Geography: Cultural Geography
Geography: Cultural Geography (M.A.)
Study a research-focused, project-oriented and applied degree program In the Master’s degree program in Cultural Geography, we research today’s ways of life as determined by society, otherwise known as cultural geographies.
- Degree
- Master of Arts (M.A.)
- Duration of studies in semester
- 4
- Start of degree program
- Summer semester, Winter semester
- Study location
- Erlangen
- Number of students
- 1-50
- Subject group
- Mathematics, Natural sciences, Language and Cultural Studies
- Teaching language
- completely in German
- Admission Requirements
- Qualification assessment
- Keywords
- Geography, Culture, Cultural Geography
What is the degree program about?
In the master’s program Cultural Geography, you will explore social, political, economic, and ecological dynamics and challenges of the present across different scales and regions of the world. In innovative, research-oriented courses, you will design and carry out your own projects within the broad fields of social and socio-environmental research.
You will engage with questions such as:
- How are new forms of connection created in a globalized world while new identities and territories are being defined?
- How can urban and regional development contribute to sustainable transformation amid digital change, innovation, environmental crises, and social justice?
- How are spatial, environmental, and power relations shifting in a world deeply shaped by technology—and what roles do politics, planning, and everyday practices play in this?
- How can dominant ideas of “nature,” “technology,” and “development” be critically questioned—and what alternative futures become imaginable as a result?
- How do social and ecological crises and conflicts emerge, and what spatial dynamics shape how they are negotiated?
The master’s program is both thematically and methodologically diverse, allowing you to develop your own areas of specialization. In addition to gaining substantive and methodological expertise, you will also acquire key professional skills such as independent project design and implementation. You will also gain experience in moderating academic discussions as well as in planning, organizing, and conducting events.
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The degree program consists of eight modules and a Master’s thesis.
- 1st to 2nd semester: Study of your specialization In the first two semesters you deepen your knowledge of your chosen specialization, take courses in your elective subject and complete an independent project in a small group. At the half-way point in the Master’s degree program you carry out field work, enabling you to put the knowledge gained so far into practice.
- 3rd to 4th semester: Methodological training The third and fourth semester focus on methodological training. Students are actively involved in the organization and logistics of research, knowledge generation and knowledge transfer.
- 4th semester: Master’s thesis In the fourth semester you prepare an academic thesis and present your work in a presentation followed by a discussion.
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You can complete the MA in Cultural Geography either without a specific focus or by choosing one of several specialization tracks. To graduate with a specialization, you must earn a required number of ECTS credits from the modules assigned to that focus area, and your master’s thesis must also align with it. Currently, we offer the following options:
Urban Studies and Regional Development
The development of cities and regions is a highly complex process. Social dynamics, political shifts, and environmental change all interact in shaping urban and regional development. Cities and regions thus serve both as platforms for and as expressions of broader societal processes.
Digital Geography & Society
Digital Geographies critically examine current processes of digital transformation such as digitally augmented spaces, “smart” cities and regions, the digital divide, and digital border regimes, and ask about the (political) geographies of digitalization, including new forms of connectivity and differentiation, as well as the material and ecological implications of digital infrastructures.
Students also strengthen their competencies in (geo)data-based and qualitative analyses of social and socio-ecological structures and processes.
In the future, this focus area will be expanded into a broader, critical-geographical engagement with the interconnections between society, environment, and technology.
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The subject of geography occupies a unique position between the natural sciences, the humanities and the social sciences. As you will develop strong methodological skills during the degree program and also study related subjects, there are a wide range of possible careers. By choosing specializations during the degree program you can increase your chances on the job market.
Geographers often work in town planning, regional planning or traffic planning, at energy companies or in market research. Other areas that geographers may work in include:
- public administration
- the property sector
- economic development
- development partnership projects
- specialist publishing, journalism and public relations
- economic development
- many other areas where specialist knowledge of the environment and society are required
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- Admission requirements (first semester)
- Qualification assessment
- Application deadline winter semester
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15.07.
- Application deadline summer semester
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15.01.
- Content-related admission requirements
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Applicants for the Master’s degree program in Cultural Geography require a Bachelor’s degree with cultural geography as the first or second subject (minimum of 70 ECTS credits in geography) or a related degree program (e.g. social sciences, political science, sociology, town planning/regional planning, teaching geography at secondary school (Gymnasium), economics). The degree program must have been completed with a grade of “good” or better. This degree program has admission restrictions (NC) which require a minimum grade of 2.3; applicants who have not achieved this grade may be admitted through a selection procedure.
Do you need help or more information?
Our Student Advice and Career Service (IBZ) is the central point of contact for all questions about studying and starting a degree programme. Our Student Service Centres and subject advisors support you in planning your studies.