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Environmental Communication and Management MSc with a major in Environmental Science

This Master’s degree will help you understand and work with various communication processes in environmental and natural resource management.

PROGRAMME INFORMATION

The management of environmental and sustainability issues requires communication and collaboration among many different actors in society. Through communication, different and often conflicting perspectives come together to address questions like what is a sustainable society, how should wildlife be protected, which environmental actions should governments prioritise?   

You will learn how to work with communication, facilitate dialogue and analyse governance processes; all of which are key competences for the management of environmental and sustainability challenges. Writing is an important component of the programme.   

Diversity is a strong feature of this programme and your fellow students come from many different countries, speak a wide variety of languages and have a variety of educational backgrounds such as natural science, social science and technology.  

As a Master’s graduate in environmental science you will have the knowledge required to work with environmental communication, both locally and globally, possibly as an environmental coordinator or officer, a facilitator of dialogue and conflict management or as a researcher in environmental sciences.

FACTS & REQUIREMENTS

Name: Environmental Communication and Management - Master's Programme
Level: Master
Language: English
Programme scope: 2 year, 120 credits
Next start: Autumn semester 2024

Tuition Fees: Citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland are required to pay application and tuition fees.

First semester: SEK 62500
Total: SEK 250000

Application deadline for international students: 2024-01-15
Application deadline for Swedish students: 2024-04-15

Study location: Uppsala
Pace of study: Full-time
Teaching form: On-campus
Application code for Swedish students: 81020
Application code for international students: 81034

Requirements:

Admission to the Master’s programme Environmental Communication and Management requires a first-cycle qualification comprising 180 credits and including specialised studies comprising 90 credits within a single subject (e.g. Biology or Economics) within one of the following disciplinary domains:
- natural science
- technology
- social sciences. (e.g. sociology, psychology, economics, political science, human geography, media)
Applicants with the equivalent qualifications obtained by means of a degree from another country, or with the equivalent knowledge obtained in some other way, may also be regarded as fulfilling the specific entry requirements.
This programme is taught in English. The applicant must further have a level of English equivalent to upper secondary school English, called English 6. An applicant with a first-cycle qualification from SLU comprising 180 credits automatically fulfils this requirement. Special rules apply for applicants with qualifications from one of the Nordic countries and some English-speaking countries.
Specific requirements apply for admission to the individual courses included in the programme.

Degree:

Degree awarded on completion of the programme

Upon completion of the programme, the degree of Master of Science is awarded. Other general qualifications may be awarded, provided that the requirements for them are fulfilled. More information can be found in SLU´s degree regulations.

Students who fulfil the qualification requirements for a degree will be issued a degree certificate upon request. The degree certificate will specify the qualification as Degree of Master of Science (120 credits) with a Major in Environmental Science.

Degree requirements

A degree of Master of Science (120 credits) with a major in environmental science is awarded to students who fulfil the course requirements (courses with a Pass grade) of 120 credits, of which at least 90 credits at second-cycle level, according to the following:

  • at least 30 credits of courses with specialised study in the main field environmental science (A1N; A1F),
  • at least 30 credits from an independent project (degree project) in the main field environmental science (A2E).

In addition, the student must hold a degree of Bachelor or professional qualification of at least 180 credits or an equivalent qualification.

 

Admission: There are two admission rounds for this Master's programme. The first admission round is open to all international applicants at www.universityadmissions.se. SLU strongly encourage all international students to apply in this first admission round.

CONTENT

The Environmental Communication and Management programme draws on an understanding of communication as the joint construction of meaning, through which not only knowledge, but also values, norms, experiences and practices are shared and negotiated. An understanding of communication as the core of social life is therefore crucial for understanding and facilitating social change – such as sustainability transformation processes.

The programme considers both environmental communication with and without a clearly defined purpose (e.g., information campaigns as well as conversations among friends and family over a coffee), and elucidates how communication in all its diversity (including non-verbal) shapes public discourses and, ultimately, action that can both enable and constrain social and environmental change.

The aim of this programme is twofold: First, to help students develop social-science based knowledge and skills for understanding and analysing environmental communication and its role in environmental management and governance. Second, to enable students to use these skills and knowledge to work with environmental communication related practices, particularly where these practices require communication between multiple and diverse actors. This could include organising collective action, preparing communication strategies, coordinating multi-stakeholder initiatives, designing and facilitating processes for public deliberation and managing conflicts.

After completing the programme, students are expected to be able to demonstrate theoretical, analytical and practical knowledge about communication processes within environmental management and governance. Students are expected to be able to apply this knowledge in different contexts such as nature conservation, forestry, food production, climate change, mining or urban planning. The programme provides the knowledge and skills required to work in Sweden or in other countries within public, private and non-governmental organisations as well as in research.

The programme includes experiential learning, critical analysis and reflection, and application of theory. Theoretical and practical components of courses are interwoven in teaching activities including experience-based workshops, case study investigations, group projects and reflective assignments.

Course content and interdisciplinary teaching staff offer a wide range of theories and experiences. Programme flexibility and course design allow students to follow their own interests and develop a focus on different aspects of environmental communication and management in Sweden or other countries, through course assignments, an internship or thesis work.

Programme overview

Students will progressively develop an understanding of communication as mechanisms that can both foster and impede change towards increased sustainability, and of communication as the foundation of social and cultural processes, including the formation of social norms and power structures which, again, both enable and constrain social and environmental change.

The programme begins by introducing diverse theoretical perspectives for understanding environmental communication as it occurs in everyday life, including casual conversations, environmental campaigns and policies, as well as in multi-stakeholder decision-making.

Practical components are integrated into these theoretical sections. These components involve the production of visual communication artefacts and the facilitation of dialogue processes. Later in the programme, these theories and practices are further developed by engaging a variety of theoretical perspectives on communication and their relationships to different models for developing communication strategies. 

The programme continues by focusing on constructive and destructive aspects of conflicts, democratic approaches to conflict management and facilitation of deliberative processes. Students explore these topics in the analysis of real-world cases from Sweden and other countries and suggest ways to facilitate inclusive multi-stakeholder processes.

Students also engage critically with environmental governance and develop in-depth insights into how governance plays out in practice. They do this by investigating, assessing and suggesting improvements to ongoing environmental governance practices in Sweden or other countries, based on different theoretical perspectives and interaction with actors involved in these cases.

During the second year of the programme, students are able to participate in a placement in an organisation working with environmental communication or related practices. Students must arrange the placement themselves. In preparation of the thesis work, students learn about and practise the skills required for research within the area of environmental communication. This includes learning about different approaches to research, data collection and analysis as well as academic writing.

Elective courses are available to students who do not participate in a placement. Alternatively, exchange programmes are available at universities abroad, and students may take courses relevant to their own area of interest within environmental communication and related practices in other programmes at SLU or other Swedish universities.

The programme concludes with an independent project in which students research a phenomenon or practice related to environmental communication and management, based on their own interests and with the opportunity to connect the work of ongoing research themes and projects at SLU. 

Visit the student pages to find out more.

CAREER

Graduates of the Master’s programme Environmental Communication and Management have good employment prospects for private companies, consultancy offices, governmental institutions or non-governmental organisations. Previous students have gone on to work as: environmental officers, environmental coordinators, facilitators of dialogue and conflict management, and researchers.

Contact the programme director of studies for a list of companies and job positions where some Environmental Communication and Management alumni are employed.

Alumni network

The Worldwide Environmental Communication Alumn* Network (WECAN) is a network for former and current students of the Environmental Communication and Management Master's programme at SLU.

WECAN organises periodical seminars and activities for current and former ECM students and serves as a platform to exchange knowledge, contacts and inspiration connected to environmental communication.

Send an email if you have any suggestions or if you want to get involved, and remember to join the Facebook page

Degree awarded

Degree of Master of Science (120 credits) with a Major in Environmental Science

 

COURSE SCHEDULE

Year 1

Year 2

SYLLABUS

Student life

Studying at SLU is not just about attending lectures and seminars. It’s also about newfound friends, sports, fun parties, and exciting experiences. It’s about creating memories that will last a lifetime.

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How to apply

Sweden's unique application system makes it possible to apply for programmes and courses at different universities on the same application.

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Fees and scholarships

Who has to pay application and tuition fees? What is the cost of living in Sweden? Read more about these and other questions regarding tuition fees and scholarships.

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Chat with our students

Connect with our international student ambassadors and explore their blogs for a firsthand glimpse into their journeys as students in Sweden and at SLU.

Chat with our students on Unibuddy

Meet our students

Curious about what our students think of this master’s programme? Seyifunmi shares his experiences at SLU in this interview.

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The Swedish Way

Are you on your way to Sweden and wondering what it’s like to study here? Well, get ready to question the way things have always been done. Studying in Sweden comes with critical thinking, freedom and responsibility.

Our researchers. Your teachers.

Anke Fischer is a professor of environmental communication. Watch the film and get to know her and her work better.

Let’s connect on Instagram!

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Central Uppsala in summer

Campus Uppsala

Uppsala is Sweden’s fourth largest city, and the hub of SLU’s educational activities. Located just outside of the city centre, SLU’s Uppsala campus is spacious, leafy and picturesque. It is a fitting setting for Sweden’s only agricultural university, and possibly the most research-intensive of all universities. With two universities located in Uppsala, students can enjoy a lively, dynamic and stimulating atmosphere. 


Contact

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