Conservation Biology

This course mainly focuses on conservation in terrestrial environments. It develops knowledge of key areas such as the principles and practices of ecology, habitat management, nature conservation and the functioning of natural systems, particularly with regard to different points of view including scientific, ethical and philosophical perspectives. Opportunities are provided to apply knowledge and understanding of conservation biology during field courses within the UK and abroad giving first-hand experience of a range of ecosystems. A Placement Year option is available for this course. Undertaking a placement year as part of your degree programme offers you the opportunity to gain valuable work experience alongside your studies. Teaching on this course is structured into lectures, where all students are taught together, seminars of smaller groups of around 20-25 students and tutorials which typically have no more than 10 students. There is also the opportunity to have a one-to-one meeting with your tutor each week. Fieldwork and practical laboratory sessions are a significant part of this course. Fieldwork destinations include local and regional sites of national and international conservation importance, along with international fieldwork. The course makes use of the university’s own field centre, Plas Caerdeon, set within Snowdonia National Park on the banks of the beautiful Mawddach estuary and overlooking Cader Idris National Nature Reserve. In your first year, there are approximately 12 teaching hours each week. During the second and third years this changes to approximately 10 teaching hours each week as students grow in competence to conduct independent but supported study. In addition to these teaching hours, students are also expected to spend time studying independently each week as well as engaging in group study to prepare for some group assessments.