MA/MS in Biodiversität

The Master's programme in Biodiversity at Ruhr-Universität Bochum explores the processes that generate biological diversity and the methods used to record it. Topics include classification of animals, fungi and plants, the role of microorganisms in ecosystems, and how ecosystem functions respond to climate change and environmental damage. Teaching combines theory with fieldwork and excursions, and students learn to communicate research to the public, including through citizen science projects. A compulsory internship forms part of the course, and former students describe it as more useful in hindsight than it first appeared, because it provides practical experience and orientation. The course gives students room to set their own specialist focus after the first term, although the available modules differ considerably from one semester to the next. The programme suits graduates of biology who want to move towards ecology and wish to see how a natural environment works in practice.