Course summary

We live in a period of exceptional rates of environmental change, including climate change, urban expansion, the spread of invasive species, and ocean acidification. These changes present an unprecedented challenge to biodiversity. This MSc is designed to equip you to play a key role in developing solutions to this global change crisis. The programme will provide you with opportunities to critically evaluate and apply state of the art quantitative ecological and evolutionary methods, combined with practical field skills, and to tailor communications for a diversity of audiences, from scientists to government. You will be based in the School of Biological Sciences, which ranked in the top 5 for the UK for research power (REF 2022). The School is part of the new Centre for Adapting to Changing Environments, composed of over 100 research groups. Courses will draw on a breadth of case studies across different ecosystems, from long-term vertebrate studies to marine microbes. There will be an emphasis on practice, including fieldwork, statistics, and coding. Teaching is through lectures, tutorials, seminars, computer practicals, presentations and fieldwork. Learning outcomes On completion of this programme, you will be able to:

• explain how ecological and evolutionary processes can underpin biotic responses to anthropogenic change at a variety of spatial scales

• identify the key steps and techniques involved with a major ecological project

• design and implement an empirical or theoretical study to quantify impact of environmental change on any level of biodiversity

• identify appropriate statistical approaches for analysing different types of data

• apply and evaluate evidence quantitative methods for assessing evidence of evolutionary changed

• account for the complexity and relationship of drivers and impacts in the face of sources of uncertainty

• apply data-handling, statistical, modelling and visualisation approaches, including use of R software

• communicate research outcomes to academic and non-academic stakeholders in written and oral presentations.

• work effectively across a diversity of group settings, taking on a range of roles.