Course summary

Course details Our MSc in Plant Biotechnology and Enterprise explores the need for society to increase agricultural productivity amid global warming and equips you with the skills and experience in biotechnological innovation and commercial know-how to support the vital efforts to shape food production in the future. The course is designed to enhance scientific understanding of plant biotechnology. It has been developed against a backdrop of a decade-long fall in crop protection and biotech products caused by fewer companies working in the sector, a difficult legislative environment and the lack of professionals with the right abilities and specific knowledge to convert their ideas into commercial products. Why Durham University? The Department of Biosciences considers global issues such as healthy ageing, food security and control of disease and the existential conditions of climate change and sustainability. Our academic goal is to develop workable responses that will help to improve lives and environments worldwide. Biosciences addresses many of the greatest challenges faced by humankind such as ageing, food security and disease control and looks at ways to tackle them. In this fascinating discipline, we study biological forms ranging from microscopic molecules to global ecosystems in order to help understand how to manage life and living on Earth. We take a research-led approach to teaching that develops both the theoretical and practical knowledge that is needed in order to be able to contribute in a meaningful way to tackling these issues. Facilities In the Department itself, we have a huge range of state-of-the-art technology, which is widely used by the postgraduate community for research work. The highly specialised equipment includes electron and confocal laser scanning microscopy, transgenic studies, genomics, DNA analysis and proteomics, bioinformatics, remote sensing, ecological field sampling and computer modelling. Other departmental facilities are also world-class, including extensive greenhouses, environmental control chambers, cell technology facilities, microscopy suite, facilities for next generation sequencing and proteomics, and dedicated powerful computers for bioinformatics. Career Opportunities As a biosciences postgraduate, you receive the essential skills and knowledge that come with research-led teaching, enabling you to continue your academic work at a higher level. Your experience in the Department also develops more personal attributes, sought by employers, to help you take the step into a stimulating and rewarding professional career. Recent postgraduates have gone on to succeed in a wide range of roles in teaching, the health sector, industrial R&D and biotechnology, management, accountancy, conservation, ecological and environmental services, journalism, environmental and biological patent law, pharmaceuticals, the civil service and the armed services.