This programme draws on the combined strengths of three academic centres. At the
University of Kent, the Centre for Biocultural Diversity has pioneered research and teaching in ethnobotany and human ecology; it has been rated excellent for Teaching, and its work in anthropological approaches to the environment flagged for excellence in the most recent HEFCE Research Assessment Exercise. The Durrell Institute for
Conservation and Ecology (DICE) is known internationally for its work in the study
and practical implementation of biodiversity management around the world. The Royal
Botanic Gardens at Kew has unrivalled plant collections and botanical expertise,
as well as long-standing global involvement with economic botany. All three partners
are involved in major funded projects which have resulted in substantial published
output.
Members of staff have particular expertise in ethnobiological classification,
historical ecology, computing applications, indigenous knowledge, ethnographic research
methods, the human ecology of tropical subsistence systems, wildlife conservation,
biodiversity management, agricultural change, sustainable development, economic botany
and plant taxonomy. Regionally, we have relevant research experience in South East
Asia, the Pacific, tropical South America, Mesoamerica, and sub-Saharan Africa.
Why study Ethnobotany at Kent and Kew?
Ethnobotany is an increasingly important subject. It is essentially interdisciplinary, involving a knowledge of plants and their ecology in the context of their cultural, social and economic significance. This programme, the first graduate course of its kind in the UK, seeks to combine the different strengths of the three institutional partners, each at the forefront of work in its own field: anthropological studies of human-environment interaction and of socio-cultural knowledge of plants in different parts of world (Kent-Anthropology); ecology, conservation science, environmental law and biodiversity management (DICE); plant conservation and sustainable management practices, taxonomy, and economic botany (Kew).
The programme is based at the University of Kent. Students benefit from the wealth of collections, particularly the economic botany collections and specialist expertise on plants, their uses and importance available at Kew, the Ethnobiology Laboratory of the University of Kent, and the expertise of DICE and the Centre for Social Anthropology and Computing. The course will be supplemented with practical work, field visits and guest speakers involved in ethnobotanical research in various parts of the world.
The Academic Programme
Qualification awarded is an MSc in Ethnobotany
The MSc programme in Ethnobotany consists of six core units: Ethnobiological knowledge systems, The botanical foundations of ethnobotany, Plant resources and their conservation, Environmental anthropology, Contemporary Issues in Ethnobotany and Research methods.
There is also a special project which culminates in a written dissertation supervised through Kent or Kent and Kew combined. The programme covers twelve months, and is taught on a full-time and part-time basis to UK and EU students, and on a full-time basis to overseas students.
Students with the appropriate qualifications and experience may be admitted directly
for research, registered initially for an MA, MSc or M.Phil. Subject to satisfactory
progress, this may be upgraded to a Ph.D.
Applicants should meet one of the following requirements
A good honours degree in anthropology, botany, environmental studies or a related discipline.
A good honours degree in other subjects together with relevant experience.
For home students, the Department is recognised by the ESRC for taught course 1+3 quota awards and by NERC and ESRC for full-time Mode A recognition for research degrees, including CASE awards. Ethnobotany has ESRC research training status and home students may apply for competitive awards. It also has a number of small fees-only bursaries at its disposal. See also http://www.grantsforhorticulturalists.org.uk/.
Once at Kent, both home and overseas students may, and often successfully, apply for various awards to support their project work, including the John Ray Trust, the Gen Foundation and the Royal Geographical Society.
Applications may be submitted at any time of year, but preferably by 30 June for entry in September of the same year.
Applicants should provide evidence of their academic qualifications, and of their ability in English (if relevant) to the Information, Recruitment and Admissions Office. They should also arrange for two academic referees to send reports to the same address.
Enquiries to:
Professor Roy Ellen
School of Anthropology and Conservation
Marlowe Building
University of Kent
Canterbury, Kent CT2 7NR Email:
Tel (44-) (0) 1227 764000 extn. 3421 Fax (44-) (0) 1227 827289
