Belfast Field Class

Year 2 – ENVS 282

The Belfast field class provides practical experience and training in designing, executing, analysing, writing-up and presenting a field research project. Students gain practical experience of quantitative and qualitative techniques, and to critically reflect on the effectiveness and ethics of different methods. Students also develop team-working and communication skills through conduct of group research projects and field presentations. The module provides core skills that are important to analysing the world, but also are crucial preparation for the dissertation research process in 3rd Year. 

The module forms part of a suite of similar modules providing research training for Year 2 BA Geography, and BA Geography & Planning students, but research and guidance is tailored to the specific city. In Belfast, past projects/topics of research have included: territoriality, contested society, the difference between ‘official’ and ‘unofficial’ tourism and religious segregation, including questions about the performance of identity, gentrification and differences in attitudes between post-conflict and conflict influenced generations.