Course summary

The World is facing a number of global crises – biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, climate change and threats to food and energy supplies. The FdSc Countryside Management provides the skills and knowledge necessary for graduates to work in the countryside sector. There is a focus on practical skills relevant to land management, wildlife conservation, and habitat management. The course also provides skills in visitor management on land with multiple uses such as in National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and on a smaller scale at countryside sites such as Country Parks and nature reserves. A key feature of the programme is the emphasis on applied and practical applications and opportunities which take advantage of the University’s close links to the countryside management industry. In addition, practical learning is facilitated through the estate, university farm and the proximity to a wide range of natural resources in the surrounding countryside. The programme will suit applicants who have a passion for practical working in an outdoor environment and who wish to work with a diversity of countryside stakeholders including conservation bodies, farmers and landowners, and recreational visitors. Expertise in areas including climate change adaptation and mitigation, water management, sustainable energy, land use and food security are integrated in this programme to train a new generation of professionals. A key focus will be practical approaches to the productive management of land whilst balancing the needs of society for a healthy environment. This will include thriving biodiversity, clean water and air, and safety from natural hazards (such as floods and extreme weather) wrought by climate change, agricultural intensification and the demands of a growing UK and global population. Graduates will develop the skills to address sustainable development issues. This course will provide a combination of underpinning theory and practical application to demonstrate key concepts and allow students to develop their own specialist areas of interest. This programme is interdisciplinary in nature and students can expect to gain a wide variety of insights into land and countryside management. Students will also gain transferable skills for use in employment or continuation of their studies to a top-up year and graduation of BSc (Hons) Environmental Management and Sustainability.