Our history

Geographic studies and the Earth and Atmospheric Sciences have a long history at the University of Melbourne.

Study of these disciplines began in 1900 with the Department of Geology, which was founded by Professor John Walter Gregory and predated the formation of the Faculty of Science itself by three years. It became the School of Earth Sciences after merging with the Department of Meteorology in 1990.

Meanwhile, in the Faculty of Arts, the Geography Department was founded by Professor John Adams in 1960. It went through a number of name changes and reimaginings, moving out of the Faculty of Arts to become the Department of Resource Management and Geography in the Melbourne School of Land and Environment before moving into the Faculty of Science as the School of Geography in 2015.

Most recently,  on 1 April 2021, the amalgamation of the Schools of Geography and Earth Sciences formally established the School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (SGEAS).