Master of Science by Coursework in Water Science, Policy and Management

• 1. The Social Sciences Divisional Board shall elect for the supervision of the course a Standing Committee. The Academic Director and Course Director will be responsible to the Standing Committee.

• 2. Candidates must follow a course of instruction in Water Science, Policy and Management for at least three terms, and will, when entering for the examination, be required to produce a certificate from the Course Director to this effect.

• 3. The examination will consist of:

  • (i) a written examination of three papers based on core courses as described in the schedule;

  • (ii) two assessed essays based on elective courses.    These must be uploaded to the courseUniversity WebLearnapproved Submissionsonline siteasessment platform by the times and dates specified at the start of the course.    Each submission must be accompanied by a declaration indicating that it is the candidate's own work;

  • (iii) a dissertation on a subject selected in consultation with the supervisor and Course Director and approved by the Course and Academic Directors.

• 4. Candidates must submit to the Course Director by the end of Hilary Term in the year in which they enter the examination, the title and a brief statement of the form and scope of their dissertation, together with the name of a person who has been agreed by the Course Director or Academic Director to act as their supervisor during preparation of the dissertation.

• 5. The dissertation shall be of a maximum length of 15,000 words and accompanied by an abstract not exceeding 150 words. The maximum word count shall include footnotes, but exclude appendices, references and the abstract. The detailed format and specification of the dissertation shall be approved by the Standing Committee, and published in the course handbook.

• 6. The dissertation must be uploaded to the courseUniversity WebLearnapproved Submissionsonline siteassessment platform no later than noon on the first weekday of September in the year in which the written examination is taken.    The submission must be accompanied by a declaration indicating that it is the candidate's own work.  

• 7. In the written examination, the examiners will permit the use of hand-held pocket calculators subject to the conditions set out under the heading ‘‘Use of calculators in examinations’’ in the Special Regulations concerning Examinations.

• 8. The examiners may also examine any candidate viva voce on the candidate's written papers, dissertation or both.

• 9. Arrangements for reassessment shall be specified by the Standing Committee and published in the course handbook.

• 10. The examiners may award a distinction for excellence in the whole examination.

 Schedule

• (a) Core courses

  The core courses will be examined under the following heads:

  • 1. Water Science

    Candidates will be expected to have knowledge and a critical understanding of the physical, chemical and biological processes, and interactions across the hydrological cycle at the global, basin/catchment and hillslope scale, of the relationship of water to health and disease, and of the engineering and technological solutions to water supply and sanitation.

  • 2. Water and Society

    Candidates will be expected to have knowledge and a critical understanding of the arguments and issues related to the legal, social, political and institutional dimensions of water decision-making. Along with the economic approaches, modelling tools, and analysis techniques that can be used to support policy.

  • 3. Water Management

    Candidates will be expected to have knowledge and a critical understanding of relevant debates and issues concerning water management.

• (b) Elective courses

  Candidates will be expected to show advanced knowledge of two of the elective courses on offer in any year.