MSc - Biodiversity Conservation

After working as a project administrator for ReForLan, a forest restoration project in Latin America, I am now six months into my PhD studentship, researching the impact of climate change on extinction risk on the Montane Forests.

I have always liked the idea of getting involved in nature conservation and, after finishing an undergraduate degree in Applied Geography, finding a MSc on Biodiversity at BU gave me that extra focus on my interests. It was ideal for me because it emphasised on fieldwork and practical activities with local professionals. BU had great studying facilities and the staff provided all the support I needed.

I really enjoyed the course, particularly the fieldwork carried out, where actual conservation issues were tackled in the different local habitats. My personal research project was carried out in Mexico, where I had the pleasure to survey tropical dry forests using local surveying techniques, alongside local people and forest experts. I assessed the different methods of surveying the dry forests and the experience and knowledge gained there helped me to get my current position.

I have developed skills such as critical analysis of current environmental issues, learnt various techniques used in conservation today and strengthened my knowledge in scientific writing, project bids and GIS.

Since finishing my MSc I had the opportunity to get a part-time job as an administrator for a forest restoration project in Latin America. I have also worked as a research assistant at BU and the University of Alcala de Henares, Spain. I believe that doing this MSc has improved my career profile and helped me to get in contact with people involved in nature conservation. I think that it would have been difficult to achieve this without the MSc.