advisor, you will undertake an independent research project worth two modules, tailored to your individual research interests. You will also conduct a group-based research project on a topical area of environment and sustainability research, and an interdisciplinary investigation on aspects of different environmental and renewable technologies.

In addition, you have a broad range of taught modules to choose from, spanning topics which have previously included Applied Geographic Information Systems, Natural Hazards, Water Resources, Conservation Biology, Global Environmental Change, Environmental Politics in the US, Environmental Crimes, Happiness and Wellbeing, Education for Global Citizenship. Your module and dissertation topic choices will determine whether you get a BSc or BA degree.

This course can also be taken as a 4-year with Work Placement degree programme, or a 4-year with International Year degree programme.

Career prospects

96% of Keele graduates were in a job or further study within six months of graduating (DLHE, 2017)

Keele’s Environment and Sustainability programme is a leader in its field in the UK, offering an exciting way to look at a subject of major relevance to today’s society and to put it into different global contexts. Graduates in Environment and Sustainability might go on to further study, or enter careers in a wide range of disciplines and organisations – perhaps in business or industry where sustainability concerns are becoming ever more part of core business, or with a non-governmental organisation; charity; local, regional or central government; environmental consultancy; or an environmental regulatory body.

All organisations, from private business to local government, increasingly need to engage with environmental and sustainability issues; hence this is one of the fastest growing areas of employment with a wide range of employment opportunities. Previous students have progressed to careers in environmental and sustainability consultancy and regulation, conservation, science writing, national government policy, environmental charities, teaching, transport planning, environmental education and environmental health. This course also provides excellent training for postgraduate study and research.

To make sure you’re prepared for a range of work, you’ll carry out a work placement and engage with environmental professionals and real world case studies including environmental impact assessments and technical reports, mimicking work in different areas of environmental employment. You also have the opportunity to complete a work placement year to develop further experience as part of your degree.

Jobs that a graduate of this course could go on to do:

Waste Management Officer
Recycling Officer
Nature Conservation Officer
Environmental Education Officer
Logistics & Distribution
Environmental Health Manager Practitioner
Local Government Officer
Primary Teacher
Trading Standards Officer
Town Planner

Regardless of which career you pursue after Keele, employers will want evidence of the range of skills and personal qualities you possess and which are required for the job. Your degree is clearly important in this respect but don’t forget the extra-curricular activities, positions of responsibility, jobs and voluntary work you may have been engaged in while studying at Keele. These activities allow you to demonstrate the skills and personal qualities required by employers and will be vital in your attempts to secure graduate employment.

It is estimated that 60% of jobs are open to graduates of any discipline. This demonstrates the flexibility of many graduate employers when setting out their academic requirements and that students are not necessarily restricted to careers related to their degree.

Find out more about our careers and employability services, including career planning, alumni mentoring, jobs, internships, starting your own business and much more.