Environment and sustainability preparation

Global warming and environmental change are having a profound impact on people’s quality of life, the economy and the ecosystems which sustain us. Understanding how to achieve the societal transformations needed to tackle climate change and wider societal goals is crucial. Identifying how address these sustainability challenges from an interdisciplinary perspective is central to the BSc in Environment and Sustainability. This new academic programme supports students in developing the key skills needed to help develop, monitor, and work towards a more sustainable future. The BSc in Environment and Sustainability aims to equip students with the skills employers are seeking so they can lead the societal transformation we face.

The BSc in Environment and Sustainability is taught by a range of leading sustainability experts in the Centre for Environment and Sustainability (CES) and the University of Surrey’s pan-university Institute for Sustainability. Students will engage in lectures, practical workshops, projects, and seminars while benefiting from CES’ innovative research collaborations with industry, the public sector, and global partners. You’ll also be taught by academics from other departments in the University including from Biosciences and Medicine, Law. Politics, Sociology, Psychology, and the Surrey Business School. 

The University of Surrey, with its campus environment, is a welcoming and friendly place to study and live. The main Stag Hill campus houses most academic departments and learning spaces. It is a 15-minute walk from the historic centre of Guildford and the railway station, with London less than 40 minutes away by train. The Manor Park campus, a 20-minute walk from the main campus, houses the majority of the University’s student housing and the Surrey Sports Park. Campus life includes a rich diversity of sports clubs and societies which students can join. These clubs and societies provide a great opportunity to make new friends and learn new skills. 

Course information

The BSc in Environment and Sustainability will provide you with the interdisciplinary skills to tackle the challenges faced by individuals, companies, and society in implementing sustainable development. Via a series of sustainability-related case studies, you will be introduced to a range of research methods such as geographical information systems, r statical modelling, semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and participant and non-participant observation. You will also develop skills in leadership, interdisciplinary working, critical thinking, communication, research-based learning, and other valuable transferrable skills.

In the first year you will take four modules each semester. All of these modules are taught by academic staff in CES. With only students on the BSc in Environment and Sustainability taking these modules you will have the opportunity to really get to know your course-mates before taking some modules with students from other academic programmes in second year. A list of the modules you’ll take can be found on the course page. 

In the second semester of first year, there is a residential course on ‘Regeneration of environments and communities’. For this module we are currently planning to visit South Wales and explore how communities there are adapting to the end of mining and de-industrialisation via the development of new industries and the careful stewardship of their local environment. 

Later in the BSc programme you’ll have the chance to do a professional training year placement – either a year working in industry, a year studying abroad, or half a year of each. A year working in industry really helps students develop the practical workplace skills employers seek in new graduates. A year studying abroad challenges students to think and see the world in new ways while developing resilience and adaptability.