Student Opinions
Alexia Rogers-Wright
Degree: Environmental Governance MSc
I did my undergraduate degree in Geography at Manchester and loved the city and the department so wanted to stay on afterwards. I have always been interested in the interactions between the human and physical world, issues like climate change, conservation, sustainable development and flood risk. I have also always been interested in international development and global environmental governance issues.
I chose this particular course because it allowed a large amount of freedom for students to choose their own modules from almost anywhere (within reason) in the university (which is huge). This meant that this flexibility would allow me to follow my interests in both of these fields, rather than being forced to choose one over the other.
The course has definitely lived up to my expectations: I received a good grounding in the basics theories upon which environmental governance is based, as well as being able to explore the subjects I enjoyed in more detail.
The core modules were assessed in a variety of ways (presentations, seminar contribution, teamwork, problem-based learning) to help students build on all their communication skills, rather than just essay writing. This forced me to think about information and problems in a different way, which kept me on my toes!
I have just started an ESRC CASE PhD at the University of Hull, looking at the flood risk in the city and the flood event that took place in summer 2007, in which Hull was the worst hit area in the country.
The core modules I followed as part of the course covered all the major theories and schools of thought in Environmental Governance and prepared me very well for this - I frequently find myself referring back to my notes now!
I would recommend the course because of the flexibility it offers students to pursue their own interests over the course of the year. The standard of all teaching was excellent and so was the atmosphere amongst the students.