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Overview

Projects and topics span several themes in zoology, botany, and environmental sciences, including behaviour, physiology, ecology, evolution, systematics, sustainability, and conservation practices.

Why study Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences at Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½?

Studying this combination of topics provides a thorough understanding of the natural world and the role of different organisms on Earth, and prepares you for a range of careers in the zoological, botanical, and environmental sciences (see below). Furthermore, a BSc Honours is the minimum qualification required for South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) registration, which is necessary for professional practice as a natural scientist in South Africa, including work in areas such as research, consulting, environmental assessment, and conservation.

The Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½ School of Animal, Plant, and Environmental Sciences is home to several leaders in their field. Our School comprises a diverse, research-active and passionate community of academic staff and postgraduate students. We also offer access to a range of exceptional resources, including the Life Sciences Museum, insectary, herbarium, greenhouses, and field stations.

Our School prides itself on the breadth and depth of its Honours programme. This includes an Enabling Skills course, designed to equip you with the essential tools for a career as a scientist. For your research project, you will approach academic staff to identify a supervisor and topic that align with your interests and career ambitions. In addition, you can choose from a wide range of elective theory topics. Research and theory themes span the taxonomy, ecology and physiology of plants and animals, animal behaviour, terrestrial and aquatic ecology, systematics and biogeography, biocontrol and sustainability, and conservation and global change biology.

Career Opportunities

A BSc Honours degree is the minimum qualification required to register with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) as a professional natural scientist. Graduates with an Honours degree in Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences have a wide range of career opportunities, including:

• Conservation work in national, provincial and private protected areas and in non-governmental organisations (NGOs)
• Employment in governmental environmental agencies
• Research, curatorship and collection management at museums, botanical gardens and zoological gardens
• Data analysis and environmental analytics in private companies
• Environmental consulting and environmental impact assessments (EIA)
• Biodiversity assessment and monitoring
• Ecological restoration and rehabilitation projects
• Policy, science communication, and science advisory roles
• Environmental education and outreach (schools, NGOs, nature centres)
• Bioinformatics and quantitative ecology (particularly for students with strong data skills)
• Consulting roles in climate change adaptation and assessment
• Further postgraduate study (MSc, PhD) leading to specialist or leadership positions

Curriculum

The degree comprises two main components:

1. A research project
2. A theoretical component, which includes a compulsory skills course and three elective theory courses.

Theory courses span a wide range of topics including (but not limited to) animal behaviour and ecology, population and spatial ecology, ecophysiology, biocontrol, biogeography, entomology, ethnoecology, entomology, global change, taxonomy and systematics, pollination ecology, and sustainability.

The number and range of theory and research topics offered each year depend on staff availability. Theory courses differ in their mode of delivery and assessment, for example, students may be required to participate in regular discussions, present research papers, and complete written and/or practical assignments. Courses are typically capped at small sizes  (usually around 10 students) to facilitate discussions and meaningful interactions.

Each student conducts a research project under the supervision of an academic staff member, ideally within a discipline aligned with the student’s interest. Through this project, students develop core research skills, including study design, implementation of experimental protocols, and data collection, analysis, and interpretation. The results of the project are written up at the end of the year, and students are required to present a formal project proposal, progress report, and final project presentation, and sit in a final oral examination

Entry Requirements

For an application to be considered, applicants must hold a BSc degree or equivalent that includes appropriate foundational training in biology, ecology, and supporting quantitative and chemical sciences.

Typical academic preparation includes:

• Statistics and Chemistry courses (normally passed at 50% or above)
• Relevant second‑year biology and/or ecology courses
• Relevant third‑year biology and/or ecology courses with an average of 65% or above. Applicants with a third‑year average of 60–64%, who meet all other criteria, will be placed on a waiting list and considered for admission should space become available.

Applications open around March and close on the 30 November. We recognise that not all applicants will have final transcripts available by this stage and applications are provisionally assessed using the most recent available results. Firm offers are made only after final third‑year marks are released.

University Application Process

University Fees and Funding

Click here to see the current average tuition fees. The Fees site also provides information about the payment of fees and closing dates for fees payments. Once you have applied you will be able to access the fees estimator on the student self-service portal.

For information about postgraduate funding opportunities, including the postgraduate merit award, click here. The University's Postgraduate Funding portal is a database of scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities available to Ñî¹óåú´«Ã½ postgraduate students. Please also check your School website for bursary opportunities.  The National Research Foundation (NRF) offers a wide range of opportunities in terms of bursaries and fellowships to students pursuing postgraduate studies.  The Bursaries South Africa website provides a comprehensive list of bursaries in South Africa.