Master of Science in Biology
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Key Information
Campus location
Brussels, Belgium
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
2 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
EUR 1,116 / per year **
Application deadline
31 Mar 2024*
Earliest start date
16 Sep 2024
* students not requiring a student visa can apply until 30 June
** full time for EEA nationals; €4,000 per year full time for non-EEA nationals
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Introduction
At the VUB, we offer a strong, research-focused, and thesis-based Master's program in which graduate students interact closely with their teachers and supervisors from the first day of their entry. In addition, being located in the heart of Europe, Belgium ensures the proximity of academic and medical institutions, biotechnological know-how, and government agencies to offer the ideal intellectual and career environment.
The program includes the following graduation options:
- Ecology and Biodiversity
- Track: Ecology and Evolution
- Track: Global Change
- Track: Herpetology
- Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences
- Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters Degree in Tropical Biodiversity and Ecosystems
Admissions
Curriculum
1. Ecology and Biodiversity
This option allows students to gain experience in the research methods used to study the ecology, evolution, and conservation of organisms found in terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems.
In this graduation option three tracks with a different sets of elective courses. You are free to mix and match courses from different tracks, to assemble your own program.
- Track: Ecology and Evolution
- Track: Global Change
- Track: Herpetology
2. Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences
This option introduces students to the study of animal and plant development, microbiology, cell signaling pathways, cancer biology, stem cell biology, human biology, virology, and immunology.
3. Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree in Tropical Biodiversity and Ecosystems
TROPIMUNDO is an EC-funded and excellence-labeled Erasmus Mundus Masters Course in Tropical Biodiversity and Ecosystems. We bring together top institutes and universities, with long-standing worldwide expertise in tropical rainforests and woodlands and in tropical coastal ecosystems. Students can focus on botany, zoology and integrative ecosystem approaches in institutions worldwide in two Master's years, of which an entire semester is spent in the tropics.
Program Outcome
The Master of Biology:
- Has a broad knowledge of living organisms and their relationship with abiotic matter, and understands biology in an integrative way, across the traditional levels of biological organization.
- Has the necessary knowledge on concepts and models in basic natural sciences to select appropriate methods for the analysis of biological data and processes, and to draw scientific conclusions supported by appropriate statistical methods.
- Is able to efficiently perform an extended literature study in a scientific domain, assimilate the state-of-the-art, extract novel scientifically interesting research topics, and turn relevant questions into a well-structured scientific research plan.
- Is able to actively collaborate with researchers in the lab or in the field, and to assume responsibilities in such a group.
- Is able to present scientific results and research plans in a clear and concise way, both written (paper and project) and orally, to peers as well as to the broader community, including in English
- Understands how scientific research plays an important role in society and understands both the opportunities and ethical implications of it.
Cell, Genetics & Development
- Has a broad knowledge of biological systems, from molecules to the level of cells and organisms, and understands therefore the functioning of microbial, vegetal, or animal organisms (including humans).
- Can independently perform and analyze experiments in a molecular laboratory and is able to link the obtained results with the molecular, cellular, and physiological functions of the studied organism.
- Can understand and analyze past and present experiments in one field of life sciences can generate new approaches or concepts applicable to another research field and has an attitude of constantly updating his/her knowledge with new developments and methods in biology.
- Environment Biodiversity and Ecosystems
- Has a broad knowledge of methods and concepts in biodiversity, ecology, biogeography, and evolution.
- Can independently perform and analyze observations, both in the field and under lab conditions, and is able to investigate research questions on biodiversity and ecosystems across levels of biological organization.
- Is integrated into the scientific community through direct interaction with professionals and participation in ongoing research and has an attitude of constantly updating his/her knowledge with new developments and methods in biology.
Herpetology
- Has a broad knowledge of systematics, taxonomy, natural history, and evolution of amphibians and reptiles.
- Can independently perform and analyze herpetological observations, in the field and under controlled lab conditions, and is able to investigate and understand these observations in an integrative way, across the levels of biological organization.
- Is integrated into the herpetological community through direct interaction with professional herpetologists, participation in ongoing research, and professional internship in a natural history museum or herpetological lab, and has an attitude of constantly reflecting on his/her knowledge and updating it with new developments and methods in biology.
Human Ecology (International Course Programme)
- Has a broad knowledge of human-environment interactions with a focus on biodiversity and biological resources in human-altered ecosystems.
- Can independently perform fieldwork, surveys, and experiments and is able to investigate research questions on the human-environment interaction through modern analytical techniques, on humans, and on the ecology of biological resources, with emphasis on data treatment.
- Is integrated into the scientific and in policy communities through direct interaction with professionals and has an attitude of constantly updating his/her knowledge with new developments and methods in biology, to develop sound, science-based policies within a (global and) development context.
Tropimundo (Tropical biodiversity and ecosystems, Erasmus Mundus Master)
- Demonstrates enhanced knowledge of the field of tropical biodiversity and ecosystems, including interdisciplinary fields, and masters the key concepts in their ecological and socio-ecological functioning demonstrates enhanced understanding of the constituting biodiversity and environmental elements of one or more tropical ecosystems and demonstrates enhanced understanding of processes and/or methods and/or techniques in tropical biodiversity and ecosystem studies.
- Can independently perform fieldwork, surveys, and experiments in tropical ecosystems (in situ) and demonstrate an enhanced ability to work and learn independently and as a member of a team, and/or to generate ideas, and/or to identify problems, and/or to develop creative and effective solutions, and/or to synthesize and communicate concepts and knowledge while maintaining a critical judgment.
- Demonstrates an enhanced understanding of the stakes, challenges, and open issues of conservation and management and therefore must be able to situate natural and anthropogenic impacts on tropical biodiversity and ecosystems into a holistic context and to demonstrate scientific, ethical, and social understanding.
After graduation students can continue their academic careers as a PhD researchers.
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
A master's degree opens doors in many different branches and sectors. You will be able to work in the private sector, (non-) governmental organizations, or continue your academic career as a Ph.D. researcher. Not sure what your next step should be? The VUB helps you with your first steps on the job market.