Student ACES master new skills
AN international group of students on a prestigious Masters Degree at the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS UHI) in Oban is catching the eye of the aquaculture industry.
The 25 students, who come from all corners of the globe, are the second cohort to join the Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters Degree (EMJMD) in Aquaculture, Environment and Society (ACES), awarded jointly by the University of the Highlands and Islands and University of Crete.
The group, all based in and around Oban for an initial six months, represent 19 countries, including New Zealand, Jamaica, Peru, Brazil, Pakistan, China, Colombia and the US.
As part of the two-year ACES programme they will continue their studies in Crete next February and in autumn 2017 will move on to Nantes in France, before spending the final six months of their Masters at one of the three partner organisations.
The academic course will cover industry relevant aspects of aquaculture, such as environmental issues, governance, technology, life cycles and feed production.
Course leader Dr Elizabeth Cottier-Cook, a senior researcher at SAMS, said: ‘The ACES programme provides fully funded scholarships for EU and non-EU students in a bid to attract the very best aquaculture students from around the world.’
Marine Harvest sponsors a scholarship for one EU based student, who will go on to complete their studies with the company.
The company’s business support manager, Steve Bracken, said: ‘Courses like EMJMD ACES are an important vector to bridge the gap between education, research and development, and applied industry techniques and knowledge.’
Applications are being taken for the third ACES cohort (2017/18).