Master of Wildlife Management

The Master of Wildlife Management (MWLM) degree is a three-semester 180-point postgraduate degree designed to train students with the skills necessary for employment in some aspect of wildlife or ecological management or research.

Other important goals of the course are to develop in students:

• an understanding of the ecological basis of conservation, harvest management and pest control.
• skills in handling, marking, observing and surveying wild animals.
• an appreciation of the practical realities of wildlife management from the administrative and legal points of view.
• a knowledge of the biology, ecology and behaviour of wild animals in New Zealand.
• skills in communicating about the management of, and scientific research of, ecological communities. Verbal presentations, debating, dealing with the media, popular science writing and scientific report writing are all emphasised and taught.

Information for new applicants

A candidate would normally have completed a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in a related subject area before undertaking the MWLM, but the degree is also open to those with other qualifications.

This programme is subject to limitations on enrolment numbers. Qualified domestic students are given first preference, but places may be available for international students.

Postgraduate entrance requirements

Entrance requirements for postgraduate study vary by programme with most requiring a minimum bachelor-level qualification in the same field, and some having additional requirements such as relevant work experience and/or professional registration in New Zealand.

A postgraduate certificate or postgraduate diploma can usually be taken at any time after the completion of your bachelor's degree.

If you hold an honours degree or postgraduate diploma you may be able to eligible for master’s study by thesis only. In some cases if you hold a bachelor’s degree you may apply for a coursework master’s degree or for master’s study by coursework and thesis.

To study a PhD you usually require the completion of a master’s degree, or a first-class or upper second-class honours degree in the same area of study, or a related discipline, as your intended area of research.

Check the postgraduate students pages for specific information on the entrance requirements of the programme you are interested in.

IELTS (Academic module) (including IELTS Online) : Overall score of 6.5, no individual band below 6.0

TOEFL iBT : Overall score of 90 and a writing score of 21 The University of Otago TOEFL institution code is 9483 (Please note we do not accept MyBest TOEFL scores)

Pearson Test of English ( PTE ) Academic : Overall score of 58 with no communicative skills score below 50

Duolingo English Test : Overall score of 120 (with no Individual Subscore below 95)