Petroleum Geoscience

Petroleum Geoscience

This degree is professionally accredited by the Geological Society of London. As well as your main Imperial degree (MSci), you will also receive the award of the Associateship of the Royal School of Mines on completion of this course.

Petroleum geoscience uses a fundamental understanding of the Earth and its past to locate and responsibly exploit petroleum resources with minimal environmental impact, making it key to the world's energy future.

This course will provide you with in-depth knowledge of issues facing the petroleum sector, as well as interdisciplinary skills in physics, maths, chemistry, engineering and the geosciences to give you an understanding of present challenges and possible solutions.

Your study reaches Master's level in the fourth year, with advanced modules, a specialist field trip, and a substantial independent research project. This means that you will require fewer years of work experience than graduates of our BSc degrees to apply for Chartership of the Geological Society.

We place emphasis on field work across all our courses. It is a great way to apply your knowledge to the real world and learn essential observational and practical skills. Depending on which degree scheme you choose, you could spend over 100 days in the field. This can range from a couple of days along the Dorset coast to 10 days in the Pyrenees or Cyprus. Students on Geology courses spend six weeks mapping the geology of areas such as the: Greek Cyclades, French Massif Central, Pyrenees, French Alps, North West Scotland, and others. Students on Geophysics courses have the chance to gain experience in using technical equipment in the field.

All of our courses follow a similar syllabus for the first two years. This high level of shared content means you may transfer between all our Geology and Geophysics courses up to the start of spring term in the first year if you meet the original entry requirements for the course you want to transfer to. If you are an international student, transferring to a different course could have an impact on your Tier 4 visa, but our International Student Support Team are here to help advise and support you. Transfer onto our Year Abroad courses is not normally possible, as places at our partner institutions are limited. As a result, you are encouraged to only apply for one course within the department.