Entry requirements

Academic requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university.

Language requirements

Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6. This requirement can be met either by achieving the required score on an internationally recognised test, or by previous upper secondary or university studies in some countries.

Aims

The master programme in Sustainable development of coastal areas aims to provide students with a deep and up-to-date understanding of the complex social-ecological systems that shape coastal regions. The programme aims to break down the traditional division between land and sea issues, and instead consider the coast as a whole. The programme emphasises the Baltic Sea as a natural laboratory and uses the local environment for excursions and case studies, but also includes an international focus. The overarching objective is to equip students to tackle global challenges related to sustainability in coastal areas, promote interdisciplinary competence and international cooperation. The programme provides students with a solid foundation for research and development work, both in academic and non-academic contexts.

Learning outcomes

According to the Higher Education Act, the following applies for second-cycle studies:

Second-cycle studies shall be based fundamentally on the knowledge acquired by students during first-cycle courses and study programmes, or its equivalent.

Second-cycle studies shall involve the acquisition of specialist knowledge, aptitudes and accomplishments in relation to first-cycle courses and study programmes, and in addition to the requirements for first-cycle courses and study programmes shall:

• further develop the ability of students to integrate and make autonomous use of their knowledge,
• develop the students' ability to deal with complex phenomena, issues and situations, and
• develop the students' potential for professional activities that demand considerable autonomy, or for research and development work. Ordinance (2006:173).

Objectives for a Degree of Master (120 credits) according to the Higher Education Ordinance, System of Qualifications.

Knowledge and understanding

For a Degree of Master (120 credits) students must

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding in their main field of study, including both broad knowledge in the field and substantially deeper knowledge of certain parts of the field, together with deeper insight into current research and development work; and
• demonstrate deeper methodological knowledge in their main field of study.

For the Master’s Programme in Sustainable Development of Costal Areas, this means that the student shall in particular:

• demonstrate in-depth knowledge and understanding of concepts and models within environmental science, natural resource management, governance and planning, as well as their limitations
• demonstrate in-depth methodological knowledge within sustainability analyses and investigations of social-ecological systems and be able to apply knowledge to develop solutions to complex environmental and sustainability challenges

Skills and abilities

For a Degree of Master (120 credits) students must

• demonstrate an ability to critically and systematically integrate knowledge and to analyse, assess and deal with complex phenomena, issues and situations, even when limited information is available;
• demonstrate an ability to critically, independently and creatively identify and formulate issues and to plan and, using appropriate methods, carry out advanced tasks within specified time limits, so as to contribute to the development of knowledge and to evaluate this work;
• demonstrate an ability to clearly present and discuss their conclusions and the knowledge and arguments behind them, in dialogue with different groups, orally and in writing, in national and international contexts; and
• demonstrate the skill required to participate in research and development work or to work independently in other advanced contexts.

For the Master’s Programme in Sustainable Development of Costal Areas, this means that the student shall in particular:

• be able to justify the choice of scientific methods for studying different properties of social-ecological systems
• demonstrate the ability to identify, formulate, collaborate and solve problems in interdisciplinary projects based on their own subject area
• demonstrate the ability to account for and discuss their own subject expertise in an interdisciplinary environment
• demonstrate the skills required to participate in research and development work or to work independently in other qualified activities

Judgement and approach

For a Degree of Master (120 credits) students must

• demonstrate an ability to make assessments in their main field of study, taking into account relevant scientific, social and ethical aspects, and demonstrate an awareness of ethical aspects of research and development work;
• demonstrate insight into the potential and limitations of science, its role in society and people’s responsibility for how it is used; and
• demonstrate an ability to identify their need of further knowledge and to take responsibility for developing their knowledge.

For the Master’s Programme in Sustainable Development of Costal Areas, this means that the student shall in particular: 

• be able to use terminologies within sustainable development, environmental science, natural resource management, governance and planning to independently present a picture of the state of knowledge and be able to explain and discuss scientific and research ethics issues,
• be able to provide a correct and well-balanced picture of methods, results, conclusions and future application possibilities
• be able to analyze the roles in society of environmental science, natural resource management, governance and planning, especially with regard to ethical issues and sustainable development

Layout of the programme

The first semester consists of three courses, which introduce the subject area and create a deeper understanding of sustainable development and coastal resources, as well as scientific method and statistics. The second semester consists of a course that focuses on management, planning and policy with a solution-focused approach and a course where you can apply your knowledge from previous courses in practice. Students will use their newly acquired skills in groups. During the second year, all students take a workshop series in interdisciplinary method and application (divided into 10 credits in the fall and 5 credits in the spring) that follows the different parts of the degree project (planning, data collection, analysis, writing, presentation). For students who choose to do an internship (15 credits) during one semester, the degree project comprises 30 credits, for others 45 credits.

Degree

Upon request, a student who has received a pass grade in a course is to receive a course certificate from the higher education institution. Upon request, a student who meets the requirements for a qualification is to receive a diploma from the higher education institution.

Master's degree, 120 credits (Master of Science)

A Degree of Master is a so called general degree, which means that the student achieve the degree in its main subject according to the criteria below, regardless of the courses being part of the program or not, therefore there is a possibility also to include single subject courses in the degree.

A Degree of Master (120 credits) is obtained after the student has completed course requirements of 120 higher education credits with a certain area of specialisation determined by each higher education institution itself, including at least 60 higher education credits with in-depth studies in the main field of study. Within the main field of study a degree project of 30 credits minimum, is required.

A degree of Master (120 credits) may, except for courses on advanced level, contain one or several courses on basic level comprising not more than 30 higher education credits. The course or the courses are meant to provide such additional competence as is needed for in-depth studies in the main field of study and cannot be included in the student’s basic degree.

In addition, the student must hold a Degree of Bachelor, a Degree of Bachelor of Arts in…, a professional degree worth at least 180 higher education credits or an equivalent foreign qualification.

Other regulations

Admission to a later part of the programme

In order to be admitted to a later part of the programme the student must:

• fulfil the general and specific entry requirements for the programme.
• have 15 credits of courses relevant to the programme, at Master's (advanced) level, in addition to the Bachelor's degree.
• have sufficient prior knowledge to be able to follow the programme at the level at which the student is admitted, which means that the student meets the entry requirements to at least 15 credits in the semester to which the student is admitted.

Students can only be admitted to a later part of a programme or a specialisation within a programme if there are available places in the programme in the semester in question. If the number of applicants is larger than the number of available places according to the dimensioning applicable, the selection criterion of average grade on prerequisite courses from a higher education institution (courses relevant to the programme) is used.

For studies starting the autumn semester the application period is 15th of March - 15th of April. Results from completed courses (modules do not count) may be submitted no later than 1 May.

For studies starting the spring semester the application period is 15th of September - 15th of October. Results from completed courses (modules do not count) may be submitted not later than 1 December.

After the last application day, it is possible to submit a late application until the 1st of June (f autumn semester) or 1st of December (spring semester). Late applications will be handled in the order they are received.

If the specified dates for the application deadline or completion date fall on a public holiday, the deadline is postponed to the nearest weekday.

Grading system and assessment

The form of assessment and the grading system are shown in the course syllabus. Information about exam registrations are available at the virtual learning environment (this does not apply to exams at other higher education institutions than Uppsala University).

For more regulations see "Guidelines on working conditions for first- and second-cycle students at Uppsala University" as of 2017-07-01.

Inclusion of course credits towards a Master of Science degree

Some courses may not be included in the same degree, due to content overlap. The course content is shown in each course syllabus and the Graduation Office decides which courses may be included in the degree.