About the Programme
The BSc ENRM programme is a transdisciplinary Bachelor of Science degree in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies within the School of Natural Sciences. Within this programme, an environmental and natural resource management context is achieved through a curriculum that integrates inter-disciplinarity. This inter-disciplinarity is achieved through the provision of courses offered primarily by the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies and the Department of Biological Sciences. The programme also seeks to draw on other courses, across the university, that are relevant to the environmental and natural resource management sector.
The ENRM programme is grounded in environmental science, geography, and natural resources, including the study of the built environment. This emphasizes the environmental field in the curriculum and provides an applied geographic and environmental experience so that students have a holistic understanding of natural resource management in the developing world context. The programme enhances the student's knowledge, understanding, and analysis of the conflict in the relationship between society and the environment, in short, what is termed environmental problems. In this way, it meets the emergent professional demands of the environment and natural resources management sector. Students will be exposed to various conceptual and theoretical frameworks on the development of strategies to mitigate problems associated with the environment and natural resources. In this way, it nurtures a cadre of students who can effectively participate in the environmental debate to steer societal change in the direction of sustainable development.
The ENRM programme is administered by the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies and its aims are two-fold: (1) to produce human resources that can provide technical and managerial capacities in the environment and natural resources management sectors, and (2) to improve both the number and quality of graduates for entry into the departments' master of science programmes. Ultimately, the ENRM programme takes into consideration the need for graduates who can work in various Environmental and Natural Resources Management organisations.
Course Selection and Programme Progression
YEAR 1
1. BIO 1401 Cells and Bio-molecules
2. BIO 1412 Molecular Biology and Genetics
3. CHE 1000 Introductory Chemistry
4. MAT 1100 Mathematical Methods
5. PHY 1010 Introductory Physics
YEAR 2
Student post-First year course load and combination is dependent on whether you will be biased towards
Geography and the Environment (a) or Biology (b). Note that your second year
course combination will determine your subsequent progression. These options are presented below starting with the
Geography and Environmental Studies Bias.
a) Geography and Environmental Studies Bias
Mandatory Full-Year Courses
1. GES 2210 Fundamentals of Physical Geography
2. GES 2420 Research and Statistical Methods in Geography
Mandatory Half-Year Courses
3. GES 2411 Mapping and Field Techniques in Geography
4. GES 2122 Elements of Cultural Geography
5. GES 2322 Fundamentals of Natural Resource Economics
6. BIO 2101 Ecosystems and Biodiversity
b) Biological Science Bias
Mandatory Full-Year Courses
1. GES 2210 Fundamentals of Physical Geography
2. GES 2420 Research and Statistical Methods in Geography
Mandatory Half-Year Courses
3. GES 2411 Mapping and Field Techniques in Geography
4. BIO 2801 Diversity of Plants
5. BIO 2812 Diversity of Animals
6. BIO 2002 Statistical Analysis of Biological Data
YEAR 3
Mandatory Full-Year Course
1. GES 3330 Environment and Development
Mandatory Half-Year Course
2. GES 3271 Soils and Soil Resources
3. GES 3321 Environmental Planning and Management
4. GES 3342 Environmental Planning and Management
5. GES 3433 Geography Field Course*
6. GES 3441 Remote Sensing
Elective Third-Year Courses
Note: All electives in this programme are half year courses. These have to be chosen based on your programme bias (Biological Science or Geography and Environmental Studies that was already determined by your Year 2-course selection). These elective courses are presented below on a programme bias basis.
a) Geography and Environmental Studies, Third-Year Electives
1. GES 3151 Regional Planning and Development
2. GES 3142 Economic Geography
3. GES 3241 Climatology
4. GES 3251 Geomorphology
5. GES 3262 Biogeography
6. GES 3361 Population, Culture and Environment
7. GES 3321 Environment and Natural Resource Economics
8. GES 3352 Spatial Dimensions of Disease and Health Service Provision
b) Biological Sciences, Third-Year Electives
1. BIO 3132 Community Ecology
2. BIO 3151 Evolution and Behavioural Ecology of Animals (a prerequisite for BIO 4182)
3. BIO 3011 Biological Data Analysis and Experimental Design
YEAR 4
Mandatory Full-Year Courses
1. GES 4394 Geography Project
Mandatory Half-Year Courses
1. GES 4461 Land Resources Survey
2. GES 4472 Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems
3. GES 4342 Environment and Natural Resource Management
Elective Fourth-Year Courses
a) Geography and Environmental Studies, Fourth-Year Electives
1. GES 4165 Migration, Refugees and the Environment
2. GES 4372 Tourism, Environment and Development
3. GES 4172 Rural Land Use and Landscapes
4. GES 4181 Urban Geography and Planning
5. GES 4192 Geographical Dimensions of Settlements
6. GES 4285 Geographical Hydrology
7. GES 4292 Hydro-Geomorphology of Drainage Basins
8. GES 4385 Environmental Hazards and Disasters
9. GES 4451 Cartography
b) Biological Science Bias, Fourth-Year Electives
1. BIO 4152 Ecology and Management of Fisheries
2. BIO 4171 Population Ecology
3. BIO 4182 Wildlife and Rangeland Management