Geoscience with a Year in Industry
Geoscience is the study of the Earth as a system: how it formed, how it has evolved over billions of years, how its interior and atmosphere interact, how life has shaped and been shaped by the planet, and how the geological record encodes the history of all these processes. It is a discipline of extraordinary scope, combining mineralogy, petrology, structural geology, palaeontology, oceanography, geophysics, and environmental earth science into a coherent understanding of how planet Earth works. In a world facing climate change, resource depletion, natural hazards, and the need for a sustainable energy transition, geoscientists are urgently needed.
At Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, this five-year full-time MSci programme combines an honours degree with an integrated master's-level year, offering a more sustained and specialist preparation for professional geoscience than a standard three-year programme. You will develop a holistic understanding of the formation and evolution of Earth and the life on it, studying both the physical processes that shape the planet's interior and surface and the biological and chemical systems that interact with them. A year in industry is built into the programme, giving you substantial professional experience in a geoscience, energy, mining, or environmental consultancy role before you complete your final year.
A year abroad is also available, giving you the opportunity to study geological processes and field environments in an international context.
With a typical entry tariff of 120 UCAS points, this degree attracts students with a genuine fascination with the natural world and a strong scientific background. Graduates work in oil and gas, mining, minerals, geotechnical consulting, environmental assessment, hydrogeology, natural hazard management, academic research, and government geological surveys. The MSci route, incorporating a year in industry, makes graduates particularly competitive for professional roles.
Many continue to doctoral research in areas such as palaeoclimatology, volcanology, seismology, or environmental geochemistry.