MSc in Biology

What will you learn?

The question of how humans, plants and animals adapt to their environment is central to the Radboud University Master’s programme in Biology. You will have the opportunity to focus on the big-picture – the ecosystems, river courses and populations – as well as the little- cells, genes and pollen- to gain a better understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of the natural world around you.

In this programme there are a number of specialisations, encompassing a broad range of topics within Biology. Whether you are interested in ecosystem management, medical biology or helping governments and business understand and harness the power of biological sciences responsibly, there is a programme for everyone.

Career Prospects

Graduates of this programme could find work as:

• Researchers for private or public institutions, NGOs or companies
• Consultants for governmental organizations or private firms
• Policy officers
• Educators
• PhD students
• Analysts
• Project managers or coordinators

Specialisations

The programme offers seven specialisations:

• Adaptive organisms
  A challenging research-orientated programme that covers the fundamental processes involved in stress responses of plants, micro-organisms and animals. In the Adaptive Organisms specialisation, you’ll become an expert in stress adaptation of individual organisms.
• Conservation and Restoration Ecology
  In this Master’s specialisation, you will get insight into the relations between individuals, populations and communities with their environment. You will also learn how they react to environmental stress. This fundamental knowledge can be applied in nature protection and restoration or in nature-based industrial processes, for example, water purification.
• Microbiology
  Improving health and environment, and providing in-depth insight into present-day clinical microbiology and microbial research in general. In this specialisation, you will study the interface between fundamental and applied ecology and medical microbiology
• Transnational Ecosystem-based Water Management Double Degree programme
  The specialisation in Transnational Ecosystem-based Water Management is an international programme for future water managers, combining ecology, hydrology, and socio-economics. We focus on ecological solutions, often more effective than technical adjustments. Think of estuaries with seagrass fields breaking the waves instead of reinforcing dykes, or self-purification of drainage-basins, making dredging unnecessary.
• Water and Environment
  This specialisation is connected to the Institute for Water and Wetland Research (IWWR), a leading institute in research to wetland ecosystems and stress biology. Do you want to dive into the water and environmental issues on all scales and connect scientific findings to societal implications or environmental policies? This might require a change of viewpoint: whereas ecologists take species as their viewpoint, we start with stressors, such as the carbon dioxide emissions, agricultural pesticide use, or hunting.
• Science in Society
  Science and technology have a profound influence on society, but the reverse is also true: society significantly shapes the ways in which science and technology evolve. However, experience shows that scientists on the one hand and the general public, government and businesses on the other aren’t always able to clearly understand one another. That is why experts with a background in science and an understanding of social processes are indispensable. This specialisation will equip you with the knowledge, tools and skills to be a professional intermediary between science and society whilst getting a broader societal perspective.
• Science, Management and Innovation
  Getting proficient in what happens in the world of business and public administration: how innovation is managed in company strategies, how government designs policy and how that interacts with societal challenges. The Master’s specialisation in Science, Management and Innovation will, therefore, take you out of the lab and place you right in the heart of society.