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Only available for single hons Geog students. An independent piece of research carried out by undergraduates on a topic chosen by students and approved by the department.

The 30-credit module GEOG0033 involves a dissertation of no more than 8,000 words. It resembles the longer GEOG0037 dissertation insofar as it should be treated as an original research project, not an extended course paper. It can however be based largely on secondary sources, although dissertations reporting original empirical research are also welcome. In either case, the emphasis is still on the process of research undertaken, as an exercise in asking and answering specific research questions. The reason for the choice of topic in relation to the existing literature must be justified and the relevance of contemporary theoretical debates in the discipline should be considered. Research questions should be clearly specified and the approach to answering them stated and justified. The contribution of the dissertation to academic knowledge must be considered.

Students will gain a wide range of transferable skills, namely:

• Critical thinking: ability to assess data and ideas
• Communication: academic writing and conveying written ideas to non-experts, and verbal.
• Practical and logistical skills
• Time management: organisation and planning of work
• Problem-solving
• Adaptability: ability to work under pressure
• Interaction with others
• Qualitative and/or quantitative research skills
• Field work and laboratory skills (in many cases)