Programme-specific section of the Curriculum for the MSc Programme in Animal Science at the Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen September 2013 Contents 1. Title and affiliation ............................................................................................................... 2 1.1 Title .............................................................................................................................................................. 2 1.2 Affiliation ..................................................................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Corps of external examiners ......................................................................................................................... 2 2. Academic profile................................................................................................................... 2 2.1 Purpose ......................................................................................................................................................... 2 2.2 General programme profile .......................................................................................................................... 2 3. Description of objectives and specialisations ..................................................................... 2 3.1 Description of objectives – general profile in Animal Science .................................................................... 3 3.2 Career opportunities ..................................................................................................................................... 4 4. Admission requirements ...................................................................................................... 4 4.1 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Husdyrvidenskab and Husdyrbiologi- og produktion .................... 4 4.2 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Natural Resources.......................................................................... 4 4.3 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture, Food and Environment .............................................. 5 4.4 Applicants with a closely related Bachelor’s degree .................................................................................... 5 4.5 Other applicants............................................................................................................................................ 5 4.6 Language requirements ................................................................................................................................ 5 5. Prioritisation of applicants .................................................................................................. 5 6. Structure of the programme................................................................................................ 5 6.1 General profile.............................................................................................................................................. 5 6.2 Compliance of the requirements for external examiners and grades ............................................................ 7 6.3 Master’s thesis .............................................................................................................................................. 7 6.4 Elective subjects ........................................................................................................................................... 7 7. Exemptions ............................................................................................................................ 7 8. Commencement etc. ............................................................................................................. 8 8.1 Validity......................................................................................................................................................... 8 8.2 Transfer ........................................................................................................................................................ 8 8.3 Amendments................................................................................................................................................. 8 Appendix 1 Table diagram ...................................................................................................... 9 Appendix 2 Interim arrangements ......................................................................................... 9 Appendix 3 Description of objectives for the thesis ............................................................ 10 Page 1 of 10 Version 2013/2014
Transcript
Programme-specific section of the Curriculum for the MSc Programme in
Animal Science at the Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen
September 2013 Contents 1. Title and affiliation ............................................................................................................... 2
1.1 Title .............................................................................................................................................................. 2 1.2 Affiliation ..................................................................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Corps of external examiners ......................................................................................................................... 2
3. Description of objectives and specialisations ..................................................................... 2 3.1 Description of objectives – general profile in Animal Science .................................................................... 3 3.2 Career opportunities ..................................................................................................................................... 4
4. Admission requirements ...................................................................................................... 4 4.1 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Husdyrvidenskab and Husdyrbiologi- og produktion .................... 4 4.2 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Natural Resources .......................................................................... 4 4.3 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture, Food and Environment .............................................. 5 4.4 Applicants with a closely related Bachelor’s degree .................................................................................... 5 4.5 Other applicants ............................................................................................................................................ 5 4.6 Language requirements ................................................................................................................................ 5
5. Prioritisation of applicants .................................................................................................. 5 6. Structure of the programme ................................................................................................ 5
6.1 General profile.............................................................................................................................................. 5 6.2 Compliance of the requirements for external examiners and grades ............................................................ 7 6.3 Master’s thesis .............................................................................................................................................. 7 6.4 Elective subjects ........................................................................................................................................... 7
7. Exemptions ............................................................................................................................ 7 8. Commencement etc. ............................................................................................................. 8
Appendix 1 Table diagram ...................................................................................................... 9 Appendix 2 Interim arrangements ......................................................................................... 9 Appendix 3 Description of objectives for the thesis ............................................................ 10
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1. Title and affiliation A shared curriculum that applies to all BSc and MSc programmes at the Faculty of Science is linked to this programme-specific curriculum. 1.1 Title The MSc programme in Animal Science leads to a Master of Science (MSc) in Animal Science with the Danish title cand.scient. (candidatus/candidata scientiarum) i husdyrvidenskab. 1.2 Affiliation The programme is affiliated with the Study Board of Biology and Animal Science, and the students can both elect and be elected to this study board. 1.3 Corps of external examiners The following corps of external examiners is used for the compulsory sections of the MSc programme: • Corps of External Examiners for Veterinary Medicine (veterinærvidenskab). 2. Academic profile 2.1 Purpose The overall objective of the Master of Science in Animal Science is to educate candidates who: • Are capable of designing strategies for the use of animals in favor of human welfare in
its widest perspective (economy, animal derived food, human physical and mental health) whilst considering animal welfare and environmental sustainability.
• Hold solid theoretical knowledge and methodological skills in applied quantitative biology, including body structure-function-performance-welfare relationships in healthy animals.
• Are capable of analyzing problems from a holistic view and of designing solution models of relevance to the sector, public administration, research and education, in a national as well as international context.
• Possess the academic qualifications required to perform research, development, and disseminate knowledge at various levels based on a broad knowledge of the animal sector and its importance to the national and international society.
2.2 General programme profile MSc in Animal Science is a natural science programme, which is based on a completed bachelor degree. It offers a coherent education within animal science and qualifies graduates to find solutions and design strategies for the use of animals in favor of human welfare in its widest perspective (economy, animal derived foods, human physical and mental health), whilst considering animal welfare and environmental sustainability in a national and international context. 3. Description of objectives and specialisations Students following the MSc Programme acquire the knowledge, skills and competencies listed below. Students will also acquire other qualifications through elective courses and other study activities. The MSc programme in Animal Science allows the following specialisations:
• General profile in Animal Science.
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3.1 Description of objectives – general profile in Animal Science On completion of the programme, an MSc in Animal Science has acquired the following: Knowledge about:
• Demonstrate insight into the biological and management determinants of and constraints to animal production and performance (quantitatively and qualitatively) in animal husbandry systems.
• Account for knowledge into the factors influencing animal performance, welfare and longevity as well as maintenance of animal health.
• Demonstrate knowledge on the impact of animal husbandry systems on environmental sustainability in a national and international context.
• Demonstrate knowledge on the socioeconomic importance and impact of the animal sector and principles for regulation of the sector.
• Critically reflect on animal production theory, including performance factors, performance goals, performance functions, criteria of optimality, utility theory and the impact of external environmental and legislative constraints and limitations.
• Account for understanding of the interaction of animal husbandry systems with the surrounding environment and of factors influencing sustainability (economical, environmental and social) of the animal sector in a national and international context.
• Critically reflect on scientific methods used within the subject areas of the programme. • Account for knowledge about the interaction between production of animal derived
foods, legislation and society both nationally and internationally. • Critically reflect on optimal management strategies in animal units for sustenance of
animal health, welfare and performance.
Skills to: • Handle complex issues in domestic animal science, interpreting information in a
systematic and competent way to make informed judgments and design programmes and solutions to problems that may arise, bearing in mind the limitations of existing theories.
• Apply animal performance/production theory, e.g. for monitoring, analysis and planning of actual animal units across different animal species under a utility function with attributes like monetary income, working conditions, animal welfare, performance criteria, product quality and interaction with environment and society.
• Apply biological models to quantify complex life processes underlying animal performance, from cellular to whole body level, considering the impact of genetic, physiological and nutritional factors and interaction with the surrounding close environment.
• Summarize and explain the management basis for optimizing animal husbandry/ production units from an animal welfare, economic and environmental perspective.
• Evaluate and discuss sustainability of and technology use in animal based food production and other systems from different perspectives and make informed judgments and design programmes and solutions to problems that may arise.
• Use relevant scientific principles to develop new solutions for optimization and improvement of performance, health and welfare status of animals, and the quality of their physical/technical environment.
• Participate in informed judgment based policy making to regulate the use of animals and their interaction with environment and society in a national and international context.
• Communicate domestic animal science clearly and effectively to specialist and non-specialist audiences, at a variety of levels, using modern and appropriate information and communication tools in the work process.
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Competencies to: • Capacity for independent thought, creativity and rigour in the application of
knowledge and skills in work situations or in research. • Participate in public discussions of the impact of animals and animal production on
society (including human physical and mental health) and environment, both from an international and a national perspective.
• Manage complex and unpredictable work and development scenarios within the professional scope of the programme.
• Work independently and effectively on an individual basis, as well as in project teams and interdisciplinary environments, cooperate with relevant partners, discuss solutions and reach consensus.
• Reformulate existing theories, principles and research findings to independently generate new hypotheses and theories.
• Use lifelong learning as a principle to independently evaluate and structure learning processes and assume responsibility for continuous professional development.
3.2 Career opportunities The MSc programme in Animal Science qualifies students for a PhD programme, and depending on the academic specialisation it may also be targeted at the following business functions and/or areas such as:
• Advising and consultancy in production, health and performance of animals, nationally and internationally, e.g. in development projects or as independent consultant.
• Research, innovation and product development within animal production and system development, feed production and quality and companion animal performance and health, in public institutions, private business or in own enterprise.
• Policy development and administration related to animal production and welfare, in both the public sector (ministries and municipalities) and in private organizations, including international NGOs.
• Teaching and communication in universities or agricultural schools, technical colleges or to the broader public.
4. Admission requirements Students are admitted onto the MSc programme in Animal Science once a year, with studies starting on 1 September. Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in husdyrvidenskab from the University of Copenhagen who complete their Bachelor’s degree in block 1 or 2 may additionally be admitted onto the MSc programme in Animal Science with studies starting on 1 February of the academic year in question. 4.1 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Husdyrvidenskab and Husdyrbiologi- og produktion Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Husdyrvidenskab and Husdyrbiologi- og produktion from the University of Copenhagen, other Danish or Nordic universities are directly academically qualified for admission onto the MSc programme in Animal Science 4.2 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Natural Resources Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Natural Resources from the University of Copenhagen and other Danish universities may be admitted if the programme includes:
4.3 Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture, Food and Environment Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture, Food and Environment from the University of Copenhagen and other Danish universities may be admitted if the programme includes:
• Domestic Animal Biology. 4.4 Applicants with a closely related Bachelor’s degree Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Biology-biotechnology (Biologi-bioteknologi), Veterinary Medicine (veterinærmedicin) or Biology (Biologi) from the University of Copenhagen and other Danish universities may also be admitted if the programme includes:
4.5 Other applicants The Faculty may also admit applicants who, after a thorough academic assessment, are deemed to possess educational qualifications equivalent to those required in Subclauses 1–4. 4.6 Language requirements
4.6.1 Nordic applicants Applicants with Nordic Bachelor’s degrees must as a minimum document English language qualifications comparable to a Danish upper secondary school English B level.
4.6.2 Non-Nordic applicants Applicants with non-Nordic Bachelor’s degrees must additionally be able to document English proficiency to an IELTS test score of min. 6.5 or a TOEFL test score of min. 213 (computer-based), 560 (paper-based) or 83 (Internet-based). 5. Prioritisation of applicants If the number of qualified applicants to the programme exceeds the number of places available, applicants will be prioritised as follows:
1) Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in husdyrvidenskab from the University of Copenhagen seeking admission by way of direct extension of their completed BSc programme.
2) Other applicants with a closely related Bachelor’s degree from the University of Copenhagen, other Danish or Nordic universities.
6. Structure of the programme The MSc programme is set at 120 ECTS credits. 6.1 General profile The MSc programme in Animal science consists of the following elements:
The compulsory courses, restricted elective courses and the thesis constitute the central part of the programme (Section 19 of the Ministerial Order on Bachelor and Master’s Programmes (Candidatus) at Universities) and must comprise at least 105 ECTS credits. The regulations for the compulsory subjects at the Faculty of Science are described in the shared section of the BSc and MSc curricula.
6.1.1 Compulsory courses The MSc programme in Animal Science is to comprise the following courses:
• SASA10152 Animal Production Science 15 ECTS credits • SASA10153 Animals and Sustainability(app. 2) 7.5 ECTS credits
6.1.2 Restricted elective courses
Minimum 22.5 ECTS credits are to be covered by courses from the following list: • SASA10154 Advanced Animal Production Science 15 ECTS credits • SASA10155 Equine Nutrition and Management of Horses 15 ECTS credits • SASK10137 Nutrition and Management of Companion and Exotic
Animals 15 ECTS credits • SBIF10212 Aquaculture and Fish Diseases 7.5 ECTS credits • SASA10156 Advanced Quantitative Methods in Herd
Management 7.5 ECTS credits • LOJA10281 Animals in Society 7.5 ECTS credits • SASA10149 Quantitative Genetics, Genomics and Breeding 15 ECTS credits
Minimum 15 ECTS credits are to be covered by courses from the following list (or from the above list):
• LBIK10135 Genome and Cell Biology 7.5 ECTS credits • SBIK10167 Immunology – Theoretical 7.5 ECTS credits • SBIK10168 Immunology 15 ECTS credits • NIFA13000 EU Law – Environment, Agriculture & Food 7.5 ECTS credits • LOJF10249 Investering og Finansiering 7.5 ECTS credits • LOJK10229 Natural Resource Economics 7.5 ECTS credits • LFKK10278 Project Management 7.5 ECTS credits • SASA10147 Ethology 7.5 ECTS credits • STEF10155 Klima i og omkring stalde 7.5 ECTS credits • SBIK10151 Parasitic Zoonoses 7.5 ECTS credits • LPLK10365 Climate Change – Effects on Food and Feed 7.5 ECTS credits • SASA10150 Experimental Animal Nutrition and Physiology, Part 1
(EANP1) 7.5 ECTS credits
• SASA10151 Experimental Animal Nutrition and Physiology, Part 2 (EANP2) 15 ECTS credits
6.2 Compliance of the requirements for external examiners and grades If the student follows the central parts of the MSc Programme as stated in this curriculum, the student automatically fulfils the requirement that one-third the programme's ECTS credits must be subject to external examination and two-thirds of the ECTS credits must be assessed by grades, cf. the Shared Section of the BSc and MSc Curricula for Study Programmes, sections 6.8 and 6.9. If the student has completed compulsory or restricted elective MSc courses or, for other reasons, does not follow the above-mentioned central parts of the MSc Programme, the student is responsible for fulfilling these requirements. ECTS credits transferred are deducted from the calculation of the requirement for external examination and assessment by grades. 6.3 Master’s thesis The MSc programme in Animal Science includes a thesis corresponding to 30, or 45 ECTS credits, as described in Appendix 2 to the shared curriculum. The topic of the thesis is to fall within the academic scope of the programme. 6.4 Elective subjects Bachelor's-level subject elements cannot form part of the programme. In the 2013/14 academic year, joint courses may be included in the elective subjects of the programme.
6.4.1 Projects outside the course scope Projects outside the course scope may be included in the elective sections of the programme. The regulations are described in Appendix 5 to the shared section of the curriculum.
6.4.2 Projects in Practice Projects in practice may be included in the elective section of the programme. The regulations are described in Appendix 4 to the shared section of the curriculum. 7. Exemptions In exceptional circumstances, the university may grant exemptions from the rules in the curriculum specified solely by the university.
8. Commencement etc. 8.1 Validity This subject specific section of the curriculum applies to all students enrolled on the programme at the beginning of the academic year 2013/2014. 8.2 Transfer The present Curriculum is also valid for students enrolled at previous versions of this Curriculum. 8.3 Amendments The curriculum may be amended once a year so that any changes enter into force on the start of the academic year. Amendments must be proposed by the board of studies and approved by the Dean. Notification about amendments that tighten the admission requirements for the programme will be published online at www.science.ku.dk one year before they come into effect. If amendments are made to this curriculum, an interim arrangement may be added if necessary to allow students to complete their MSc programme according to the amended curriculum.
Block 1 Animals and Sustainability Block 2 Block 3
Thesis (30 or 45 credits) Block 4
Compulsory courses and thesis
Restricted elective courses the suggested block placement of restricted elective courses is not mandatory. The placement strictly depends on which core courses are chosen
Elective courses Appendix 2 Interim arrangements Students admitted before 1 September 2011 to the MSc programme in Agriculture, with specialization in Domestic Animal Science are transferred to the MSc programme in Animal Science. Transferred student does not have to follow the compulsory course in Animals and Sustainability.
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Appendix 3 Description of objectives for the thesis A student who has completed his/her thesis has acquired the following competencies: Knowledge that allows the student to:
• Identify scientific problems within the study programme’s subject areas. • Summarise a suitable combination of methodologies/theories based on
international research for use in his/her work with the problem formulation. • Discuss theories/models on the basis of an organised value system and with a high
degree of independence. Skills that allow the student to:
• Apply and critically evaluate theories/methodologies, including their applicability and limitations.
• Assess the extent to which the production and interpretation of findings/material depend on the theory/methodology chosen and the delimitation chosen.
• Discuss academic issues arising from the thesis. • Draw conclusions in a clear and academic manner in relation to the problem
formulation and, more generally, considering the topic and the subject area. • Discuss and communicate the academic and social significance, if any, of the
thesis based on ethical principles.
If the thesis includes experimental content/own data production, the student will also be able to:
• Substantiate the idea of conducting experimental work/producing own data in order to shed light on the topic as formulated in the problem formulation.
• Process data through a choice of academic analysis methods and present findings objectively and in a concise manner.
• Assess the credibility of own findings based on relevant data processing.
Competencies that allow the student to: • Initiate and perform academic work in a research context. • Solve complex problems and carry out development assignments in a work
