MSc in Shellfish Biology, Fisheries & Culture
The
course was initiated in 1989/9 and arose from the separation of the existing
MSc Marine Biology (running since the late 1950's) into the more applied areas
of marine environmental protection and management and cultivation of commercial
marine species.The aims and structure of the course reflect the need to expand
world food production and the increasing call for improved management of
existing food species and production of new resources through cultivation.
Aquaculture is becoming increasingly
important in the effort to expand world food production, particularly in
tropical countries. Recent advances in culture techniques for both marine and
freshwater invertebrates such as shrimp and bivalves have led to the
establishment of rapidly expanding industries. The School of Ocean Sciences has
a long history of research expertise in culture of marine species and has
pioneered techniques contributing to, and is actively involved in, expansion of
the mariculture industry. The School has excellent culture facilities which are
routinely used to mature and spawn a variety of temperate and tropical marine
species including bivalve molluscs and penaeid prawns. Current research is
centred on the nutrition, genetics, reproduction, disease/microbiology and
culture systems for marine bivalves, crustaceans and fish. Field research
topics in the
AIMS OF THE
COURSE
The course provides advanced training in
applied marine science for recent graduates in natural sciences and mature
students with relevant experience. The course sets out to use the expertise within the School,
together with that of other relevant University departments and visiting
specialists from industry, to train students in shellfish and fish biology,
fisheries and culture. On completing the
course, students are able to attain the level of independent scientists, so
that they may successfully follow careers in the public, private and higher
education sectors of the
TAUGHT COURSE PHILOSOPHY
The course is a taught MSc, providing
advanced training in applied aspects of fisheries and cultivation, through
lectures, seminars, practical courses, desk studies and research projects.
Strong emphasis is given to training in practical techniques used in applied
fields. The course begins with structured lectures and practicals, supported by
essay and exercise assignments, but as the course progresses, you are
increasingly charged with the responsibility for learning, through group work
and independent study. The assignments culminate in a Literature Review which
will be in the area of your Research Project dissertation, during the latter
you will conduct independent research and present your findings to publication
standards. Topics are covered in detail by individual SOS staff supervising the
course for a period of one or two weeks at a time. Gradually, the staff role
becomes less of a teacher and more of a facilitator and supervisor. The
interdisciplinary nature of the course allows students from different natural
science subject areas, and a wide range of
COURSE STRUCTURE
The course is a full time one year,
residential course of study, beginning in late September consisting of 9 months
taught course and 3 months research project, and examined by continuous
assessment.
The taught
course is composed of 5 subject areas each lasting from
FISHERIES to provide the background
rationale for aquaculture and teach survey and stock assessment methods. Introduction and review of current status of
shellfisheries and harvest practices for world crustaceans, molluscs and other
groups. Training in fishery stock assessment methods, analysis, management
principles and resource
economics.
BIOLOGY providing information on
key commercial species. Description and
study of the functional biology of selected species, including feeding,
nutrition, growth energetics, reproduction, genetics and larval biology.
WATER QUALITY introduces the theory and
practical aspects of important
environmental factors controlling culture. Provides practical training
including water quality management and analysis, bacteriology, disease and
parasites, water
chemistry and bacteriology for culture.
CULTURE theoretical and practical training in the culture of
temperate and tropical bivalves and crustaceans and fish, control of
reproduction, hatchery operation, nursery and ongrow techniques, production of
natural and artificial feeds and genetics. At Easter the course visits
INDUSTRIAL AND
ENVIRONMENTAL deals with economics of culture systems, marketing, legal
aspects including public health together with natural resource economics. Considers the
environmental impact of aquaculture and its role in coastal management
planning.
MODULES Each subject area comprises a
series of specialised modules of lecture topics and associated practical
units. Each module is organised and run
by a member of staff over the period of 1 - 3 weeks. Most modules
are equivalent to 10 hours lecture per week and 2 days practical
work. The theory provides the necessary
background to understand the practical and applied aims of the course. The practical sessions provide demonstrations
and tuition of relevant techniques.
Teaching sessions do not always take the form of formal lectures and
practicals of fixed duration, and lectures, seminars, practical sessions,
supervised and unsupervised study often merge into one another. Many topics require working in small groups
or larger teams, and interaction and discussion between course members and
staff is encouraged.
LITERATURE REVIEW
During the second semester a research topic
is selected, which may be on any area (including marine fish) consistent with student's interests or chosen
career field. A supervised literature
review related to the topic will be completed, and forms part of the
taught course assessment.
RESEARCH PROJECT
Once students have successfully completed
the taught course, the research project is undertaken, leading to submission an
dissertation of approximately 20,000 words.
Examples of previous research projects
ASSESSMENT
Assessment of the taught course is based on
essays, practical reports and the literature review. At the end of the taught
course, all students meet the External Examiner before continuing to their
research project. The project is assessed internally within the School and by
the External Examiner.
COURSE SIZE
The course normally runs with 12 to 18 students.
APPLICATIONS
Successful applicants to the MSc in Shellfish Biology,
Fisheries and Culture normally hold, or are expected to be awarded, a First Class
or Upper Second Class Honours Degree in a Natural Science or related
subject. Alternatively, we will consider
applicants with a good and relevant Lower Second Class Honours Degree provided
that they have at least one year of additional relevant experience. Non-graduates who are over 25 years in age
and have at least two years work experience relevant to the course are also
encouraged to apply. In all cases, we
place great emphasis on the references supplied by either academic referees or
employers, and we strongly recommend that you enclose a short curriculum vitae.
You should complete a
On receipt of your application, the Postgraduate Admissions Office
confirms your eligibility for Masters study before forwarding the application
to the
You
can download the application and referee forms from this web site. This
information is also available on request.
CONTACT INFORMATION
To make an informal equiry, request more
information or to begin an application, please contact one
of:
Dr Lewis Le Vay Course Director (from July 2001)
Tel +44 (0) 1248 388115 email: l.levay@bangor.ac.uk
Gillian Roberts Postgraduate Admissions Sec
Tel +44 (0) 1248 382846 email: oss089@bangor.ac.uk
Sandie Hague Postgraduate Administrator
Tel +44 (0) 1248 382897 email: s.hague@bangor.ac.uk
All the above staff can be contacted via the