Biological Resources, MSc

As a qualified expert at the interface with the bio-based economy, you will have a wide range of career opportunities after completing your degree. For example, you could work as an assessor or consultant for government agencies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in the fields of environmental protection and nature conservation. You could also take on key roles as a sustainability or nature conservation officer in national and multinational companies, or lead research and development projects in industry and at universities.

• 1st semester: You’ll start straight away with research-oriented and project-based modules such as ‘Simulation of biological systems’, ‘Animal ecology’, ‘Soil biological resources’ and the resource-efficient management of waste products. In the ‘Research Project’, you’ll put your knowledge into practice.
• 2nd semester: You will deepen your knowledge in areas including environmental assessment, the management of forest resources and the processing of biological resources. You will set your own priorities through individual compulsory-elective modules.
• 3rd semester (final): You will devote your final semester entirely to your Master's thesis (often in collaboration with industry) and successfully complete your degree with the associated Colloquium.

As the Master’s programme is structured over three semesters, there is no traditional, dedicated Internship semester as there is in the Bachelor’s programme. However, thanks to our close research partnerships with companies in the Lower Rhine region, you will have ongoing opportunities to gain valuable practical experience in the bioeconomy.

In addition, the Degree programme offers an outstanding international opportunity: as part of the optional double degree programme, you can combine HSRW’s Master’s in ‘Biological Resources’ with the ‘TAIDA’ (Advanced Techniques in Agricultural and Food Research and Development) Master’s at the Technical University of Cartagena (UPCT) in Spain. You will spend part of your studies in Spain and, upon completion, receive degrees from both universities.

To start your studies with us, you will need a relevant first degree (Bachelor’s) in one of the following fields:

• Natural Sciences
• Agricultural sciences
• or Economics

You must provide evidence of this prior knowledge and academic performance from your first degree at the start of the programme:

• At least 10 ECTS credits in the field of natural sciences.
• At least 10 ECTS credits in the field of environmental or agricultural sciences.
• In total, you need a minimum of 30 ECTS credits combined from the fields of mathematics/statistics, chemistry, biology, economics and social sciences, and environmental/agricultural sciences.

For the Master’s programme in Biological Resources, the following additional requirements apply in accordance with the current Examination regulations:

• Good final grade: Your Bachelor’s degree must have been awarded an overall grade of at least ‘Good’ (2.2) or, alternatively, an ‘A’ or ‘B’.
• English language skills (certificate at level B2 according to the Common European Framework (CEF)), as the programme is taught entirely in English. This corresponds, for example, to seven years of English at a German school with a grade of “sufficient” or better.
• Practical experience: By the time you register your Master's thesis at the latest, you must also demonstrate relevant practical experience through at least 20 weeks of practical work (in the fields of agricultural, environmental or natural sciences, or the bioeconomy) or by completing a semester of study abroad.

Your entire degree programme is taught in English. This will prepare you perfectly for careers in multinational organisations around the world.

• A solid foundation is enough: your English doesn’t need to be perfect at the start – all you need to get started is a B2 certificate.
• Automatic practice: Through academic interaction with lecturers and fellow students, you’ll practise and improve your academic English almost without realising it.
• Additional support: If you’d like to practise your English in a more targeted way, the university’s accompanying language courses are here to help.

Yes, you can easily study the Master’s degree programme in Biological Resources on a part-time basis (whilst working). In accordance with Section 62a(2) of the Higher Education Act of North Rhine-Westphalia (HG NRW), the degree programme is explicitly designed for this Mode of study.

In the part-time option, you continue to work in your profession alongside your studies, which is why the Standard duration of study is extended from three to a total of six semesters. To ensure you can balance your studies and work effectively, the course content of the first two full-time semesters is spread across your first four part-time semesters. During this phase, you will typically set aside two days a week for on-campus classes at the university, leaving you with three full days for your job. In the 5th and 6th semesters of study, you will then devote yourself entirely to your Master's thesis.