General provisions

The course is compulsory in the Master in Social Sciences with a specialisation in Human Geography. The course can also be taken by students at other Master's or as a separate course.

Entry requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university. The main field of study must be within the social sciences.

Learning outcomes

Economic geography aims to describe and explain the spatial organisation of society and the physical, economic and social processes that shape and change resource utilisation, industry, urban and rural forms and social patterns and organisational forms in different geographical environments. The course aims to train students to analyse problems using human geographic theory and methodology, thus providing conditions for work in areas with a growing need for social scientists with human geographic education, such as central and local government, organisations and businesses. The program places particular emphasis on the integration of knowledge about the location, design and planning in the public sector with knowledge of business location conditions, forms of organisation and regional structure. Education in human geography is marked by an interaction between an international and a national perspective

After completing the course, students should:

- Possess knowledge on research issues, concepts and theories in modern economic geography

- Be familiar with and be able to use the concepts of regional specialisation, agglomeration, networks, clusters and regional innovation, cultural industries and creativity geography, uneven regional development, and industrial and innovation policies

- Analyse social problems through economic-geographic theory and methodology

- Actively and independently contribute to seminar discussions and conduct presentations of articles and of their own work

- Independently formulate and treat a scientific problem that economic geographical issues are in focus.

Content

This course provides an introduction to the research questions, concepts and theories of modern economic geography. The course covers the following themes: regional specialisation, agglomeration, networks, clusters and regional innovation systems, cultural industries and creativity geography, uneven regional development, and industrial and innovation policies. It highlights the on-going debates around globalisation with emphasis on the relationship between local roots and global dependence and regional innovation systems. The course is aimed at students who have a major subject in human geography, but also at other social scientists and economists with an interest in business and technology development; industrial innovation processes; effects of economic integration and globalisation.

Instruction

Teaching may consist of lectures, seminars, excursions, report writing and exercises.

Assessment

Examination is both written and oral.