Sustainable agricultural productivity growth in the face of climate and environmental change; soil quality deterioration; the antimicrobial resistance of plant pests - these are some of the major challenges facing global life scientists.

The Master’s Program in Plant Biosecurity offers students the expertise to understand and find solutions to these and other pertinent global biosecurity problems in a dynamic applied research setting.

Our Master’s programme in Genetic and Molecular Plant Science will give you an intimate knowledge of plant biology and plant research. If you are interested in environmental protection, industrial research or want to learn about the opportunities and risks of gene-modified organisms (GMO’s) this is the subject for you. During this two year programme, you will receive a thorough practical training giving you the essential skills to plan and perform your own plant-related research projects.

The programme brings together three world-class Swedish universities, Stockholm University, Uppsala University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU). You will learn about the mechanisms of plant growth and development, gain an understanding of genetic diversity and plant breeding and find out about plant-microbe interactions and how plants interact with their surroundings, including their defence strategies against insects and microorganisms. There is space left within the programme to allow you to choose from a selection of additional elective or optional courses.... [-]

In its report entitled "World Agriculture: towards 2015/2030", the FAO outlines the need for an approximate 60% increase in agricultural production by 2050, in order to meet the nutritional requirements of the world’s human population. This growth will, in part, be built upon an increase in yields, in particular via the genetic improvement of plants. There have been major advances in this field over the last twenty years, as a result of new molecular and cellular biology technologies reaching far beyond the confines of plant transgenics. In this positive context, plant breeding companies and food manufacturing and various non-food manufacturing companies are expressing a growing need for plant breeders who are able to understand and manage increasingly diverse technologies in order to meet more complex and varied objectives. This burgeoning demand is becoming ever more apparent, in the face of a dwindling number of university courses on offer in this field. What is more, the handful of one-year courses specializing in plant breeding do not cover the entire field of activity of a plant breeder in today’s context.... [-]

Master in Tropical and International Forestry (M.Sc. study focus)

The M.Sc. program Tropical and International Forestry focuses on sustainable management and conservation of forest ecosystems worldwide, especially in the tropical and subtropical forests of developing or emerging countries. Graduates of the program work in forest management all around the world, often in cooperation with international research and development organizations.Along with the formal course-work, students gain intercultural work- and life-experience by interacting with international colleagues and professors. Experience has shown that personal and professional contact established during this MSc program is an excellent way to expand the students’ professional network.... [-]

Master's Program in Plant and Forest Biotechnology

Plant biotechnology is becoming increasingly important as a tool to solve some of the global problems related to feed, fuel and ecosystem management in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner. The Master of Science Program in Plant and Forest Biotechnology offers students a specialized competence and skills to recognize, understand and find solutions to these challenges. The program is based upon a set of coordinated courses which together amount to 80 credits (120 ECTS credits) spread over two years. Up-to-date knowledge is provided about plant cell and molecular biology as well as plant growth and development. This is applied in the fields of plant breeding, biotechnology, and functional genomics. The program is organized by the Department of Plant Physiology (Umeå University) and the Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology (Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences) which together form the Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC). The education is anchored around the various research topics of UPSC.... [-]

Programme typeLaurea Magistrale (Second cycle degree/Two year Master - 120 ECTS)

The second-cycle degree in International Horticultural Science is a 2-year post-graduate programme offered by the School of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine and the Faculty of Science and Technology of the Free University of Bozen. At the end of the studies, the international programme releases a joint degree recognized by both institutions.

The international programme is addressed to graduates in Agriculture, Forestry, Environmental Science and Biotechnologies and other subjects related to the study area in Life Sciences. In addition, being entirely taught and assessed in English, prospective students are required to possess an intermediate level competence in the English language (B2 of the Common European Framework).... [-]