Arts - Geography
Our BA degree programme at University College Cork is the gateway to the immense and exciting possibilities of education. We offer a wide variety of subjects across diverse fields – this allows you the flexibility and opportunity to choose your career pathway or postgraduate route.
| Award Name | Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) |
|---|---|
| NFQ Classification | Major |
| Awarding Body | National University of Ireland |
| NFQ Level | Level 8 NFQ |
| Award Name | NFQ Classification | Awarding Body | NFQ Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) | Major | National University of Ireland | Level 8 NFQ |
Duration
3 years, full-time.
Specific Subjects or course requirements
Leaving Certificate Entry Requirements
At least six subjects must be presented. Minimum grade H5 in two subjects and minimum grade O6/H7 in four other subjects. English and Irish are requirements for all programmes unless the applicant is exempt from Irish. Applicants will need to meet the following minimum entry requirements:
English O6/H7
Irish O6/H7
Other Language O6/H7
Leaving Certificate Vocational Progamme LCVP
Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme LCVP
Distinction 66 points
Merit 46 points
Pass 28 points
QQI FET Applicants General Information
Careers / Further progression
Skills and Careers Information
Our students acquire technical geographical skills including:
training in computer cartography and geographical information systems
remote sensing
quantitative and qualitative research methods
social surveys and analysis
landscape evaluation/planning.
Geography is a discipline rich in diversity, with many interesting career paths. These include:
planning
local/community development
environmental assessment and management
housing policy
regional development
TV news production/research/media
geo-informatics
journalism
diplomatic service
financial services and global business
public relations
European space agency
market research
teaching
public service
tourism
academic teaching and research
museum/heritage management.
Possible career paths are as varied as your individual interests.
Further information
September 2026
CK101 Arts: Approximate Available Places 50
Find out about the mature entry requirements at https://www.ucc.ie/en/study/undergrad/entryreqs/matureapplicants/
CK101 Arts: Approximate Available Places Overall 500
Entry 2026
Early online application (discounted): Fee €35 Closing Date: 20 January 2026 at 5pm
Normal online application: Fee €50 Closing Date: 1 February 2026 at 5pm
Late online application - restrictions apply (see page 3 2026 CAO Handbook): Fee: €65 Closing Date: 1 May 2026 at 5pm
Change of Mind - restrictions apply (see page 3 2026 CAO Handbook): Fee: Nil Closing Date: 1 July 2026 at 5pm
Be sure to complete any action well in advance of closing dates. You should avoid making an application close to a closing date. No extensions to closing dates will be allowed and all application fees are non-refundable.
LATE APPLICATIONS
Late Applications are those which are received after 5pm on 1 February 2026. The closing date for late applications is 5pm on 1 May 2026, subject to the restrictions listed on page 3 of the 2026 CAO Handbook. The online facility for late applications opens on the 5 March 2026 at 12:00 noon - a fee of €65 applies.
Restrictions
As a CAO applicant you may experience one or more of the following restrictions based on your course choices, your category of application, or restrictions imposed by the HEIs that you wish to apply to. Please read the section on 'Restrictions' on page 3 of the 2026 CAO Handbook carefully. This section includes information on:
General Restrictions
1. Making a late application
2. Making changes to your course choices
Restricted Courses
3. Applying for a restricted course
Mature Applicants
4. Mature applicants
Supplementary Admissions Routes
5. Applying for DARE and/or HEAR
This programme gives you the space to explore your options. Ultimately you will not only excel in specific subject knowledge you will develop those intellectual, social and management skills essential for today’s working environment.
Our Arts CK101 programme is a full-time three-year honours programme, based at the College of Arts, Celtic Studies & Social Sciences (CACSSS). If you wish to spend a year abroad at one of our partner institutions in Europe and beyond, you can apply to our four-year Arts (International) CK108 programme which is open to language and non-language students.
Subject options on registration: Students choose four subjects from the list below in Year 1, with not more than one subject from any group.
Students continue with 2 of these subjects in Years 2 & 3:
Group 1: Asian Studies, Computer Science***, History, Portuguese
Group 2(a)*: History of Art
Group 2(b)*: European Studies, Folklore, Gaeilge/Irish, Greek and Roman Civilisation, Studies in Psychology****
Group 3: Archaeology, Chinese Studies, German, Latin***, Mathematical Studies, Politics
Group 4: French, Sociology, Studies in Music
Group 5: Béaloideas, Economics, English, Greek***, Religions and Global Diversity
Group 6(a)**: Geography, Italian
Group 6(b)**: Celtic Civilisation, Philosophy, Spanish
*Groups 2(a) and 2(b): Students can combine History of Art with any subject from Group 2(a) in Year 1 only.Students can only study one subject from Groups 2(a) and 2(b) in Years 2 & 3.
**Groups 6(a) and 6(b): From Year 2, students may combine Italian with Spanish, but students may not combine Italian with Celtic Civilisation or Philosophy; or Geography with Celtic Civilisation, Philosophy or Spanish.
***These subjects are available in First Arts and thereafter only as a 10-credit subject in the Single Subject Programme
****This subject is available in Year 1 only
Our world is more connected than ever—and more challenged. From accelerating climate change to deepening social inequalities, our environment and societies face unprecedented pressures. In response, Geography at UCC equips students with the critical skills to understand these issues, communicate their impacts, and lead with thoughtful, informed solutions in a rapidly changing world.
Geography offers a powerful lens to explore the complex relationship between people and planet. It reveals the vast diversity of human activity across the Earth's surface and uncovers the intricate ways in which we interact with natural systems. Through this perspective, students engage with the most urgent global challenges of our time—land use and environmental policy, climate change, environmental justice, global migration, urban inequalities, geopolitics, and questions of place, culture, identity, gender, and inclusion.
A degree in Geography opens doors to a wide range of career pathways—from environmental consultancy, planning, and policy-making to international development, education, GIS and geospatial analysis, sustainability leadership, and beyond. Geography graduates are known for their analytical thinking, global awareness, and ability to connect data with real-world solutions—skills that are in high demand across the public, private, and NGO sectors.
Modules
Year 1 Modules:
GG1013 Planet Earth: Exploring Environmental Geography (5 credits)
GG1014 Human Geographies: Approaching Global Challengess (5 credits)
GG1015 Applied Geography (5 credits)
Modules provide a systematic overview of geography. Lectures, tutorials, practicals and other related activities are designed to encourage the development of new skills and critical thinking in combination with specialist training in geography.
Students take 15 credits from Geography and an additional 45 credits from three other First Arts subjects (with the exception of Italian).
Years 2 and 3 Modules
Courses become more specialised and you will have an opportunity to delve deeper into specific sub-branches of Geography.
In Years 2 and 3, you can opt to take Geography as a major (40 credits), joint (30 credits) or minor (20 credits) subject.
As you move through the programme, you'll have the flexibility to tailor your studies to your own interests by selecting from a broad range of optional modules in Years 2 and 3. In your final year, the emphasis is on deepening your understanding of Geography as a dynamic and critical discipline. You will explore how environments, nature, people, institutions, and ideas interact and shape one another - giving you a sophisticated grasp of contemporary change. The programmes equips you to identify solutions to some of the most pressing local and global challenges.
In Years 2 and 3, all students must take at least one module of both Physical and Human Geography.
Dr Denis Linehan
d.linehan@ucc.ie
+353 21 4903198
https://www.ucc.ie/en/geography/