Northern Populations and Ecosystems - Biology - master

Students enrolled in the Master`s discipline Northern populations and ecosystems will acquire initial training in both basic and/or applied ecosystem research that could be continued in PhD projects, as well as competence on monitoring and management of ecosystems.

The discipline presents a broad theoretical and conceptual frameworks as well as methods that apply in different types of ecosystems. Northern terrestrial ecosystems are emphasized, but for analytic purposes examples will also be drawn from other regions and subject fields, such as marine and freshwater ecosystems.

Students in will be trained in:

• Up-to-date theories and methods for analyzing ecosystem dynamics, including key species, trophic interactions and ecosystem functions, or
• The scientific basis for sustainable management of ecosystems, or a combination of the two.

The first year students take courses relevant for their MSc projects, which are decided upon together with their main supervisor and accepted by the study program board. The students could choose to take the more general courses as suggested in the study plan (below), or replace courses to acquire more in-depth knowledge in a specific subject area. The specialization also encourages international exchange with our partner universities. The Master`s Thesis is conducted the second year, and range from basic ecosystem ecology, ecological applications to interdisciplinary research on ecosystem-based management.

For more information about the research group see:

Compulsory courses are depended on the Master`s topic, and the students are encouraged to discuss with supervisors what would be the optimal set of courses (list below):

• BIO-350X Study design and data analysis in biology II- 10 ECTS
• BIO-3122 Northern Populations and ecosystems (spring) - 10 ECTS
• BIO-3111 GIS (autumn) - 10 ECTS
• BIO-3004 Ecosystem-based management (spring) - 10 ECTS
• BIO-2006 Plants and ecosystems (autumn) - 10 ECTS

Recommended elective courses for the master's discipline:

• BIO-3505 Økologiske interaksjoner (autumn) - 10 ECTS
• BIO-3519 Parasittologi (autumn) norwegian course- 10 ECTS
• BIO-3525 Evolution and Ecologically driven speciation (spring) - 10 ECTS
• BIO-3805/3810/3815/3820 Individual Special Curriculum (autumn/spring) - 5/10/15/20 ECTS
• Courses at The University Centre at Svalbard:
• AB-326 Arctic Plant Ecology (summer/autumn) - 10 ECTS
• AB-327 Arctic MIcrobiology (summer) - 10 ECTS
• AB-329 Arctic Winter Ecology (autumn) - 10 ECTS

After graduation, it is expected that candidates will have achieved the following learning outcomes:

General skills:

• Display good capability of critical analysis of scientific literature and research
• Display good communication skills, oral and written, in the presentation of scientific work
• Have a solid and broad knowledge of living organisms

Knowledge:

• Have a solid knowledge of biological processes from the molecular level to the ecological level
• Have an advanced level of knowledge in one of the disciplines offered

Skills

• Be able to plan, carry out and report on a specific research project
• Be able to work independently in the field and/or in the laboratory
• Be able to analyze and evaluate scientific data and literature
• Be able to work independently with problem solving

Admission to the Master`s programme in biology requires a Bachelor`s degree (180 ECTS) in biology or equivalent qualification in biology. An average grade of equivalent to C or better in the Norwegian grading system is required.

Application deadline

The application deadline for Norwegian and other Nordic applicants is April 15th for admission to the autumn semester and November 1st for admission to the spring semester.