Plan for your future career with the skills you’ve developed in your geography courses and programs. Explore different opportunities to kickstart your career and further develop your knowledge in specialized research areas.
Looking for your first job
It's not always easy to decide on a career path, but the best people to advise you are those who've been in your shoes before!
You can connect with alumni from across UBC - including geography - who are at various stages in their careers and happy to offer mentorship to current and graduating students.
Just sign up on the 10,000 Coffees platform to create your profile and get started.
The best way to enter the job market is through networking. To help you get started, we recommend that you start thinking about and get in touch with your own existing network (i.e. family members, relatives, friends, church group and sports team members, etc.) to let them know that you are looking for job opportunities in employment sectors that interest you. You never know who might be looking for someone with your particular skill set.
After reaching out to your circle of network for leads, you may want to consider taking the next step to explore other tools that are at your disposal. Your conversations can range from resumé feedback, to career tips, or just expanding your network. Additionally, LinkedIn is a great platform for you to connect with UBC alumni, develop your professional network, and browse through job postings.
Explore the career paths of other graduates from our programs at UBC Geography, and see where their degrees have taken them!
From managing air quality right here in Metro Vancouver to teaching in Singapore and working on sustainable development in Geneva, our graduates are employed in a wide range of industries all around the world.
BC Professional Geoscientists
Registration as a professional is a legal requirement in Canada for many kinds of work in the private and public sectors related to the training provided in the Geographical Sciences specialization. As such, many of our BSc students select their courses to meet the EGBC certification requirements for a Professional Geoscientist.
Registration with EGBC also permits the registrant to work in other Canadian provinces as a Professional Geoscientist. The Geographical Sciences BSc can be adapted to meet these registration requirements by selecting appropriate electives.
To get started, please review the course requirements for an Environmental Geoscientist. There is a wide range of possible courses that can be used to satisfy these requirements. Experience has shown that many of our graduates, who register with EGBC, end up working on issues related to geomorphology and hydrology. The following list of recommended courses will prepare students for the kinds of work that our graduates commonly engage with, and is a good place to begin your degree planning.
Recommended course selection
BIOL 121 Genetics, Evolution and Ecology
CHEM 121 Structure and Bonding in Chemistry
CHEM 123 Thermodynamics, Kinetics and Organic Chemistry
GEOB 103 Our Changing Environment: Water and Landscapes
MATH 100 Differential Calculus with Applications to Physical Sciences and Engineering
MATH 101 Integral Calculus with Applications to Physical Sciences and Engineering
PHYS 101 Energy and Waves
EOSC 211 Computer Methods in Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
EOSC 220 Introductory Mineralogy
EOSC 222 Geological Time and Stratigraphy
EOSC 250 Fields and Fluxes
GEOB 200 Atmospheric Environments
GEOB 206 Geomorphic Processes and Hazards
GEOB 207 Introduction to Biogeography
GEOB 270 Geographic Information Science
MATH 200 Calculus III
STAT 200 Elementary Statistics for Applications
GEOB 305 Introduction to Hydrology
GEOB 308 Quaternary and Applied Geomorphology
GEOB 309 Geographical Biogeosciences Field Course
GEOB 370 Advanced Geographic Information Science
GEOB 373 Introductory Remote Sensing
GEOB 405 Fluvial Geomorphology
GEOB 406 Watershed Geomorphology
GEOG 319 Environmental Impact Assessment
EOSC 329 Groundwater Hydrology
EOSC 428 Field Techniques in Groundwater Hydrology
EOSC 429 Groundwater Contamination
Resources & Tools
We’ve compiled a list of resources and tools to help guide you in your job search and navigate you through the hidden job market.