University of British Columbia Masters Degrees in Animal Physiology

[General Information]]
Applied Animal Biology offers opportunities for advanced study and research leading to M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in animal physiology, behaviour, welfare, and management of livestock, aquaculture, and wildlife species. Graduate training in applied animal biology normally involves a combination of courses in both basic and applied sciences, with research leading to a thesis or dissertation. Students are expected to publish their research results in relevant leading international refereed journals. Coursework selected in consultation with the student's supervisory committee includes graduate courses in areas relevant to each student's research.

The program is enriched through collaboration with colleagues in other UBC graduate programs such as Zoology, and with agencies such as Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Canadian Wildlife Service, and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

On-campus teaching and research facilities are located in the MacMillan Building. Off-campus research facilities available to students include: the UBC Dairy Education and Research Centre in Agassiz; shared research facilities at Fisheries and Oceans Canada at West Vancouver; and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

Quick Facts

- Degree: Master of Science
- Specialization: Applied Animal Biology
- Subject: Agriculture and Forestry
- Mode of delivery: On campus
- Program components: Coursework + Thesis required
- Faculty: Faculty of Land and Food Systems

Applied Animal Biology is intended for students who want to study and/or work with animals. It provides students with fundamentals of animal behaviour, animal physiology and related fields as applied to farm, companion and other animals. It also exposes students to the role of animals in human society and the ethical, environmental and other issues that arise. It offers training in research skills needed for graduate work, and (with appropriate selection of courses) prepares students for admission to veterinary and human medicine. Students have various options to gain practical experience on farms and in laboratories, animal shelters and wildlife rehabilitation centres.

Potential career paths include veterinary medicine, human medicine, biomedical research, animal ecology, sustainable aquaculture, animal training, animal nutrition, wildlife rehabilitation, wildlife conservation, agricultural extension and animal welfare.

Facilities

On-campus facilities include laboratories in the MacMillan Building. Off-campus research facilities available to students include: the UBC Dairy Education and Research Centre in Agassiz; shared research facilities at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans at West Vancouver; Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada; and the Agassiz Poultry Centre, which includes unique poultry and quail stocks for biomedical and genetic research. Field research facilities for studies in wildlife productivity are also available.

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The Department of Zoology at UBC is internationally renowned for its research in a variety of modern biological sciences, including ecology, evolution, physiology, neurobiology, cell biology and development. The department has many strong interdisciplinary connections between different areas of research.

Zoology has a solid computing infrastructure of computer labs, compute servers, loaner equipment, colour and poster printers, and three computing support staff for knowledgable help.

Program Overview

Zoology encompasses over 50 principal investigators. Research interests of faculty members can be divided into several broad categories with substantial overlap of interest and collaboration among these arbitrary groups. The program vigorously promotes integrative research in biology and actively participates in several interdisciplinary programs, including the graduate programs in genetics, neuroscience, applied mathematics, and resource management.

Zoology offers a wide variety of research programs leading to the Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in the following areas: cell and developmental biology, community and population ecology, comparative physiology and biochemistry, neurobiology, and evolutionary biology.

In addition Zoology is actively involved in several interdisciplinary programs of instruction and research including:
- Fisheries Centre
- Centre for Biodiversity Research
- Centre for Applied Conservation Research (CACR), Faculty of Forestry
- Genetics Program
- ICORD (International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries)
- Institute of Applied Mathematics
- BC Cancer Research Centre
- Life Sciences Institute

Quick Facts

- Degree: Master of Science
- Specialization: Zoology
- Subject: Life Sciences
- Mode of delivery: On campus
- Program components: Coursework + Thesis required
- Faculty: Faculty of Science

Research focus

- Cell and Developmental Biology: molecular and genetic bases of development and cellular function
- Comparative Physiology: aspects of animal physiology from a comparative perspective, particularly those mechanisms underlying adaptive responses to environmental constraints
- Ecology: blends field ecology and natural history with ecological theory and conservation biology
- Evolution: encompasses evolutionary ecology, evolutionary genetics, conservation genetics, theory, and systematics

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