Study location	Ireland, ATU Galway City
Type	Postgraduate, full-time
Nominal duration	1 year (90 ECTS)
Study language	English
Awards	MSc (Master of Science in Conservation Behaviour)
Course code	0125/0169

Tuition fee	€14,000 per year
Application fee	€20 one-time

Entry qualification

Undergraduate diploma (or higher) Qualifications must meet the equivalent of the Undergraduate Bachelors degree level 6 NFQ The entry qualification documents are accepted in the following languages: English. This includes a suitable transcript from your school. If this is not the case, you will need official translations along with verified copies of the original. If your Documents are not in English, please upload a translated version You must take the original entry qualification documents along with you when you finally go to the university.

Language requirements	English Accepted proof of proficiency: FCE or CAE, IELTS 6+, TOEFL 79+ or Duolingo English Test 100+ More Information

More information	gmit.ie/..cience-in-conservation-behaviour

Overview

This one-year MSc degree focuses on how animal behaviour can be applied to wildlife conservation. This is an exciting new area of study, known as Conservation Behaviour, and is suitable for those interested in careers in animal behaviour and/or conservation.

You will study the behaviour of a wide range of species from marine, freshwater and terrestrial habitats, and you will learn how an understanding of animal behaviour can contribute to the conservation and management of those species.

You will acquire a range of applied skills, such as camera trap surveying for terrestrial mammals, visual and acoustic monitoring of marine mammals, abundance estimation of marine mammals using mark-recapture and DISTANCE, geographic information systems (GIS), and data analysis using R and RStudio.

Staff Publications

Teaching on the course is closely linked to the research interests of staff, who are also members of the Marine and Freshwater Research Centre at ATU. Some recent publications by the course co-ordinators, Martin Gammell and Joanne O’Brien, include:

McFarlane, A., O’Brien, J. & Gammell, M. (2018). Observations on breeding of native Irish White-Clawed Crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes) in captivity. Irish Naturalists’ Journal 36: 18-22.
Baker, I., O’Brien, J., McHugh, K., Ingram, S.N. & Berrow S. (2018). Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) social structure in the Shannon Estuary, Ireland, is distinguished by age- and area-related associations. Marine Mammal Science 34: 458-487.
Perez Tadeo, M. & Gammell, M. (2018). Activity budgets in different habitats of a species of conservation concern in Ireland, the Light-bellied Brent Goose Branta bernicla hrota. Wildfowl 68: 84–103.

Course Highlights

Teaching by research-active staff working in the field of Conservation Behaviour, with particular interests in marine and freshwater species.
A week-long residential field course in the west of Ireland, where the behaviour of a number of species will be studied in a natural setting.
A major research thesis on a real conservation problem, in collaboration with a supervisor from GMIT and a supervisor from an external organisation.

Career opportunities

Graduates will be well prepared for careers in wildlife conservation and management, or may continue to PhD research.

Potential employers may include:

Ecological Consultancies
Non-Governmental Organisations and Charities
Research Institutes
Government Agencies