Environmental Change and Management

Master

In Oxford

Price on request

Description

  • Type

    Master

  • Location

    Oxford

About the course
The MPhil in Environmental Change and Management aims to give you a broad appreciation of major processes of environmental change and of the people and institutions involved in environmental management. The course seeks to produce environmental leaders who are interdisciplinary and analytical in their approach to environmental issues, and competent and aware decision makers.

Facilities

Location

Start date

Oxford (Oxfordshire)
See map
Wellington Square, OX1 2JD

Start date

On request

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Subjects

  • School
  • Appreciation
  • Supervisor
  • Change Management
  • Management
  • IT
  • Teaching
  • Systems
  • IT Management
  • Skills and Training

Course programme

The MPhil is a two year course. The second year is devoted to researching and writing a thesis of up to 30,000 words (either as a single monograph or two academic papers). In the first year, you will take the coursework associated with the MSc in Environmental Change and Management. This course has three overarching aims, to:

  • examine the nature, causes and impacts of major types of environmental change. How do these changes operate and interact on global, regional and local scales? How do they relate to critical social and ecological systems?
  • examine the economic, legal, cultural, and ethical underpinnings of environmental responsibility and systemic solutions, including mitigation, adaptation, remediation, enhanced resource stewardship and other sustainable responses to environmental change at different scales and within different organisational contexts; and
  • empower environmental leaders to address the world’s most pressing environmental problems through an understanding of and training in the key analytical and practical skills, and in a broad appreciation of earth systems and societies in relation to environmental change.

These aims are pursued through an introductory course, Welcome to the Anthropocene, and seven core modules:

  • The Earth System and its Fundamental Processes
  • Global Change and the Biosphere
  • Human Systems and Environmental Change
  • Environmental Economics and Policy
  • Energy Systems and Climate Mitigation
  • Sustainable Responses to Environmental Change
  • Governing the Anthropocene.

Teaching takes place through lectures, seminars, workshops and field courses which provide in-depth exploration of key issues. The elective modules offer a tutorial-style teaching and discussion environment within smaller groups, based on a suite of contemporary research themes that reflect the specific interests of core faculty, research staff,and visiting scholars. The teaching aim is to foster knowledge, critical thinking, discussion and debate in an integrated setting, and to identify and explore theory, methods and practice in an academic space that encourages collaboration and critical dialogue. In the second year you will work on your thesis project with the support of a specialist supervisor.

Fieldwork and external visits are an important part of the teaching programme and currently include coastal and marine environmental change sites, local woodlands, Lake District National Park, the Centre for Alternative Technology (renewable energy and sustainability technologies) and a visit to the European Parliament.

You must pass the examinations set at the end of the first year in order to proceed into the second year of the MPhil. In the first year there are also two assessed essays linked to elective courses.

The second year is devoted to researching and writing a thesis of up to 30,000 words. The research topic will be devised in your first year and, once approved, a supervisor will be allocated to you. The thesis accounts for half the marks for the degree. In addition, in the second year you will take a further elective course, assessed by a submitted essay.

Supervision

The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the School of Geography and the Environment and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. Under exceptional circumstances a supervisor may be found outside the School of Geography and the Environment.

Graduate destinations

ECM alumni are pursuing careers with a wide range of organisations. Examples include government departments (eg Japan's Ministry of the Environment, Ontario Ministry of Finance), non-governmental organisations (eg the Carbon Trust, World Wildlife Fund), business organisations (eg McKinsey and Company, Ericsson Enterprise) and international agencies (World Food Programme, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change). Some students use the course as a starting point for pursuing PhD (DPhil) research.

There is an ECM alumni network with over 700 alumni in 70 countries. The department's Alumni Office helps alumni keep in touch with each other and organises alumni events.

Changes to this course and your supervision

The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration. In certain circumstances, for example due to visa difficulties or because the health needs of students cannot be met, it may be necessary to make adjustments to course requirements for international study.

Where possible your academic supervisor will not change for the duration of your course. However, it may be necessary to assign a new academic supervisor during the course of study or before registration for reasons which might include sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment.

For further information, please see our page on changes to courses.

Other courses you may wish to consider

If you're thinking about applying for this course, you may also wish to consider the courses listed below. These courses may have been suggested due to their similarity with this course, or because they are offered by the same department or faculty.

All graduate courses offered by the School of Geography and the Environment

Biodiversity, Conservation and Management MSc

Biodiversity, Conservation and Management MPhil

Environmental Change and Management MSc

Environmental Change and Management MPhil

Geography and the Environment DPhil

Nature, Society and Environmental Governance MSc

Nature, Society and Environmental Governance MPhil

Water Science, Policy and Management MSc

Water Science, Policy and Management MPhil

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Entry requirements

Environmental Change and Management

Price on request