Advanced Wildlife Conservation in Practice - MSc/Postgraduate Diploma/Postgraduate Certificate

Postgraduate

In Bristol

£ 7,000 + VAT

Description

  • Type

    Postgraduate

  • Location

    Bristol

  • Start date

    Different dates available

This exciting course is not just theoretical. It's designed to give you hands-on experience of contemporary and advancing techniques for conserving biodiversity in a rapidly changing world. It's delivered in collaboration with the internationally renowned Bristol Zoological Society (BZS), and is unique in the way it prepares you for complete practical conservation.
Alongside developing your abilities and practice in ecosystem and species conservation, communication and effecting behaviour change, the MSc Advanced Wildlife Conservation in Practice course has a strong emphasis on developing your innovation and entrepreneurial skills. There is an ever more pressing need for conservationists to create and work with emerging technologies to ensure we maximise the opportunities for biodiversity conservation.
Hands-on conservation experience
You'll attend a series of intense, four-day teaching blocks, mostly on site at Bristol Zoo Gardens, interspersed by distance learning delivered online.
Teaching is split equally between BZS staff and UWE Bristol staff, with some additional content from other partner organisations, such as RSPB and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (Slimbridge). You'll have the opportunity to become immersed in a major conservation organisation, interact with experts engaged in ground-breaking conservation projects across the globe, and meet practising conservationists and ecologists from a wide range of organisations. This gives you the opportunity to develop your professional network and hone your skills towards the job you want.
Each teaching block includes a guest tutor from an outside organisation, while some of the module assignments will require you to network with conservation managers from your local area.

Facilities

Location

Start date

Bristol (Avon)
See map
Coldharbour Lane, BS16 1QY

Start date

Different dates availableEnrolment now open

About this course

Fieldwork
The course is delivered on site at Bristol Zoo Gardens and its sister site, the Wild Place Project. These locations give you an opportunity to develop your skills and test innovative strategies and products. We have excellent links to industry and business in the South West, including Avon and Somerset Wildlife Trusts. Sites of international conservation importance, such as the Avon Gorge and Somerset Levels, are on our doorstep, so there are plenty of fieldwork opportunities.
We also work with you to find an external partner organisation to base your dissertation project...

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Subjects

  • Conservation
  • Teaching
  • Project
  • Network
  • Network Training
  • Full Time
  • Biodiversity
  • Communication Training
  • Part Time
  • Staff
  • Innovation

Course programme

Content

The course comprises four compulsory taught modules and an extended individual research project. The course is designed to allow part-time and international students to participate fully in the course alongside their full-time student colleagues.

The modules are:

  • Advanced ecosystem conservation in practice - Provides you with first-hand experience of the methods used to protect habitats and ecosystems around the world.
  • Advanced species conservation in practice - This module gives you first-hand experience of the methods used to protect species in their natural habitats and in captivity.
  • Communication for conservation - Build your experience of using the many modern communication techniques vital for getting conservation messages across, and changing the behaviour of governments, big business and the general public.
  • Innovation and Enterprise in Conservation - You will develop your skills and abilities to spot new, innovative opportunities for furthering the cause of biodiversity conservation.
  • Research Project - Put your newfound skills to the test as you develop your own conservation research project. We will work with you to find partner organisations to host your project, allowing you to build your network of conservation contacts and experience.

You will also have the opportunity to enhance your skills in species identification, habitat surveying, and GIS and stakeholder engagement, as well as gaining experience of important emerging sectors, including genetic survey techniques and the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Please note this structure is for the full-time course delivery only. For part-time delivery, the same modules will be studied. However, the structure will differ.

The University continually enhances our offer by responding to feedback from our students and other stakeholders, ensuring the curriculum is kept up to date and our graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need for the real world. This may result in changes to the course. If changes to your course are approved we will inform you.

Learning and Teaching

The course consists of a series of intense, four-day teaching blocks delivered on site at Bristol Zoo, and distance-learning activities delivered via the internet. The structure of the course is designed to allow part-time and international students to participate fully in the course alongside full-time colleagues.

Unlike most other university courses, we start in January which means that we can make use of the spring and summer wildlife for practical, hands-on learning. With many of the theoretical elements of the course delivered online, you will be free to develop your practical skills, such as survey techniques, species identification, community conservation, critical analysis, networking, project management, group-work and leadership during the face-to-face teaching blocks, mentored by a team of practising conservationists and academics.

For more details see our full glossary of learning and teaching terms.

Study time

Following a six-day induction block, students will attend eight four-day teaching blocks spread throughout the year. These are full-time, intensive sessions. Each of the four taught modules comprise sixty hours of face-to-face contact time and twelve hours of online delivery.

Assessment

Each module assessment is specifically designed to allow you to develop your practical skills and understanding, and increase your employability once you graduate. They will usually take the form of mini-projects and will require you to master advanced techniques in wildlife conservation and evaluate their effectiveness in a range of circumstances. The projects include presentations, portfolios and reports. There are no formal written exams.

For more details see our full glossary of assessment terms.

Advanced Wildlife Conservation in Practice - MSc/Postgraduate Diploma/Postgraduate Certificate

£ 7,000 + VAT