Skip to main navigation Skip to main content
The University of Southampton
Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre Southampton

Be the best - see more rocks!

'The best geologist is the one who has seen the most rocks', is a phrase you will often hear in geological circles, and it is indeed true that the more fieldwork experience a geologist can acquire, the more attractive they will be to employers in the sector, and the better equipped they will be deal with fieldwork challenges when they enter employment after their degree.

Applicants are also rightly concerned that they secure the best value for money that they can in the context of the new university fees regime starting in 2012 – thus both the amount of and quality of fieldwork experience on offer in a geological degree is of paramount importance.

Southampton’s geological degree programmes offer fieldwork days well in excess of the minimum required by The Geological Society of London for the purposes of accreditation, and indeed a student enrolled on a 4-year MSci in Geology at Southampton can secure as many as 101 days of high-quality fieldwork experience, with 90-95 days being standard, and thus exceeding the fieldwork provision available in geology degrees offered by many other institutions.

Southampton is also recognised nationally for the quality of its geological fieldwork education, students from Southampton having won the Dave Johnson Prize for Undergraduate Mapping from The Geological Society of London three times in the last eleven years (a feat only equalled by one other British university).

Rio Tinto and Anglo American, two of the biggest multinational mineral exploration companies on the planet have recently recognised the quality of our fieldwork programme by providing significant financial sponsorship of our undergraduate field mapping exercises, a most gratifying accolade which will further help to enhance the educational experience of our future students.

Invaluable time in the field
Privacy Settings