Economic Geography (M.A.)

Global environmental change and sustainable development
How do households and businesses respond to structural change in a globalized economy affected by global environmental change?
To what extent can new technologies and innovations contribute to sustainable development?

Entrepreneurship and business start-ups
Which determinants determine start-up activities and which regional economic effects do they have?
To what extent are start-up activities conditioned by the regional context?

Knowledge and innovation
How do new technologies and innovations emerge?
What regional patterns exist in knowledge and innovation emergence and why are innovative firms regionally concentrated?

Digitalization and mobility
What are the effects of digitization on regional disparities and on companies' location requirements?
How will transportation services of the future change how people move around the region and how can everyone benefit?

Economic development and policy design
Which strategies and instruments can be used to achieve spatial economic policy goals?
What role do digitalization, environmental protection and innovation play in spatial economic policy?

• Close linking of economic geography and economic sciences
• Course content with current research questions relevant to practice
• High professional quality of the courses
• Small working groups and familiar atmosphere
• Excellent supervision by the lecturers
• Semester or internship abroad
• Involvement of external lecturers from abroad and from practice
• Diverse and excellent career prospects in areas such as location analysis, project management, regional development and economic development

This Master's programme is limited to 25 students per year. In the preceding Bachelor's degree programme (geography, economics or related disciplines), economic geography and economics content must have been studied to a certain extent. Applicants who neither have a German higher education entrance qualification nor have obtained their Bachelor's degree at a German higher education institution must also have sufficient knowledge of the German language at the language level C1 CEFR.

Information for prospective students:

• Programme profile and application information on the Leibniz University website
• Detailed information on admission requirements
• Form A (only available in German): Nachweis über die fachliche Eignung des vorangehenden Studiums
• Form B (only available in German): Nachweis über das Vorliegen der Kriterien zur Notenverbesserung

Educational objective: Qualification for professional activity in the fields of project management, location and market analysis, regional development, economic development and research, among others.

Graduates of the master in economic geography…

• are able to work independently and in a structured manner on economic geographic issues
• have in-depth knowledge of spatial relationships
• have specific knowledge in the fields of innovation, regional development, foundation and economic policy, among others
• are proficient in analytical methods with which they can describe, interpret and evaluate interrelationships
• use modern data science methods (GIS, R, ...) for the processing of questions
• are trained in presentation and lecture techniques
• have experience in project work and are team players.

• Sound preparation for professional life: According to the results of a teaching evaluation, geography education in Hannover "remains a benchmark in Germany."
• The top position in teaching is also the result of successful research. In the evaluation report of the Scientific Commission of Lower Saxony (WKN) on research, the Economic Geography working group is given the best possible grade of "outstanding".
• According to the publication and citation ranking "ZitArt", the economic geographers from Hanover publish particularly frequently in renowned foreign journals.
• The course offerings cover the issues of modern geography, including innovation - start-ups and economic growth - geographic information systems - global environmental change - poverty reduction in developing countries - demographic change and digital transformation - urban development processes and social cohesion - mobility.
• Those who are drawn to the wider world will find excellent exchange universities through the Erasmus programme as well as at other partner universities in America and Asia!
• Varied teaching methods combine teaching content with current practice-relevant issues and participation in research projects, which are developed in small working groups under intensive supervision by the lecturers. Numerous external lecturers from abroad and from practice are also involved in this process.
• In addition, twice a year internationally renowned professors give a one-week seminar at the institute - within the module of the "International Seminar in Economic Geography" (ISEG).
• There are many exciting opportunities after studying geography in Hannover: Geographers from Hannover have recently opened up a variety of new jobs in policy-related fields and especially in the private sector. For economic geography, for example, the excellent career opportunities are documented by regular graduate surveys.
• Those who find economic geography appealing during their bachelor's studies can follow up with the prestigious M. A. Economic Geography at our institute.
• For many who discover their interest in research, we offer the possibility of doctoral studies in both economic and cultural geography.