Postgraduate Diploma in International Wildlife Conservation Practice

Oxford University
www.wildcru.org/diploma

We invite applications for the WildCRU's 2011 Postgraduate Diploma in International Wildlife Conservation Practice, managed jointly by Oxford University's Dept of Zoology and Dept for Continuing Education. This eight month full-time course is designed to enhance the skills of conservation practitioners, teaching the field, analytical, planning and reporting techniques necessary for effective conservation research and action.
Developed through a donation by the Kaplan family and supported by the Panthera Foundation, the course focuses on survey and analysis methods commonly used in the study of felids and other mammals in the developing world. Students will take modules on wildlife ecology and behaviour; monitoring skills including camera-trapping, radio-tracking and line transect surveys; GIS analysis, and population management. Unifying threads running through the course are the global and human dimensions of biodiversity conservation. Students will learn how to plan field surveys and understand the theory behind the techniques, allowing them to adapt these to their own situation, and to critically appraise their own and others' work.
Teaching methods are geared towards on problem-solving, case-studies and hands-on practice, and students will complete two small research projects, for which they can use their own data if available.
The transferable skills section of the course includes giving verbal presentations, reporting to scientists, donors and the public, and writing proposals and grant applications.
Students benefit from the world-class conservation expertise of the WildCRU and its networks of collaborators. The diverse mix of nationalities, cultures and experience, of both the diploma candidates themselves and the WildCRU as a whole, enhances peer-learning and broadens understanding of the roots of conservation issues, and potential solutions.
The course will run from February to September 2011. Students will take a one month online preparatory course from their home countries, followed by seven months of residential training at the WildCRU's Recanati-Kaplan Centre in Tubney. These custom-built facilities just outside Oxford allow access to departmental and university resources in the city. Students will be accommodated on site, and will have associate membership of Lady Margaret Hall, an Oxford college with which WildCRU has a long history.
We will accept up to 10 students in 2011, and applications are particularly welcomed from candidates working in developing nations. Suitable candidates are early-career field conservationists, working with government agencies or NGOs, who will return to their home countries after the course to implement and disseminate their new knowledge. Candidates without a degree are considered, but must demonstrate an equivalent amount of experience gained in the field. It is important that applicants are competent in English in order to gain the most benefit from the training; please see the diploma website for details of the level of fluency required. Varying levels of sponsorship are available to cover the course fees, living expenses and international travel, and are awarded on the basis of the applicant's geographical origin and financial need.
The formal application deadline is 16th July 2010 - please note this is much earlier than in previous years! We advise candidates in April/May, to ensure that all documents and recommendation letters are received before the deadline.
For more information on the course, including the curriculum and how to apply, please see the diploma website (www.wildcru.org/diploma). If you have difficulties accessing the internet, you can contact the course coordinator wildcru.diploma@zoo.ox.ac.uk and request the information to be sent to you by email or post.