Overview

Effective food and water security is contingent on all people in a given area having access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food and an adequate supply of clean water. Though in the developed western world such factors remain relatively stable, the same cannot be said in relation to the developing world. This issue, coupled with the ever increasing size of the global population, makes meeting the world’s demand for food and water one of the most important challenges of the 21st century. The MSc in Food and Water is a response to this issue. It is the result of a collaborative interdisciplinary effort on behalf of three of Aberystwyth university’s world class academic departments: the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS), the Institute of Geography and Earth Sciences (IGES) and the Department of International Politics. This multidisciplinary approach means that you will be able to view the issue of food and water security through three unique conceptual lenses and draw on these ideas to form a comprehensive understanding of this emerging field of research.

The part of the MSc in Food and Water Security consists of modules which introduce the subject through the specific perspectives the different disciplines involved. This part of the course is thus designed to give you a sound overview of the issues in Food and Water Security; but during it, you will also be encouraged by your tutors to identify the area of study which you will investigate thoroughly in a 20,000 word research project in the second part of the Master’s programme. This might be from a perspective within one of the disciplines, or an attempt to relate insights from the different disciplines to the consideration of a particular sub-topic. The MSc in Food and Water Security is designed to equip you to progress into a wide range of technical careers in both the public and commercial sectors, but will also provide you with the opportunity to begin a career in further research in this vital area.

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Download the Masters in Food and Water Security Candidates Guide

Factfile

Duration:	One year full-time or two years part-time. The academic year (September to September) is divided into three semesters: September to January; January to June; June to September.
Contact Time:	Roughly 12-16 a week in the first two semesters. During semester three you will work on your Dissertation, arranging your level of contact time with your assigned supervisor.
Assessment:	The taught part of the course (Part1) is delivered and assessed through lectures, student seminars, practicals, case studies, course work and formal examinations. The subsequent successful submission of a 20,000 word research dissertation (Part 2) leads to the award of MSc.
Entry Requirements:	A second class degree or better in a relevant discipline. Candidates with equivalent experience will be considered on a case by case basis.
English Language Requirements:	If you have a Bachelor’s degree from a UK University, you do not need to take an English proficiency test. Non-native English speakers who do not meet this requirement must take a University-recognised test of academic English language proficiency. For further information please see our English Language requirements page.
Course Fees:	Please see the tuition fee pages for current tuition fees. Please note that all fees are subject to an annual increase

Career Development

Qualification: MSc in Food and Water Security

This degree will suit you:

• If you are interested in learning the scientific, economic, social and political factors that affect the secure production and distribution of food and water throughout the world.
• If you wish to obtain a meaningful postgraduate qualification from a research-led institute which boasts an excellent international reputation.
• If you have a second class degree or better in a relevant discipline and wish to enhance your understanding of Food and Water Security.
• If you wish to enter a career in an industry that is poised to deal with some of the most difficult challenges of the 21^st century.

Employability

Graduates of the Aberystwyth MSc in Food and Water Security will be ideally qualified for employment in a key area of the rapidly expanding Green Economy. Governments around the world recognise that tackling the issues of food and water security successfully, at national, regional and global levels, will be require an extensive regulatory infrastructure undergirded by accurate research into scientific possibilities and political feasibility. Demand for well-qualified graduates to fill key positions in such an infrastructure will only rise.

The multidisciplinary understanding that you will have in this field will make you highly desirable to employers in a wide range of public and commercial enterprises, government agencies and non-governmental organisations. Alternatively, you may decide to draw on the work you have done in your Master’s dissertation to continue in a field of academic study which is likely to receive a high level of both governmental and private funding in the next few years. The international reputation of Aberystwyth’s research in these disciplines will give your qualifications and expertise real credibility.

Key Skills and Competencies 

Knowledge Base

This MSc in Food and Water Security offer you with an inter-connected multidisciplinary knowledge set which it would be difficult to acquire in any other way.

The first core module of the course, Food and Water Security: Global Perspectives, is of a non-technical nature in order to cater for students with widely different experiences of natural and social sciences and will give all students a common level of knowledge and understanding of key topics relating to food and water security. The subsequent core modules will focus on more specialised branches of knowledge and teach you skills that will allow you to examine the political and legislative processes that hinder or facilitate the security of such resources. Throughout these modules you will gain a set of rigorous scientific skills which will allow you to identify, access and manage hydrological extremes such as floods and drought.

In addition, the option modules will give you the opportunity to develop further your knowledge base, skills and competencies in areas which are of particular interest to you in relation your future pathway:

• Critical Security Studies: Contemporary Theories will explore the critical changes in thinking about security through examination of the main alternative concepts of security that have emerged in recent years;
• International Politics of Famine will link debates over definitions of famine to ideas about its causes;
• Environmental Policy and Sustainability will provide an advanced framework for you to analyse the connections between environmental thought and related aspects of environmental policy throughout the world;
• Food Security: Solutions will cover those biological strategies being developed and adopted in order to meet the growing demand for food without detriment to the environment.

Transferable Skills

As the MSc in Food and Water Security combines the extensive disciplinary knowledge of IBERS, IGES and the Department of International Politics the skills and competencies that you will gain from this course will, by necessity, have a high level of transferability. The varied methods of assessment within the different disciplines of the degree are designed to enable you to excel, whatever your learning style. They will also equip you with the ability, indispensable in this field, to communicate with the diversity of its key audiences, ranging from scientific conferences to political committees to public meetings.

You will build on the skills gained in your first degree, and any career experience you have had since, to plan research, gather and analyse data, and report your findings at an appropriate level. You will work both on your own initiative and as part of a project group, gaining understanding of your own style in group contexts and learning to understand and appreciate the style of others. You will broaden your understanding of the variety and depth of feeling which surrounds issues of food and water security in different communities, nations and cultures, and thereby broaden your understanding and sympathies across a range of issues.

 

Contacts, Links and How to Apply

More information: Postgraduate Admissions Officer Michelle Allen (myd@aber.ac.uk)

IBERS, Aberystwyth University, Ceredigion, SY23 3AL

Tel +44(0)1970 624471/622315

www.aber.ac.uk/ibers

FWS-ore

FWS-ore is an innovative educational resource granting students and researchers access to the latest thinking about Food and Water Security. Visit http://fws.aber.ac.uk/ for more information (Please note that this site is currently still in the process of development).

Apply for this course on-line

• Other Important Information:
• University Accommodation
• Aberystwyth Student Life
• About Aberystwyth (external site)
• Department of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences website