Geography – Bachelor of Arts (Honours)

With Massey’s Bachelor of Arts (Honours) (Geography) you can take your study of geography further.

Where you can study

Distance and online
Manawatū campus (Palmerston North)

International students

International students are not New Zealand citizens or residents.

Definition of New Zealand citizens and residents

Not open to international students

Specialise in Geography for your Bachelor of Arts (Honours) at Massey

Geography prepares you to be a thoughtful and knowledgeable local and global citizen. You’ll develop important career skills in research, spatial analysis and evidence-based examination of the pressing issues facing New Zealand and the world today.

Learn from a range of teaching methods

With Massey’s BA (Honours) (Geography) you can investigate topics such as:

  • urbanisation
  • state restructuring
  • globalisation
  • geopolitics
  • agrifood
  • resource management
  • consumption.

Your courses will help you gain a global perspective drawing from international case studies and examples, while maintaining a particular focus on New Zealand’s place in a changing world.

A Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Geography is a good fit if you:

  • want to stand out in a crowded marketplace
  • are keen to follow your intellectual curiosity and develop your research skills
  • would like to investigate an issue in geography through independent, supervised research.

Planning information

Completing a subject is compulsory. A Bachelor of Arts with Honours (Geography) requires 120 credits.

If you study full-time, you’ll take 120 credits per year or 60 credits per semester.

Not all courses are available in each semester.

Maximum time to completion

All requirements must be completed within one year for full-time study or within three years for part-time study.

Official regulations

To understand what you need to study and must complete to graduate read the official rules and regulations for this qualification.

You should read these together with all other relevant Statutes and Regulations of the University including the General Regulations for Postgraduate Degrees, Postgraduate Diplomas, and Postgraduate Certificates.

Returning students

For returning students, there may be changes to the majors and minors available and the courses you need to take. Go to the section called ‘Transitional Provisions’ in the Regulations to find out more.

In some cases the qualification or specialisation you enrolled in may no longer be taking new enrolments, so may not appear on these web pages. To find information on the regulations for these qualifications go to the Massey University Calendar.

Please contact us through the Get advice button on this page if you have any questions.

Courses you can enrol in

Course planning key

Prerequisites
Courses that need to be completed before moving onto a course at the next level. For example, a lot of 200-level courses have 100-level prerequisite courses.
Corequisites
Courses that must be completed at the same time as another course are known as corequisite courses.
Restrictions
Some courses are restricted against each other because their content is similar. This means you can only choose one of the offered courses to study and credit to your qualification.

Compulsory course

Course code: 145799 Research Report (30) 30 credits

Subject courses

Course code: 145710 Consumption and Place 30 credits

This course explores consumption processes, practices and places. Using a number of themes it encourages students to engage with relationships between production and consumption, cultural and economic change, and matters of identity and ethics.

View full course details
Course code: 145711 Foundations in Human Geography 30 credits

An advanced exploration of the history of geographical thought, critically assessing key debates that have shaped the field and examining geographical theory and methodology.

Restrictions: 145706

View full course details
Course code: 145712 Frontiers in Human Geography 30 credits

An advanced examination and exploration of contemporary issues and debates in human geography.

Restrictions: 145701

View full course details

Entry requirements

Admission to Massey

All students must meet university entrance requirements to be admitted to the University.

Specific requirements

To enter the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) (Geography)you will have been awarded or qualified for a:

  • Bachelor of Arts degree or equivalent qualification with a major in the intended postgraduate subject or close equivalent, or
  • Bachelor of Arts degree with a minor in the intended postgraduate subject, followed by a Graduate Certificate in Arts endorsed in the intended postgraduate subject or close equivalent, or
  • Bachelor of Arts degree followed by a Graduate Diploma of Arts in the intended postgraduate subject or close equivalent.

You must have achieved at least a B grade average over the 200 and 300-level courses.

You will need to provide copies of all official academic transcripts for studies taken at all universities other than Massey University.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language and your qualifying degree was not completed at a University where English is the medium of instruction, to enter this qualification you must have achieved an IELTS of 7.0 with no band less than 6.5.

English language skills

If you need help with your English language skills before you start university, see our English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses.

Fees and scholarships

Fees, student loans and free fees scheme

Your tuition fees may be different depending on the courses you choose. Your exact fees will show once you have chosen your courses.

There will also be some compulsory non-tuition fees and for some courses, there may also be charges for things such as study resources, software, trips and contact workshops.

Already know which courses you're going to choose?

You can view fees for the courses that make up your qualification on the course details pages.

Student loans (StudyLink) and Fees Free scheme

You may be eligible for a student loan to help towards paying your fees.

The New Zealand Government offers fees-free tertiary study for eligible domestic students. Find out more about the scheme and your eligibility on the Fees Free website. To use the site's eligibility checking tool, you will need your National Student Number.

Current and returning Massey students can find their National Student Number in the student portal.

Scholarship and award opportunities

Search our scholarships and awards

Fees disclaimer

This information is for estimation purposes only. Actual fees payable will be finalised on confirmation of enrolment. Unless otherwise stated, all fees shown are quoted in New Zealand dollars and include Goods and Services Tax, if any. Before relying on any information on these pages you should also read the University's Disclaimer Notice.

Careers and job opportunities

With a BA (Honours) (Geography) you can choose from a wide range of careers including:

  • conservation and environmental research
  • energy development
  • resource management
  • forestry
  • public service
  • international development and diplomacy
  • local and regional councils
  • business and market research
  • teaching
  • tourism
  • journalism.

Accreditations and rankings

QS Ranking - Geography

Massey is ranked in the world's top 150 universities for geography in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings.

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