Masters degrees in Biogeochemical Cycles involve advanced study of the behaviours and cycles of matter within the biosphere and the physical environment.
Courses range from taught MSc degrees, to research oriented MRes and MPhil programmes. Entry requirements normally include an undergraduate degree in a relevant subject such as Environmental Science.
The question is no longer if our climate will change, but how will it change and how will we adapt to these changes? Adaption and mitigation to global warming, the greenhouse effect and climate change all form the basis of the master's Climate Studies programme in Wageningen. Students will gain a broad overview of climate change during this two-year programme. As changes and challenges crystallise, the demand for scientists able to understand and investigate them will rise. This master's programme is specifically targeted at students who wish to focus on the scientific insights into climate change and on the social and economic implications of climate change in the broadest sense.
The MSc programme Climate Studies runs annually beginning from September. It comprises 120 European credit points (EC) and runs for two academic years. The first year consists of 40 weeks of coursework; the second year consists of the academic internship (16 weeks) and thesis programme (24 weeks), which are the core components of the Masters degree programme. View the complete programme of Climate Studies.
Within the master's programme you can choose from the following Specialisations to meet your personal interests.
The best way to get to know a place is by getting to know the people. Students share their experiences with you about the master's programme and student life in Wageningen on the page Student experiences.
The demand for scientists that are able to understand and investigate climate change issues is increasing. After graduation you will be able to continue your scientific career or work in the professional field. Read more about the career perspectives and opportunities after finishing the programme.
Related programmes:
MSc Management, Economics and Consumer Studies
In our Master's programme in Earth, Life, and Climate, you will explore the fundamental processes which regulate the past, present, and future dynamics of sedimentary systems, biodiversity, and climate, as well as their evolution. This two-year programme will provide you with the knowledge you need to understand climate change and its impact on natural environments such as soils, sediments, lakes, groundwater, wetlands, estuaries, and oceans.
The main topics you will study include the evolution of life, the development of sedimentary basins, carbon sources and sinks, biogeochemical and geochemical fingerprinting of sedimentary processes/environments, and climate reconstruction.
You can choose one of four tracks based on your specific interests:
On this programme, you will learn state-of-the-art reconstruction methods, modelling techniques, and laboratory experiments used in a wide range of earth and beta science disciplines. These disciplines include biogeology, palaeontology, palynology, sedimentology, stratigraphy, environmental geochemistry, organic geochemistry, hydrology, physical geography, geology, biology, climate dynamics, marine sciences and palaeoceanography. You will utilise these skills in your own research project or on the traineeships you can take in preparation for an international career in applied or fundamental research.
The programme focuses on the following societal and scientific questions:
Radboud University’s Master’s specialisation in Microbiology deals with the interface between fundamental biological and medical sciences. It focuses on molecular, medical and environmental microbiology to improve our health and environment and provides in-depth insight into present-day microbial research in general and clinical microbiology.
The major topics of the Microbiology specialisation are:
Microorganisms can be used to break down environmental pollutants and toxic chemicals. Therefore microbiology has the potential to replace common energy-intensive chemical processes with more sustainable solutions. Radboud University collaborates closely with environmental scientists and industrial partners to create energy-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for societal waste problems.
Unfortunately some microorganisms make us ill. A better understanding of battle between our immune system and these microorganisms will lead to the development of improved vaccines.
The genome of a microorganism is a key factor in research, because it determines how the organisms interact with the host cell and how they cause diseases. Molecular Microbiology acts on the interface between microbiology, molecular biology and genetics and is fundamental for the development of novel antibiotics and improvement of vaccines against microorganisms.
The department of Microbiology at Radboud University has been bestowed with the most prestigious science prizes, including two ERC Advanced Grants, a Spinoza Prize, and two Gravitation Grants. Additionally, many of out students have been awarded prizes for best thesis, poster and paper. The department works at the forefront of environmental microbiology and is specialised in the discovery of ‘impossible’, new anaerobic micro-organisms. The laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art bioreactors, electron microscopy, GC-MS, metagenomics, and metaproteomics facilities to grow and study micro-organisms that contribute to a better environment by consuming greenhouse gasses and nitrogenous pollutants.
- Research themes
The Master's specialisation Microbiology is mainly focused on research. You can choose one of the following themes as the subject of your research internship:
- Environmental Microbiology & Biotechnology
For students who are intrigued by questions like: How does life without oxygen work? How do global biogeochemical (nutrient) cycles govern the functioning of the Earth? Can we use microorganisms to create a more sustainable wastewater industry? How do microorganisms break down environmental pollutants and toxic chemicals?
You will do research at the interface between Microbiology, environmental sciences and biochemistry. The research questions cover several levels, from gaining fundamental understanding of energy metabolism of bacteria to their applications in wastewater treatment.
Societal relevance: Microbiology has the potential to replace common energy-intensive chemical processes by more sustainable solutions. Radboud University collaborates closely with environmental scientists, animal ecologists and industrial partners to create energy-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for societal waste problems.
- Immunology
For students who are intrigued by questions like: Why do some bacteria make us ill whereas others do not? How do bacteria outsmart our immune system? What are the mechanisms of human defence against microorganisms?
You will do research at the interface between Microbiology, Immunology and Cell Biology, and can, for example, work on how microorganisms are recognised by the host defence system
Societal relevance: A better understanding of host defence will lead to the development of improved vaccines against microorganisms.
- Molecular Microbiology
For students who are intrigued by questions like: How are microorganisms able to persist inside the human body and how do they cause diseases? What does gene regulation tell us about their pathogenic capabilities? Can microbial genomes help us determine how microorganisms interact with human host cells?
You will do research at the interface between Microbiology, molecular biology and genetics, and can, for example, work on functional gene analyses by mutagenesis studies and on the interaction between epithelial cells and pathogenic bacteria.
Societal relevance: Understanding host-pathogen interactions is fundamental for the development of novel antibiotics and improvement of vaccines. Radboudumc collaborates with public health institutes – such as the RIVM (National Institute of Public Health) – and with industrial partners.
- Personal tutor
Our top scientists are looking forward to guiding you during a challenging and inspiring scientific journey. This programme offers you many opportunities to follow your own interests under the excellent supervision of a personal tutor. This allows you to specialise in a field of personal interest.
- The Nijmegen approach
The first thing you will notice as you enter our Faculty of Science is the open atmosphere. This is reflected by the light and transparent building and the open minded spirit of the people working, exploring and studying there. It is no wonder students from all over the world have been attracted to Nijmegen. You study in small groups, with direct and open contact with members of the staff. In addition, Nijmegen has excellent student facilities, such as high-tech laboratories, libraries and study ‘landscapes'.
Studying by the ‘Nijmegen approach' is a way of living. We will equip you with tools which are valuable for the rest of your life. You will be challenged to become aware of your intrinsic motivation. In other words, what is your passion in life? With this question in mind we will guide you to translate your passion into a personalised Master's in Biology.
See the website http://www.ru.nl/masters/microbiology
If you are interested in earth science, and environmental science but you want to specialise in the study of soil specifically the Aberdeen programme gives you in depth knowledge and a range of experts and alumni who consult at government level. Aberdeen is further supported by having the James Hutton Institute within the city limits, a notable institute specialising in soil science over the years known formerly the Macaulay Institute.
Soil Science is becoming increasingly important to our ability to sustain life on earth as we look at how to keep the soil clean from pollutants in water, air and polluting industries, pesticides and all sorts of changes to soil. There are also growing concerns that as the population increases and climate change also increases how do we farm in the future? The degree gives you all the skills and knowledge you need to work as a soil scientist either as a researcher, within government or regulation or as a consultant working with industry and other organisations devoted to soil science.
You learn about soil science, sustainability, land use planning, food security, GIS, and land use with intensive laboratory analysis from one of the top centres in the world for soil science. We also take you into the field to study specific situations and you are guided by our world renowned researchers in the environmental sciences. This is one of only a handful of Soil Science programmes with cutting edge technologies to help you analyse and study soil in depth. Soil science falls within agricultural sciences which were ranked No. 1 in the UK for research excellence (REF 2014) and the highly acclaimed Environmental Science disciplines which Aberdeen has made a name for itself in over the years.
Semester 1
Semester 2
Optional
Semester 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
Find out about international fees:
Find out more about fees on the programme page
*Please be advised that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the programme page and the latest postgraduate opportunities
Find out more about:
Find out more about living in Aberdeen and living costs
With a multidisciplinary emphasis, this MSc Oceanography Masters programme incorporates both taught modules as well as independent research.
This is the course page for MSc Oceanography at the University of Southampton. Find out everything about Oceanography and what studying here involves.
In this course page we explain a range of key information about the course. This includes typical entry requirements, modules you can take and how assessment works. We also suggest career opportunities open to you as a University of Southampton graduate of MSc Oceanography.
If you still have questions, please get in touch and we’ll be happy to answer any enquiries. See our contact us page for our telephone, email and address information.
The MSc Oceanography degree is designed primarily for students with no previous specialisation in marine science. For example, if you are a graduate with a degree in biological sciences, chemistry or materials science, physics, maths, environmental science, physical geography or related disciplines.
The programme includes compulsory introductory modules that provide a foundation in interdisciplinary marine science, along with the opportunity to specialise in particular areas through an option of modules, as well as research project experience with marine scientists at the National Oceanography Centre Southampton (NOCS).
To highlight the specialisations possible through the option modules of the programme, we have developed "pathways" of suggested module choices, which include:
Students can either follow one of these "pathways", or mix options from different pathways, where the timetable allows, to pursue broader interests.
Employment in the marine environmental sector is a common destination for MSc Oceanography graduates, and as the degree is a "conversion" to marine science from "pure" science backgrounds, around one-third of graduates also go on to PhD research in marine sciences.
View the programme specification document for this course
This joint European programme provides the opportunity to study in Southampton, Bilbao, Liege and Bordeaux.
This is the course page for MSc Marine Environment and Resources at the University of Southampton. Find out everything about Marine Environment and Resources and what studying here involves.
In this course page we explain a range of key information about the course. This includes typical entry requirements, modules you can take and how assessment works. We also suggest career opportunities open to you as a University of Southampton graduate of MSc Marine Environment and Resources.
If you still have questions, please get in touch and we’ll be happy to answer any enquiries. See our contact us page for our telephone, email and address information.
The 18-24 month Master of Science in Marine Environment and Resources (MER) is a European degree programme developed from a collaboration between three leading European institutions in this field:
You will develop your ability to think through complex issues, to analyse the marine environment and its resources and to ensure development is sustainable. Examples of topics you could study across the MER programme include integrated coastal zone management, the assessment of marine ecosystem health, protection and recovery of marine and estuary environments and competitive and responsible fisheries management.
You can find out more about the programme and studying at each of these universities on the MER Consortium website.
Our partner universities offer structured tuition in local languages during your stay and these are free of charge.
View the programme specification document for this course
This programme will give you the opportunity to focus on a particular area such as physical, chemical or biological oceanography, which may be inspired by your first degree.
This is the course page for MRes Ocean Science at the University of Southampton. Find out everything about Ocean Science and what studying here involves.
In this course page we explain a range of key information about the course. This includes typical entry requirements, modules you can take and how assessment works. We also suggest career opportunities open to you as a University of Southampton graduate of MRes Ocean Science.
If you still have questions, please get in touch and we’ll be happy to answer any enquiries. See our contact us page for our telephone, email and address information.
As a MRes student, you will spend around two thirds of your year on your research project and the rest of your time taking taught modules. Depending on your background knowledge, these will be a mix of core and optional subjects. You will be able to develop specific knowledge and skills through your selection of modules and choice of subject for your substantial research project.
The programme is taught by staff from across NOCS who draw on their topical cutting edge research to create a challenging and stimulating degree programme. You will also be encouraged to attend our research seminars, some delivered by leading visiting scientists.
View the programme specification document for this course
This course will examine the interactions between climate, hydrology, geomorphology, ecology, biogeochemical cycling, water and habitat quality and biodiversity.
Using a combination of lectures, fieldwork, tutorials, laboratory classes, group projects and an individual research-based thesis, you will be provided with the necessary training and skills for a career in the successful environmental management of rivers.
River systems are under ever increasing pressure through the growing demands of water abstraction and hydroelectric power generation, and suffer recurrent disturbance through diffuse and point source pollutants, drought, flooding and channel modification.
The environmental management of rivers is required to mitigate the effects of these pressures. This requires a holistic understanding of how river systems are structured and function, and of how these systems have been altered by anthropogenic activities. To this end, the course will examine the interactions between climate, hydrology, geomorphology, ecology, biogeochemical cycling, water and habitat quality and biodiversity.
An important aspect of the training will be an understanding of how these interactions act at different spatial and temporal scales to influence the structure and function of ecosystems in running waters. This scientific and technical corpus will allow you to understand and quantify the consequences of natural and anthropogenic disturbance on river systems.
Using a combination of lectures, fieldwork, tutorials, laboratory classes, group projects and an individual research-based thesis, you will be provided with the necessary training and skills for a career in the successful environmental management of rivers, including techniques on assessing their status and approaches to rehabilitate and restore the condition of these globally threatened environments.
This degree will provide direct postgraduate training for students interested in this career direction, as well as providing advanced-level training suitable for further PhD studies in water science.
We are fortunate at Birmingham in having a wide variety of staff within the Water Sciences Research Group with interests in rivers, particularly in the arena of hydroecology, and it is this expertise that will inform the teaching of the modules in River Environments and their Management.
The River Environments and their Management programme involves a core of lectures, tutorials and laboratory classes. This core material is backed up by supplementary material designed to deepen the comprehension of the basic processes, to understand their application in environmental management and industry and to develop an appreciation of both the industrial and environmental management environment.
Examples of activities include:
Using a combination of lectures, fieldwork, tutorials, laboratory classes, group projects and an individual research-based thesis, you will be provided with the necessary training and skills for a career in the successful environmental management of rivers, including techniques on assessing their status and approaches to rehabilitate and restore the condition of these globally threatened environments. You will also gain training in legislation that drives the environmental management of rivers worldwide.
Fieldwork
There are also a number of day-long field trips connected with a variety of modules, in particular Surface Water Hydrology, River Ecology and River Restoration, including a day of learning measurement techniques at the BIFOR field site.
The course is of considerable value if you wish to pursue a career in the river environmental management field or the water industry. It also provides advanced level training if you wish progress on to a PhD.
Currently, due to the large national demand for Water Managers, we have a 100% employment success rate for all our home/EU students, with graduates obtaining employment in the consultancy sector, typically with jobs secured before graduation. Additionally, Environmental Scientists who have spent some time in a branch of the water industry often feel the need for a postgraduate course to give them an overall understanding of their profession. The River Environments and their Management programme is so structured as to satisfy the requirements of both of these groups of potential students, the latter includes many International students who choose to retrain here in Birmingham.
The MSc program in Integrated climate system Sciences (ICSS) offers courses in all fields of climate system sciences. At present, the program allows the specialization in one of following three tracks:
• physics of the climate system;
• biogeochemistry of the climate system;
• climate related economics and social sciences.
All courses are held in English. Class size is limited to 20 students. Our research oriented study program has been accredited by ASIIN in 2010.
• Be part of the Cluster of Excellence CliSAP at KlimaCampus Hamburg and study all aspects of the climate system.
• Benefit from a structured study program.
• Take the advantage of having the choice to give your study program either an "in-depth" or an "interdisciplinary" focus.
• Have access to an exciting environment conducive to science and education, and use the extraordinary resources at the KlimaCampus.
• Make use of our support program and prepare yourself for your chosen career field.
• Feel at home in an international atmosphere and enjoy living in Hamburg.
Your curriculum for the two-year ICSS master`s program is subdivided into four semesters with mandatory courses, elective courses for specialization and the preparation of your master’s thesis. The curriculum starts from a firm basis in climate physics (and in particular climate modeling) but adds the equally important aspects of global and regional biogeochemical cycling and puts all this into a broader context, including economic as well as societal implications. SICSS courses comprise a wide range of atmospheric, hydrospheric, cryospheric, pedospheric and biospheric sciences, as well as introductions and specializations into economics, social geography, media sciences and conflict research to shed light on climate system science from different perspectives.
You will start your studies with mandatory courses in research skills, as well as natural and social science foundation courses in climate system sciences.
The main goal of the second semester is to broaden your knowledge across the climate science disciplines. You will choose courses from at least two of the three possible program tracks.
The third semester features the Climate Study Project, which includes an integrated seminar and a scientific writing course to prepare you for the master thesis. You will find your personal supervisor and work closely together with a CliSAP research group.
The fourth and final semester is reserved for the master’s thesis.
Please find more information on the curriculum on our website: http://www.clisap.de/grad-school/msc-program/your-curriculum/.
Become a climate expert! Depending on your personal interests, you will be well prepared and equipped for an international career in both applied and fundamental research, as well as for positions in government or business.
After graduation our students successfully work as:
• researchers in the fields of natural, social and economic sciences, while maintaining a strong focus on the climate system and its past, present and future changes.
• consultants in the public service and private business sectors, and in non-governmental organizations.
• experts in national and international organizations working in the field of development cooperation.
The SICSS Office is your main contact for information and will support you with a comprehensive and practical “welcome service” by assisting with enrollment, visa application, health insurance, registration with local authorities, opening of a bank account and support in finding accommodations.
As an incoming master’s student you will receive support from a personal buddy. This personal buddy is one of the MSc ICSS students and will accompany you from the start of your travel and study planning to your arrival and during your first days in Hamburg. SICSS also offers an Orientation Week for all new first semester students, including information on your study program and excursions to climate-related institutions and sites.
There are no tuition fees at the Universität Hamburg and foreign students who are enrolled do not pay tuition. However, there are other fees. The semester fee at the Universität Hamburg is currently 315 Euros. Upon receipt of the semester fee the university will issue your semester documents, including a pass for the public transport system in Hamburg. Upon your request, the SICSS Office will provide information about living expenses in Hamburg and Germany.
This new and exciting programme is aimed at training graduates from a range of scientific disciplines who wish to pursue a research career in cold-regions science, notably within the disciplines of glaciology, glacial geomorphology, polar climatology/ oceanography, environmental science, polar biogeochemical processes, or their intersections.
The programme’s underlying theme is contemporary, as its key interest is to explore the expressions, mechanisms and impacts of rapid ongoing changes in our planet’s cold regions.
You’ll develop the skills to work in private or public sector research, or join the civil service. Recent graduates have started careers in consulting or with organisations like CAFOD, the Environment Agency and the British Library. Many of our graduates stay on to do research. We have a high success rate in securing funding for those who wish to study for a PhD with us after finishing a masters.
This is a vibrant postgraduate community, with strong international links. Our research partners are global, from UK universities to institutions in southern Africa, Denmark, Iceland, Australia and the USA. Our teaching is invigorated by work from several interdisciplinary research groups, like the Sheffield Centre for International Drylands Research, the Urban and Regional Policy Research Institute and the Sheffield Institute for International Development.
Our staff are active researchers at the cutting-edge of their fields. That research informs our masters courses. As well as the usual lectures and seminars, there are practicals, lab classes, field trips and research projects.
A new £1m Sediment-Solute Systems lab enables geochemical analysis of aqueous and solid phases, especially in the context of biogeochemistry. We have equipment for chromatography, UV spectrometry and flow injection/auto analysis.
Our sample preparation facilities enable digestion, pre-concentration by evaporation under vacuum, and tangential flow filtration. There are alpha and gamma counters, a laser particle sizer and a luminescence dating lab. Field equipment includes automatic water samplers, weather stations, data loggers and environmental process characterisation sensors.
We have high-quality petrological microscopes for examining geological samples. We have labs for spectrometry and for palaeontological preparation, and you’ll also have access to specialist facilities in other departments at the University.
Laptops, camcorders, tape recorders and transcribers are available for your fieldwork. Our postgraduate computer labs have networked workstations for GIS research and climate modelling, ARC/INFO, ERDAS software and specialist software for remote sensing. GIS facilities are also provided by the £5m Informatics Collaboratory for the Social Sciences.
Our new postgraduate media GIS suite has facilities for Skype, video conferencing, web design, video editing and creative media.
Most of our courses involve fieldwork. The MPH, MSc and MA International Development take students on a 10-day field trip where they put their research skills into practice. Recent classes visited the West Pokot region of Kenya, urban and rural areas of Nepal, the suburbs of Cairo and India.
Modules are delivered through a mixture of lectures, seminars, workshops and independent study.
The Research Project is assessed by oral presentation of mid-project findings, submission of a project report in the summer and by a poster presentation of project findings.
Department of Life Sciences – a leading international centre for research and training in ecology, evolution, conservation and the environment
