MSc Ecology and Biodiversity

Our Ecology and Biodiversity MSc gives you the skills for a successful career as an ecologist or in an environmentally-related field.

About this course

You will gain the knowledge and skills you need to work in conservation biology and other environmental or ecological roles. You’ll study an area of ecological science, from both a UK and international perspective.

Areas covered include:

global wildlife conservation policy and practice
environmental impacts
international sustainable development

This course has a professional focus, which will help prepare you for the workplace. You'll learn advanced methods to analyse published ecological literature, global conservation policies and assessment methods.

You’ll develop:

an understanding of wildlife conservation policy and practice in the UK and internationally
the ability to undertake complex, cutting-edge environmental data analysis and methods for effective communication of results to non-specialists
skills to handle large datasets, including spatial data (GIS), remote-sensed data, camera traps, and machine learning
techniques to review and analyse before published ecological research
the skills necessary to work at the interface of science and policy
the knowledge to launch a global career in organisations such as:

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Intergovernmental Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)
World Wildlife Fund (WWF)

You’ll benefit from our relationships with notable wildlife organisations and be able to take part in projects with institutions, such as:

the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
other local, national (UK) and international conservation organisations, including government and NGO

Your development

When you graduate from the course, you will be able to evaluate and solve ecological problems. We will teach you skills in a range of ecologically related areas including:

qualitative skills including verbal, written and web-based communication of scientific findings to non-specialists
quantitative methods including the tools needed to manage and undertake advanced ecological data analysis
effective strategies to plan large-scale and/or long-term ecological projects
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and processing of spatial data
management of conflicts between nature conservation and human activities