Andalusia PAU Geology and Environmental Sciences study plan
Andalusia PAU Geology and Environmental Sciences · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Internal and external geodynamics: plate tectonics, magmatism, metamorphism and deformation
Explain the evidence for plate tectonics: palaeomagnetism, sea-floor magnetic stripes, ocean-floor topography, Wadati-Benioff zones and continental drift.
Distinguish constructive, destructive and conservative boundaries, and predict the type of seismic and volcanic activity expected at each.
Interpret the global distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes in relation to plate boundary types.
Sketch a cross-section of a subduction zone and label the trench, accretionary wedge, volcanic arc and back-arc basin.
Your checkpoint
A one-page annotated world map with six numbered boundary types, each with a two-sentence justification of its seismicity and volcanism.
Internal and external geodynamics: plate tectonics, magmatism, metamorphism and deformation
Classify magmas by silica content and viscosity, and link each to eruption style, landform and hazard.
Describe the processes of metamorphism (contact, regional, dynamic, burial) and relate them to plate-tectonic settings.
Order metamorphic facies along a pressure-temperature path and identify the index minerals that mark each zone.
Identify the main types of folds and faults from a block diagram and state the stress regime that produces each.
Your checkpoint
A table of 10 metamorphic rocks, each with protolith, facies, pressure-temperature conditions and tectonic setting, plus a labelled sketch of a fold and a fault.
Internal and external geodynamics: plate tectonics, magmatism, metamorphism and deformation & Earth materials: minerals, rocks and their identification
Identify the common rock-forming minerals by hand specimen using hardness, cleavage, lustre, colour and streak.
Classify igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks using texture and mineralogy, and name 15 specimens correctly.
Explain how the rock cycle connects internal and external geodynamic processes.
Compare the physical properties of the three main rock groups and predict their behaviour as construction or aquifer materials.
Your checkpoint
A self-made identification key for 20 rock and mineral specimens, with a blind test in which at least 16 of 20 are named correctly.
Historical geology, stratigraphy and palaeontology
Construct a relative chronology using the principles of superposition, original horizontality, cross-cutting relationships and faunal succession.
Read a simple geological map and draw a cross-section showing the order of events.
Recognise the main fossil groups (trilobites, ammonites, graptolites, brachiopods, rudists, foraminifera) and state their stratigraphic range.
Explain how radiometric dating and magnetostratigraphy calibrate the geological time scale.
Your checkpoint
A labelled cross-section drawn from a supplied map description, with a numbered list of at least eight geological events in chronological order.
Geological resources, geological hazards and geological maps
Classify geological resources as renewable or non-renewable and distinguish reserves from resources.
Describe the formation of the main ore deposit types (magmatic, hydrothermal, sedimentary, residual) and give a Spanish example for at least three.
Interpret a geological map's legend, scale, strike and dip symbols, and contour lines to infer subsurface structure.
Explain the main geological hazards (landslides, subsidence, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions) and the factors that increase vulnerability.
Your checkpoint
A hazard and resources report of about 400 words for a chosen Andalusian area, combining map interpretation with at least three identified hazards and two resources.
The physical environment: atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and their interactions
Describe the structure and composition of the atmosphere and explain the greenhouse effect and the global energy balance.
Explain atmospheric and oceanic circulation, including the Coriolis effect, trade winds, jet streams and thermohaline circulation.
Trace the water cycle and relate it to aquifer recharge, runoff and the behaviour of karst and detrital aquifers.
Explain the interactions between the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere that shape soils and landscapes.
Your checkpoint
A systems diagram of the physical environment with at least 12 labelled fluxes and feedbacks, plus a 200-word explanation of one feedback loop.
Environmental processes and pollution: air, water and soil & Environmental management, sustainability and natural risks
Explain the main air pollutants (particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, ozone, carbon dioxide), their sources and their effects.
Describe water pollution (eutrophication, salinisation, nitrates, heavy metals) and the main treatment stages in a wastewater plant.
Explain soil degradation processes (erosion, salinisation, contamination) and outline remediation options.
Evaluate environmental management tools: environmental impact assessment, protected areas, integrated coastal zone management and the polluter-pays principle.
Relate sustainability concepts to Spanish and Andalusian cases such as the Doñana aquifer, the Mar Menor or desalination.
Your checkpoint
A structured environmental impact assessment outline of about 500 words for a proposed infrastructure project, with impacts, mitigation measures and a monitoring plan.
Internal and external geodynamics: plate tectonics, magmatism, metamorphism and deformation & Historical geology, stratigraphy and palaeontology & Geological resources, geological hazards and geological maps & The physical environment: atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and their interactions & Environmental processes and pollution: air, water and soil & Environmental management, sustainability and natural risks
Answer one full past-paper-style section under timed conditions (90 minutes) without notes.
Diagnose weak domains from the timed paper and rework the three lowest-scoring topics.
Practise map and cross-section questions until each is completed within 15 minutes.
Summarise each domain on a single revision card with the five most examinable facts.
Your checkpoint
A timed mock paper scored against a mark scheme, plus seven revision cards, with a written list of the three weakest topics and the corrective actions taken.
Milestones
Week 2: Can explain plate boundary types and metamorphic facies without notes, and correctly identify fold and fault types in three out of three diagrams.
Week 4: Can produce a correct chronological event sequence and cross-section from a map description, naming at least six of eight fossil groups with their stratigraphic ranges.
Week 6: Can sketch the physical-environment systems diagram from memory and explain two feedback loops in under 10 minutes.
Week 8: Scores at least 60 percent on the timed mock paper, with no domain below 50 percent, and has a written remediation plan for the three weakest topics.