Field trips

Enjoy the great outdoors? The Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences provides ample opportunity to explore it.

Field trips are a key component of our undergraduate degrees, allowing you to put into practise the skills you learn in lectures and laboratory classes.

Fieldwork always gives a sense of fulfilment, the feeling of being an explorer and scientist where your lab or office can be in the Lochs of Scotland or within French mountain ranges.
Emma Conway / Geology MEarthSci Student

Field trips are a key component of our undergraduate degrees, allowing you to put into practise the skills you learn in lectures and laboratory classes.

Mandatory fieldwork and most field equipment is included within the programme tuition fees, apart from food costs. While you do need to supply your own field clothing, financial support is available for this where applicable.

You'll head to geologically and environmentally fascinating locations in the UK and abroad, with options that can let you travel as far afield as Ecuador and the Himalayas. You'll learn first-hand the techniques practised by professionals and get a true feel for life as a geologist, geochemist or environmental scientist.

Watch our field trip highlights

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Where will I go?

Just some of the locations you could go to include Italy; Germany; Scotland; France and Tenerife. You will have a range of compulsory and optional trips based on the pathway you choose, but here is a brief summary of some of the trips that we run across the department.

Year one

Earth and Environmental Science – Wales

This field trip is attended by all first-year students. This is the chance for you to put all the knowledge and skills you have learnt in the last year into practise.

Year two

Environmental Science - Manchester, and surrounding area

This trip is compulsory for all students taking the pollution and environmental processes and atmospheric science pathways.

It is also possible to go on this trip if you are on the geochemistry pathway as an optional choice.

Urban Biodiversity and Conservation - Manchester, and surrounding area

This trip is compulsory for all students taking the ecology, evolution and conservation biology pathway.

Alpine Biodiversity and Forest Ecology - Italy

This can be attended by all students taking the ecology, evolution and conservation biology pathway.

Introduction to Geological Mapping - Barrême, France

This trip is compulsory for all students taking any of our Earth and Planetary Sciences pathways (Geology, Energy and Resources, Planetary Science, Geochemistry and Paleobiology).

Geology - Advanced Geological Field Techniques – Scotland

This trip is compulsory for all students taking the geology and energy and resources pathways.

It is also possible to go on this trip if you are on the planetary science, geochemistry and paleobiology pathways as an optional choice.

Year three

Integration of Environmental Investigation - Tenerife

This trip is compulsory for all students taking any of our Environmental Science pathways (pollution and environmental processes, ecology, evolution and conservation biology and atmospheric science).

It is also possible to go on this trip if you are on the geochemistry pathway as an optional choice.

Vertebrate Palaeontology - Isle of Wight

This trip is compulsory for all students taking the Palaeobiology pathway.

Geology and volcanology - Sicily, Italy

This trip is compulsory for all students taking the geology and energy and resources pathways.

It is also possible to go on this trip if you are on the geochemistry pathway as an optional choice.

Planetary Sciences - Ries Impact Crater, Germany

This trip is compulsory for all students taking the planetary science pathway.

Year four

Integration of Environmental and Earth Sciences - Tenerife, La Gomera and La Palma

This trip is available to all fourth year undergraduates, and allows students to design then complete an investigation tailored to their own expertise, across these three islands.