Master Programmes

The central theme of the two-year Master programme Marine Biology is adaptation of marine systems and organisms to a changing world through the lens of ecology, eco-physiology and evolution. Marine Resource utilization is also considered within the curriculum. The programme is taught by several research groups in Marine Biology at the University of Groningen in cooperation with the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ) on Texel and in Yerseke.

We provide an initial block of exclusive and compulsory master courses dealing with the Principles of Marine Biology. This block is followed by a more specialized set of facultative Marine Biology modules.

We focus on Biology!

We are good at conservation of marine mammals, biomimics, polar ecosystems, coastal food webs, the Wadden Sea; we work with fish, seagrass, algae, whales, seals and schooling fish.

We are strongly committed to hands-on research and learning by doing: thus knowing how to do science and not just understanding science. Field work opportunities include:

• The Principles block excursions to our "backyard": the Wadden Sea, Schiermonnikoog, Texel (NIOZ); and also Sweden's west coast in the Gullmar Fjord
• Mediterranean rocky shores, Corsica (in even years)
• Researchers also have links with many marine laboratories throughout the world for co-supervised MSc projects.

Research opportunities for MSc projects

There are plenty of options within both the Research profile and the Science, Business & Policy profile. You will design your own study programme to fit your personal preferences. Some examples of potential research areas include:

• climate change on pelagic food webs (Polar and North Sea);
• conservation of marine vertebrates (global issues for marine mammals and other top predators as well as marine conservation more generally);
• the function of coastal food webs (Wadden Sea and Baltic Sea research);
• phylogeography or marine organisms;
• ecological and evolutionary genomics of adaptation;
• marine applications (biomimetics, algal applications);
• host-parasite interactions..... and more.

Check our facebook page for up-to-date changes and project opportunities!

Admission

An academic Bachelor's degree in any field of biological sciences^*. This includes, but is not restricted to, ecology, evolution, physiology, genetics, molecular biology, microbiology, theoretical biology and behavior. Students entering with no marine biological background will be brought up to speed in the Principles courses. This MSc programme is research oriented. Although there are no official requirements with respect to grades, candidates are encouraged to have a strong quantitative background in, e.g., analytical -multivariate statistics, data processing, programming, modelling, molecular lab skills or other hard skills.

^*Interested candidates with a background in other fields such as chemistry, physics, engineering, economics, or other cross disciplines will be considered but will need to contact the admissions committee to discuss their particular case.

Check the Education website for admission procedures, requirements and a detailed study guide.