Course summary

Forests are the most biodiverse of all terrestrial ecosystems and contain the vast majority of the world’s species. This degree provides an understanding of this biodiversity, the ways in which it is influenced by people, and the role that forests can play in reducing the impacts of human activities, including climate change. You will focus on the principles of biological conservation, forest ecology and forest ecosystem function, and the management of forests to meet conservation objectives. There are opportunities to study abroad in the second year.. Located in beautiful North Wales, you will enjoy learning through a combination of lectures, seminars, workshops and practicals, as well as site visits to a diverse range of woodlands, forests and other habitats. This degree is accredited by the Institute of Chartered Foresters and gives partial fulfilment of Professional Membership Entry. We will also pay for your first year’s student membership to the Institute of Chartered Foresters. We run week long field courses in every year of this degree, enabling you to spend time outside honing your site observation and data collection skills from the very start of the degree. Our extensive local, national and international networks and our active research programmes allow us to deliver high quality teaching which addresses cutting-edge issues, . We work closely with, and introduce students to, organisations such as Natural Resources Wales, Forestry Commission, Woodland Trust, Forest Research, the Institute of Chartered Foresters, Woodland Heritage, National Trust and many others. Our students and academic staff are active collaborators with international organisation such as the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center, Costa Rica (CATIE), the Center for International Forestry Research, Indonesia (CIFOR), the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and the International Forestry Students’ Association (IFSA). We own 82 hectares of woodland, many semi natural, which are used for teaching, student projects and research. The University farm is also host to a range of forestry and land-use research experiments that provide excellent teaching and learning resources. ‘Placement Year’ and 'International Experience Year’ options are available for this course. You will have the opportunity to fully consider these options when you have started your course at Bangor and can make an application for a transfer onto such a pathway at the appropriate time. You can find more information about these options on our website and if you have any questions, please get in touch. If you don’t have the required qualifications for this degree-level course or are looking to re-enter education after time away from study, then a Foundation Year Programme might be the right choice for you. Please see Environmental Science (with Foundation Year) F90F.