MSc in Euroforester with a major in Forest Science

Forestry is changing quickly. Euroforester is a global education environment where students from around the world meet, share knowledge and discuss differences in forestry and culture. Students are prepared to work in an international environment with broad perspectives on issues in forestry and beyond.

Euroforester is an MSc program at SLU's Alnarp campus focusing on forests and forestry in the Baltic Sea region and central Europe. The education is targeted to an international student audience and delivered by a diverse teacher team. The program integrates many subjects giving students in-depth knowledge and transferrable skills, preparing them for a career in the international forest sector.

While it focuses on the Baltic and central Europe, the program addresses issues of worldwide importance, making it relevant to students everywhere. Because forest management has changed fundamentally in recent years, instruction takes a holistic view, much wider than mere production and profit.

The Euroforester program has been developed in cooperation between 14 forest faculties in Europe. With the guidance provided by an international research and teaching team, Euroforester courses include numerous study trips in Sweden and abroad.

As shown by our graduate surveys, Euroforester graduates are competitive in the job market. After graduation, you will have the knowledge and skills for a variety of jobs such as specialist or advisor in a governmental authority, municipality or forestry company, or to proceed with an academic career as a Ph.D. student.

This program is the perfect choice if you are interested in sustainable management of the forest’s resources, ecology, planning, and policy from an international perspective.

A degree of Master of Science (120 credits) with a major in Forest Science is awarded to students who fulfill the course requirements (courses with a Pass grade) of 120 credits, according to the following

• at least 30 credits of courses with specialized study in the main field of Forest Science (A1N; A1F),
• at least 30 credits degree project in the main field of Forest Science (A2E).

A maximum of 30 credits may be from courses at the first-cycle level.

In addition, the student must hold a degree of Bachelor, a professional qualification of at least 180 credits or an equivalent qualification.

Content

Euroforester focuses on sustainable forestry in the Baltic Sea region – the hub of European forest resources. The natural conditions around the Baltic Sea region are similar, however, national forestry practices and traditions vary considerably. Hence, this provides an excellent setting for international studies in forest management. In addition, students also form their own international network with their peers and the international teaching team, further aiding their acquisition of up-to-date knowledge and wide perspective.

The program starts with a one-year course package focusing on silviculture, ecology, planning and policy.

The first course focuses on conifer-dominated forestry and examines the influence of silviculture on forest development, in-depth at stand level.

The second course addresses the principles and practices of sustainable forest management. Students prepare long-term forest management plans for a large estate in the region.

The third course addresses forest policy at the regional, national, and global level. A great deal of attention is given to comparative policy analyses between the home countries of the participating students.

The fourth course studies the ecology and usage of broadleaved forests. The impact of modern forestry on biodiversity is discussed together with strategies for preserving a rich flora and fauna within production forests.

During the second year, students work on their Master’s thesis and will take elective courses at partner faculties. Students based at Campus Alnarp can specialize in advanced silviculture in temporal and in tropical forests. In many cases, the Master’s thesis is conducted in cooperation with other faculties, with several international supervisors.

In accordance with the appendix to the Ordinance for the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, for a Degree of the master, the student shall have:

Knowledge and understanding

For a degree of Master (120 credits), the student shall:

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding in the main field of study, including both broad knowledge of the field and a considerable degree of specialized knowledge in certain areas of the field as well as insight into current research and development work, and
• demonstrate specialized methodological knowledge in the main field of study.

Competence and skills

For a degree of Master (120 credits), the student shall:

• demonstrate the ability to critically and systematically integrate knowledge and analyze, assess and deal with complex phenomena, issues and situations even with limited information
• demonstrate the ability to identify and formulate issues critically, autonomously and creatively as well as to plan and, using appropriate methods, undertake advanced tasks within predetermined time frames and so contribute to the formation of knowledge as well as the ability to evaluate this work
• demonstrate the ability in speech and writing both nationally and internationally to clearly report and discuss his or her conclusions and the knowledge and arguments on which they are based in dialogue with different audiences, and
• demonstrate the skills required for participation in research and development work or autonomous employment in some other qualified capacity.

Judgment and approach

For a degree of Master (120 credits), the student shall:

• demonstrate the ability to make assessments in the main field of study informed by relevant disciplinary, social and ethical issues and also to demonstrate awareness of ethical aspects of research and development work
• demonstrate insight into the possibilities and limitations of research, its role in society, and the responsibility of the individual for how it is used, and
• demonstrate the ability to identify the personal need for further knowledge and take responsibility for his or her ongoing learning.

Euroforester graduates are very competitive in the job market. Many students find employment with a variety of organizations within a few years of graduation. Employers range from forest owner associations to Greenpeace, and multinational companies.