You could do a degree or postgraduate qualification in a relevant subject like:

• environmental science or ecology
• geography, earth sciences or geology
• physics
• maths and statistics
• oceanography or marine science
• meteorology and climate science
• computer science

Work experience

You can get work experience through internships, placements or a year in industry during your course. This may help you to identify your area of interest for research.

For example, the Met Office runs both summer placement and year in industry schemes.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

• 2 or 3 A levels, or equivalent, including maths and a science for a degree
• a degree in a relevant subject for postgraduate study

You'll need:

• maths knowledge
• knowledge of geography
• knowledge of physics
• excellent verbal communication skills
• science skills
• knowledge of computer operating systems, hardware and software
• the ability to work well with others
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages confidently

You could:

• gather and analyse data from the atmosphere, oceans and land
• create computer models to simulate the effects of climate change
• design and build scientific instruments and sensors
• study past climates to understand what might happen in the future
• monitor ice, sea levels and temperatures
• look at how global climate affects regional weather
• attend conferences and publish research findings
• investigate ways to tackle climate change
• advise policy makers
• teach or lecture in education

You could work in a laboratory, at a university or visit sites.

Your working environment may be outdoors some of the time.