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This Sustainable and Efficient Food Production postgraduate course centres on increasing efficiency and reducing environmental impact within the extensive pasture-based production sector. The programme provides flexible, accessible, postgraduate level training for people employed in the agri-food sector. Training comprises distance learning modules and work-based research projects. These are accessible as CPD or as credit-bearing units, which can be built towards a range of postgraduate qualifications.
Taught by experts at both Aberystwyth University (AU) and Bangor University (BU), the Sustainable and Efficient Food Production course offers you a highly vocational option. In the most recent joint submission to the Research Excellence Framework assessment (2014), the department was placed in the top 10 universities in the UK for research intensity and 78% of our research was world-leading or internationally excellent.
To achieve an MSc students must complete five optional modules (including up to three from BU) plus Research Methods and a Dissertation.
Two to five years to complete a full MSc. 14 weeks for one module by distance learning Three intakes per year (January, May, September). Students will be eligible for a UK Student Loan if the course is completed in 3 years.
Core modules:
Dissertation
Optional modules - Choose any 5 from:
We have designed our training to be as accessible as possible, particularly for those in full time employment. Each topic comprises a 12-14 week distance learning module worth 20 credits which can be taken for your own continuing professional development or interest; or built towards a postgraduate qualification. The research elements of our qualifications are carried out in your work place with regular academic supervision. The training is web-based which means that as long as you have access to a reasonable broadband connection (i.e. are able to stream videos such as on YouTube), you can study where and when best suits you. Learning material includes podcast lectures, e-group projects, guided reading, interactive workbooks and discussion forums, as well as assignments and e-tutorials. By signing a re-registration form each year you will have access to e-journals and library resources for the full five years.
There are no exams within this programme. Taught modules are assessed via course work and forum discussion.
This scheme aims to facilitate knowledge exchange between academia and industry. Students must complete three taught modules including research methods and a 120 credit work-based dissertation / research thesis (approximately 20,000 words in length).
While the primary academic focus is on the completion of an advanced piece of research, the collaborative route provided by a work-based research project provides an ideal opportunity to embed new knowledge in the work place and ensure that research is relevant to industry. As such, it is crucial that a student’s employer is supportive of both their research aims and the time commitment that the proposed research will involve. Self-employed students should aim to undertake research which will be closely aligned to their business.
Students may build on the MRes to work towards a Professional Doctorate.
An MRes can be completed in 2-5 years but we would expect most students to spend 1 year on their taught modules and 2 years on their work based dissertation. 12 or 14 weeks for one module by distance learning. Three intakes per year (January, May, September).
Students will be eligible for a UK Student loan if their course is completed within 3 years.
Core modules:
MRes Research Project
Optional modules:
The MRes comprises three taught modules (including Research Methodologies and Advances in Bioscience) followed by a 120 credit work-based dissertation (20,000 words).
We have designed our training to be as accessible as possible, particularly for those in full time employment. Each taught module comprises a 12 or 14 week distance learning module worth 20 credits which can be taken for your own continuing professional development or interest; or built towards a postgraduate qualification. The research elements of our qualifications are carried out in your work place with regular academic supervision. The training is web-based which means that as long as you have access to a reasonable broadband connection (i.e. are able to stream videos such as on YouTube), you can study where and when best suits you. Learning material includes podcast lectures, e-group projects, guided reading, interactive workbooks and discussion forums, as well as assignments and e-tutorials. By signing a re-registration form each year you will have access to e-journals and library resources for the duration of your registration.
There are no exams within this programme. Taught modules are assessed via course work and forum discussion. Research is monitored and assessed.
This unique course provides a diverse blend of options in communication skills, science and business. To deliver this range of skills two Aberystwyth University departments (IBERS and Aberystwyth Business School) have partnered with Menter a Busnes, a Welsh company specialising in agricultural knowledge exchange, who provide practical workshop sessions.
To gain a PGCert you will need to successfully complete three modules. At least one of these must be chosen from the technical modules and one must be from the KE and Business modules, your third module can come from either group. All of the technical modules and Farm Business Management are entirely on-line. The KE modules provide a mixture of on-line and workshop based learning.
Choose one module from each group and a third from either group.
Group 1 - KE and Business Modules
Facilitation (Workshop based)
Coaching and Mentoring (Workshop based) subject to approval
Farm Business Management (on-line)
Group 2 - Technical Modules
Organic & Low Input Ruminant Production
The Business School modules comprise workshop-based learning focussed on improving your interactions with farmers and farming groups for effective knowledge exchange. These modules are delivered in association with Menter a Busnes through two, two-day workshops and a final one-day to allow you to develop and practice your KE skills. These are supplemented by on-line assignment work.
MRes degrees can be studied as a stepping stone to doctoral level study or as a standalone qualification for those interested in research careers in industry.
Students spend one third of the course studying four taught modules, and the remainder of their time is focused on an in-depth research project. The courses are delivered in one or two-week blocks throughout the academic year.
We offer a range of MRes titles, which are reviewed each year, and all subjects link in to areas of research that the university is actively involved with. The programme provides:
Completing an MRes will also help you to develop transferable skills in areas such as experimental design, report writing, statistics, presentation skills, team working and critical appraisal.
These awards are strongly underpinned by the university’s excellent programme of agri-environmental research and long-standing collaborations with research institutes and other organisations in the UK and overseas.
