March 31, 2026
The Sky is Your Limit: Ecology and Sustainable Development
Did you just graduate from university with a degree in biology, environmental science or any related fields? Are you looking for a master’s programme that will deepen both your academic knowledge and experience from field work? As the LiU student correspondence, today I’ll give you some insight into how it is like to study the master’s programme in ecology and sustainable development!
Overview
So, this is a two-year programme, with the second year dedicated to master’s thesis. The curriculum combines methodology used in ecology, in ecology. You can find a copy of the syllabus here (click on the text to access the programme page)! What’s more, in the second half of the second semester, students get to do an internship, which is extremely beneficial for them to gain some hands-on experience and expand their professional network in this field. If this sounds interesting to you, keep reading as I have invited a current student to share her experience with you 🌟
More from Our Student
Ágota is a second-year student who has finished her internship as well as her master’s thesis. She has an academic background in biology. For many of you who are considering pursuing a master’s degree, it might already be common sense that doing a master’s means digging deeper into a specific field. However, for Ágota, the leap from bachelor’s to master’s is more than just harder exams (, which are not even the main focus of the master’s programme) but going from being the consumer of knowledge to the producer of knowledge.
⚠️ The curriculum for the 26/27 cohort might differ from that for 24/25. Always check the progamme syllabus for the latest updates on the exact course being taught.
During one of her courses, Ecosystem services in CSR and conservation, she worked with industrial engineers on a project to reverse palm oil plantations, with a goal to balance the environment, economic growth and social well-being. In another course, Case studies in conservation and sustainable development, students in this programme worked with animal ethology students on a project on conservation inventory of biodiversity hotspots assigned by World Wildlife Fund. For the project, they had to choose 3 key species for the inventory. Note that students will need to find the organization themselves, but worry not, as one can always reach out to the programme if they need help with finding an internship placement.
So far, Ágota really likes her study at LiU. Factors such as the Swedish practical thinking, work-based learning (aka focusing on assignments) and lots of freedom to choose the thesis topics made her put LiU as her first choice 🤓 Last but not least, with one year being dedicated to master’s thesis, which involves doing field work, conducting data analysis and finally putting all the pieces together, she is about tropical butterflies based on her field work in Peru! Hopefully, you’re convinced how much autonomy this programme gives to its students and how much you can possibly do!
Advice for Future Students
Finally, if you’ve already decided to apply for this programme, or you’ve already been admitted, according to our student, it’s best to explore the master’s thesis topic and find the internship opportunities as soon as possible in the beginning of the study as it definitely takes some time!
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