Education

MASTER AQUACULTURE AND MARINE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

The Master Aquaculture and Marine Resource Management combines knowledge from different disciplines (such as nutrition, growth, reproduction and health) with the aim of improving development of the culture of fish and molluscs worldwide. Fisheries strive for the sustainable exploitation and development of fresh water ecosystems and tropical coastal zones from the viewpoints of production, recreation and nature conservation. The interaction between the management of fish stocks and fisheries is important in this respect. Underlying disciplines such as aquatic ecology, fish biology, fish ecology, fish population dynamics and socio-economics are integrated to develop models of fish yield and concepts for the management of fish stocks.

The Aquaculture and Marine Resource Management programme aims to train skilled and qualified professionals in the fields of aquaculture, marine resource management and related areas by providing them with the skills to develop, support and maintain sustainable forms of aquaculture, fisheries and fish stock management.

The Master of Science programme of Aquaculture and Marine Resource Management has three specialisations:

• Aquaculture
  This field deals with the culture of numerous aquatic organisms (such as finfish, shrimp, shellfish, ornamental fish, corrals, sponges and algae) in a wide range of culture environment (from sea enclosures to semi-extensive ponds and high-tech recirculation systems). It requires a thorough knowledge and skills to maintain the biological, physical and chemical integrity of water bodies and insight in economic and social driving factors. The learning outcome of this specialization is to design optimal and sustainable production of fish and other marine organisms in a global perspective. Link to courses 
  
• Marine Resources and Ecology
  This specialization focuses on the sensitivity of marine communities in relation to human interventions, including climate change, fisheries and habitat destruction. Sustainable management of the living resources in the sea include models of population dynamics and fishing yield, international regulations, management tools and economic driving forces. It also requires insight on the ecological processes, that form the basis for marine food chains, the interaction between species and the functioning of the different ecosystems. This is summarized in the learning outcome: to evaluate limiting factors in order to be able to contribute to an improved biodiversity, environmental quality and sustainability of marine ecosystems. Link to courses
  
• Marine Governance
  Here the focus is on the sustainable governance and economics of marine and coastal systems. The goals and strategies of commercial enterprises, non-governmental and governmental organizations and international institutions are analyzed, alternatives are developed and their effects are evaluated in relation to both organizations and ecosystems involved. This summarized in the learning outcome: to design goals and strategies for the governance and management of sustainable marine ecosystems and aquatic resources. Link to courses

Courses The group Aquaculture and Fisheries is involved in several courses of the BSc Animal Sciences and the MSc Aquaculture and Marine Resource Management and other programs. The Aquaculture and Fisheries Group offers courses for:        Bachelor students        Master students        PhD students More information about other courses given at Wageningen University, got to the study handbook.  Click here to see a movie that gives a general idea on the education (in dutch)