Marine Systems and Policies

Entry requirements

A UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in natural sciences or social sciences, but with clear evidence of experience and interest in marine topics.

Months of entry

September

Course content

Rapid climate change and the global expansion of human activities threaten the world's oceans. How do we realistically balance development with ocean conservation in a rapidly changing climate? How do we do this in ways that are also equitable and fair to society?

Our MSc programme places you right at the forefront of the fast-paced interface between marine science and policy that deals with these sustainability challenges. This broad programme is built around the science and policies spanning tropical to polar ecosystems, from wetlands and estuaries to the deep-sea, including the abyss.

From the outset, you will learn how marine ecosystems are structured and how they function from research-active marine ecologists and oceanographers. You will also learn how these ecosystems are used, valued, and managed from:

• local people
• social scientists
• governments
• industry
• experts in marine law

During the programme, you will learn how to apply marine science and knowledge to critically evaluate and enrich policies and influence how new policies can be created through science communication. You will get to learn from real-world practitioners and people with lived experiences through global case studies and field trips. These experiences will be under the guidance of a research-active team of highly supportive and motivated university scientists with decades of experience at the science-policy interface from grassroots to international levels.

The capstone of your programme is an independent marine research dissertation project. It will be designed by you and a supervisor or host on a topic of your choice. You can either conduct an internship or a placement for your dissertation in either a desk-based, lab-based, or field-based setting.

By the end of your programme, you will be highly equipped with a portfolio of skills that employers are looking for, and that will support a future academic PhD career, including:

• policy analysis
• applied marine scientific survey and social science skills
• science communication

You will develop a strong understanding of key marine ecosystems, the impacts of human activities and climate change, and international and national policy frameworks to govern these ecosystems.

Programme benefits

The MSc centres a lot on the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14: "Life Below Water", but our programme’s interdisciplinarity will help you find links to all SDGs.