BSc Applied Ecology and Conservation in UK

Description:
The programme offers the opportunity to acquire the varied skills required of applied ecologists and conservation biologists through a combination of taught modules and practical experience. The first year provides a broad introduction to pure and applied ecology. This provides an insight into the full range of pure and applied ecology, and how ecological perspectives can inform real-world problems in conservation and pest management, especially in relation to the agricultural landscape. The second year builds on this introduction, providing deeper insights into the ecological systems and organisms that make up our world, with an emphasis on UK issues. The final year allows for a wide range of choices, so that your degree will reflect your interests. Final year project choice depends on the interests of students and staff. Recent projects include topics as diverse as 'the ecology of parasitic wasps', 'the effects of rainforest destruction on biodiversity', 'bird foraging behaviour' and 'glow-worm conservation'.
Year 1
Compulsory Modules
Ecology: Species and their Interactions
Mammals: Diversity, Behaviour and Conservation
Environment in Practice 1
Exploiters and Exploited
Humans and the Changing World
Genes and Chromosomes
Optional Modules
includingCountryside and the Environment
The Living Cell
Plant Diversity, Structure and Utilisation
Soil: Principles and Management
Intorduction to Enterprise and Marketing
Year 2
Compulsory Modules
Environment in Practice 2
Evolutionary Biology
Habitat Management
Introduction to Entomology
Weed Biology and Control
Statistics for Life Sciences
Science Communication
Biodiversity Field Course OR Tropical Biology Field Course (subject to place availability)

Optional Modules
including
Practical Nature Conservation
Vertebrate Zoology
Invertebrate Zoology
Animal Behaviour
Ecology and Management of Plant Diseases
Birds: Diversity, Behaviour and Conservation
Landscapes for Amenity and Sport
Final Year
Compulsory Modules
Research Project
Conservation Biology
Wildlife in the Farming Environment
Optional Modules
including:
Rural Environmental Sustainability
Rural Policy and Countryside Planning
Environmental & Ecological Weed Management
Principles and Practice in Biological Control
Behavioural Ecology and Life History Theory
Conservation and Biodiversity: The Global and Local Scale
Physiological Ecology
Management of Soil Fertility
Biodiversity Informatics
Plants and Climate

BSc Zoology with Aquatic Biology (C3C1)

BSc Zoology with Aquatic Biology (C3C1)

Zoology with Aquatic Biology focuses on the study of aquatic organisms and the environments in which they live. This course will develop existing strong links with potential employers (including for example, the Environment Agency and consultancies). It will cover fundamental aspects of the ecology of aquatic systems, and spans a wide range of organisms, from the microscopic marine plankton that play a key role in regulating Earth’s climate, to the largest of all animals ever to have existed, the great whales. The programme is almost unique in the UK as it considers elements of both marine and freshwater biology. The School is ideally situated for easy access to a diverse range of UK seashores and important freshwater habitats, including the Thames, the chalk rivers of Dorset and the lakes and Broads of Norfolk, as well as the London Aquarium and various nature reserves in the capital itself (e.g. the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust centre in West London).
For further information regarding the programme, please refer to our

programme flyer [PDF 171 KB]

Programme structure

Year
Required Modules – Essential skills for biologists, Cell dynamics, Heredity and gene action, The diversity of life, Basic biochemistry, Conservation and the environment, Evolution, Ecological and environmental techniques.
Year 2
Required Modules – Animal physiology, The invertebrates, Aquatic ecosystems:structure and function, Fish biology and fisheries, Populations, communities and ecosystems.
Options – Evolutionary genetics, Global change biology, Statistical methods in biology.

Year 3 -
Required Modules – Integrative studies in biological sciences, Behavioural ecology, Aquatic ecosystems: science, policy and management, Mammals and evolution, Zoology research project/Investigative project/Project skills in the life sciences.
Options – Freshwater biology, Tropical ecology and conservation, Turtles, seals, whales and dolphins.

Entry requirements

Normally 300 points at A2 level.
Biology (or equivalent) A2 is required with at least grade C.
Chemistry A2 or AS is desirable but not essential.
For more information on entry requirements visit the SBCS general entry requirement page.

Practical Skills/Project work

Every student has the option of taking an investigative or research project that may take up to a quarter of the final year's work. For many students, this is the highlight of their time in the School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, giving them an opportunity to work alongside established researchers in the field, and the Natural History Museum, the London Zoo, Forest Enterprise and London University's Marine Biological Station at Millport in Scotland all provide special opportunities for original work. There is a strong emphasis on fieldwork, with opportunities for residential modules in all three years, located at sites around the coastline of the UK and in the Lake District.