Master of Science (Ecosystem Science)

Fire and frost; drought and flood; summer and winter. Ecosystems are ever-changing. Add the spectre of climate change and it's clear that understanding and protecting our diverse ecosystems is a major ongoing challenge.

Will you accept that challenge in your career?

This masters degree, which includes a major research project, will take your expertise in ecosystem science to an advanced level, and prepare you for a career in research.

The Master of Science (Ecosystem Science) is a 200-point course, made up of:

• Discipline core subjects (25 points)
• Discipline elective subjects (25 points)
• Professional skills subjects (25 points)
• A research project (125 points).

You'll select your core and elective subjects from a large range available. Plus, you'll undertake a major research project, working on an ecosystem science research question. This can involve laboratory, field or social studies work, as needed. To support you and provide direction, you'll have one of our expert researchers as a supervisor.

You'll select a research project topic from these areas:

• conservation biology
• ecology
• ecophysiology
• environmental psychology
• environmental and landscape management
• forest science
• genetics
• horticulture
• hydrology
• soil science.

We know that you'll need professional skills to give you the edge in the workplace, so you'll be able to select from a wide range of high-level professional subjects, including communication, modelling, programming, ethics and more.

Our graduates go on to work as foresters, ecologists, landscape managers, sustainability experts, environmental risk managers and research and policy advisors.

Employers in this field include:

• Government departments of environment and economic development, including VicForests and the Forestry Corporation of NSW
• Universities and public research institutions such as the CSIRO.