A group of 11 students posed against the sea

BSc (Hons) Placement year available

Ecology and Conservation

Explore diverse biodiversity and its conservation in the field, on national and international field trips, and in our labs.

Our planet needs protecting. Gain a deep understanding of the concerns surrounding different environments and the specialist skills to tackle them on our Ecology and Conservation degree in Cambridge.

As a conservation student at ARU, you’ll go on field trips in the UK and overseas, including opportunities to go to Europe and the tropics.

As a graduate with practical, hands-on experience, you’ll be equipped to work in ecology or conservation with governments, environment agencies and research establishments.

Individuals, organisations and governments around the world are increasingly concerned about the welfare of our planet and everything on it. This is true in every environment where many factors, including human behaviour, have left a large number of species at risk.

Our course allows you to develop a deep understanding of concerns relating to the various environments in the world, and to look at ways of resolving those concerns.

You’ll also learn about biodiversity locally and around the world, and explore conservation ecology, which aims to support, recover and maintain populations and their habitats.

Where will you study?

There are opportunities to attend residential field trips. Field trips that are a compulsory part of your course are covered by your fees. There are also optional field trips (either extra-curricular or an integral part of an optional module you select to take) that you would have to pay for.

Cambridge is becoming a world centre for wildlife conservation, with Fauna and Flora International, Birdlife International and the World Conservation Monitoring Centre based here. Throughout our BSc (Hons) Ecology and Conservation degree, you’ll have opportunities to attend lectures in the city and visit specialist museums and libraries.

Our students have undertaken final year projects, placements and summer internships with a range of organisations including (but certainly not limited to) Natural England, Shepreth Wildlife Park, Woburn Safari Park, wildlife trusts and the Cambridge Museum of Zoology. We also engage in Live Briefs with the Wildlife Trust, Therfield Heath and Cambridge City Council.

There’s also the option to take a placement year as part of your degree.

Similar courses you might study at our Cambridge campus are BSc (Hons) Zoology and BSc (Hons) Animal Behaviour.

Get an international experience

Going to university can offer you a series of once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. As part of your course, you could study abroad with one of our short-term Global Experience programmes. Opportunities include summer schools and placements, lasting from one to four weeks and funded by ARU’s UK Turing Scheme grants.

Study at an award-winning university

We were named Times Higher Education University of the Year 2023. We've also been awarded a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework – a reflection of the outstanding education we offer our students.

Hear Course Leader Dr Toby Carter speak about the course

Royal Society of Biology and Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management Our degree course offers an integrated, scientific approach with hands-on experiences accredited by the leading professional membership bodies representing and supporting biologists, ecologists and environmental managers in the UK and internationally.

Why ARU?

Our BSc Ecology and Conservation course was awarded ‘Highly Commended’ at CIEEM 2024 Awards within the Higher Education Programme of the Year category
Study in Cambridge – a hub of expertise and wildlife institutions' headquarters, and home to our £45m Science Centre
Bring the world of work to life through Live Briefs; designed, developed, and run with local employers such as the Wildlife Trust and Cambridge City Council, giving you exposure to ‘real life’ problem-solving
Get hands-on using world-class equipment in our 200-seat SuperLab, as well as on residential field trips and day trips around the UK, with the added opportunity to study ecology in the tropics
Study on a course developed in line with industry standards, with accreditation from the Royal Society of Biology and the Chartered Institute of Ecology & Environmental Management (CIEEM)
Gain valuable employment experience by applying for internships supporting research, or opt for our placement year with a range of exciting employers

Course options

Key facts

Looking for different course options?

What will I study?

Modules are subject to change and availability, and may vary by location. If you have the choice of optional modules, these are indicated with a *.

Year 1

Animal Physiology and Behaviour (30 credits)
Introduction to Ecology and Conservation (30 credits)
Principles of Biology (30 credits)
Quantitative Techniques and Tools for Biologists (30 credits)
Professional and Personal Development - Level 4
Into ARU

Year 2

Invertebrate Biology (15 credits)
Principles of Genetics and Evolution (15 credits)
Aquatic Biology and Conservation (15 credits)
Ruskin Module (15 credits)
Marine and Terrestrial Communities (15 credits)
Biological Research Skills (15 credits)
Field Skills in Biology (15 credits)
GIS and Spatial Ecology (15 credits)
Professional and Personal Development - Level 5

Year 3

Population Ecology and Wildlife Management (15 credits)
Current Topics in Marine Biology (15 credits)
Undergraduate Major Project (30 credits)
Wildlife Conservation (15 credits)
Sustainable Land Management (15 credits)
Professional Field Ecology (15 credits)
Behavioural Ecology (15 credits) *
Biogeography (15 credits) *
Tropical Ecology and Management (15 credits) *

Module details

To prepare you for university study, you can take a foundation year at the start of this course. Find out more about foundation years.

Year 1

Interactive Learning Skills and Communication
Information and Communication Technology
Maths for Scientists
Cellular Biology
Critical Thinking
Biology: Physiology
Chemistry
Physics for Life Sciences

Module details

You can choose to take an optional placement year as part of this course. Placements typically happen in Year 3, and your course will take four years overall. Find out more about placement years.

Placement year

Work placement

Module details

What happens on a foundation year?

What happens on a placement year?

Who teaches Ecology and Conservation at ARU?

As a student at ARU, you’ll learn from staff who are involved in field and captive studies internationally and in the UK, and have research links with a range of organisations including some of Britain's most respected zoos.

Dr Toby Carter
Associate Professor
Dr Jim Littlemore
Senior Lecturer
Dr Joseph J Bailey
Senior Lecturer
Dr Hannah White
Senior Lecturer
Dr Dannielle Green
Associate Professor
Dr Peter Brown
Associate Professor

Student experience

Discover nature - spend a week on the North Devon coast learning practical ecology skills.
Life in the wild - Learn how to survey a range of plants and animals on national and international field trips.
Protecting nature - Contribute to conservation monitoring in the UK.
Ecological communities - Measure the diversity of bird communities at RSPB Titchwell.
Local rarities - Measure the diversity of bird communities at RSPB Titchwell.

Facilities

As a student at ARU, you’ll be able to take advantage of state-of-the-art facilities including a 200-station biosciences laboratory in our Science Centre in Cambridge, an award-winning library and IT resources.

Take a guided tour and meet our students.

Careers

Helping to protect our planet’s habitats and wildlife is fascinating and rewarding work. When you graduate, you’ll have built a deep understanding of issues relating to marine biology, backed up by your own practical experiences on a variety of field trips.

As a graduate, you’ll have the specialist skills you need to work in your chosen area of ecology or conservation. You could apply for work in the UK or internationally, for employers such as governments, environment agencies, education institutions and research establishments.

ARU ranked in the top 10% in the country for graduates in employment or further study (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2024), and 5th in the country for the proportion of UK undergraduates who are employed as managers, directors, or senior officials 15 months after graduating. We're also in the top 10% in the country for the number of graduates in employment and further study who agreed they are using what they learnt during their studies.

Our students have gone to work as:

Zookeeper
Pet Claims Assessor
Laboratory Technician
Sustainability Advisor
Trainee Field Archaeologist
Veterinary Assistant
Marine Field Scientist
Flood Recovery Officer

Graduation doesn’t need to be the end of your time with us. If you’d like to continue your studies we offer a range of postgraduate courses including MSc Animal Behaviour: Applications for Conservation and MSc Applied Wildlife Conservation. Take advantage of our Alumni Scholarship and get 20% off your fees.

Employability and personal career development

Informed by employers, our courses support an integrated approach to employability. You’ll have opportunities to develop the skills and abilities they are looking for and gain a deeper understanding of how your academic learning relates to the world of work through Live Briefs and Ruskin Modules.

To amplify your career ambition, you will need to actively dedicate time outside of your studies, whether you choose to explore placements, internships or volunteering. Or you could make a social impact by collaborating with our partner organisations through our volunteer scheme Students at the Heart of Knowledge Exchange (SHoKE). These all give you an edge, providing you with experience that you will be able to evidence on your CV and talk about in interviews.

Our Employability and Careers Service offers a range of expert advice and support to build your unique professional profile, including tailored career appointments, advice on writing your CV, and help to complete job applications. You’ll have 24/7 access to the Careers Centre, our comprehensive online digital resource, which empowers you to start building a Personal Career Development Plan from the very start. Design your future at ARU.

Olivia Monaghan with a black and white ruffled lemur

"I realised through my time at ARU how often opportunities arise. [This] worked wonders as I now work at my dream job at Woburn Safari Park! I love being a keeper. It really does bring me so much joy."

Olivia Olivia's story

Ecology and Conservation student Emily carrying out fieldwork in Peru

"Going on trips with knowledgeable people to places from the Island of Rum in Scotland to the Amazon in Peru made my time at university delightful and gave me the energy to continue on this path to protect our planet."

Emily Changoluisa-Zambrano

BSc (Hons) Ecology and Conservation student

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