The Harokopio University of Athens is a public university focused on a small set of intellectual areas which include Home Economics, Geography, Nutrition and Informatics and Telematics. Specifically, the Geography undergraduate program is an assemblage of courses that cover four very different fields, which came as a surprise to me when I first enrolled. From Geoinformatics to Historical Geography, to Geomorphology and Spatial Management, there is a great balance between theory and practice, and mandatory courses aside, after the sixth semester, students are given the opportunity to choose which of the four directions they wish to follow.
The facilities by themselves are excellently maintained and COVID precautions are still taken carefully and considerately. As far as the courses go, the department is always striving to provide students and staff alike with new upgraded equipment for the best experience in practical courses, utilizing an online platform accessible to students any time of the day where lectures and other material relevant to the courses is uploaded on a regular basis.
Textbooks are provided for free each semester and most of the professors also offer additional helpful material to assist students, along with everything the university’s library also offers. Additionally, the professors themselves are kind, friendly and willing to help any struggling students both within their office visitation hours and through email, with most of them offering an immediate response to concerns relevant to their respective courses.
From what my personal experience showed me, job opportunities are hard to find as a student, mostly due to how new and little known the department is, but there certainly are a lot of options after obtaining the Bachelor’s degree. The university even offers opportunities to pursue a Master’s degree in one’s own alma mater and other post-graduate degrees through the ERASMUS program.
In conclusion, choosing to attend the department of Geography opens up new doors with branching paths that go further than the definition of geography as viewed by the public, which in turn provides the students with the necessary skills and knowledge to gain access to more than one sector of the national and international job market.