The MSc in Rural Land and Business Management, offering two pathways, agriculture and surveying, builds upon two previous highly successful postgraduate courses in Land Management and Agricultural Management. The new MSc course has been designed for engaging the learning capacities of future managers in land-based and rural businesses. It is run jointly by the Department of Real Estate & Planning (School of Business), and the Department of Agriculture (School of Agriculture, Policy and Development). Both departments enjoy internationally acclaimed reputations for excellence in teaching and research.

This MSc is under the partnership scheme between The University of Reading and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors; candidates following the surveying pathway will be deemed to have satisfied the academic requirements of the RICS for admission to the Assessment of Professional Competence.

This Programme Will Enable You To:

• Develop an understanding of the economic, technological, legal and social principles that underlie the practice of management in the countryside, along with a critical awareness of current issues. 
• Acquire skills in the application of management techniques to the management of land-based and other similar businesses, in a creative and practical manner. 
• Develop your ability to apply knowledge and conceptual understanding to undertake research on business management issues and to critically evaluate research findings and methodologies. 
• Develop your critical, presentational and interpersonal skills to assist you in the development of your potential as a manager, a leader and a communicator.

Programme Structure and Content
The programme is a one year full-time undertaking, starting in October and ending in the following September. The first two terms, cover all the taught material with written examinations taking place during the Summer Term. The European Study Tour usually takes place towards the end of the Summer Term. 

Candidates choose either the surveying or the agriculture pathway at the time of application. Each pathway has its own set of core modules, consisting of two thirds of the taught material. The remaining one third is made from elective modules, which can be ‘tailored’ to suit individual preferences.

All candidates complete a dissertation and take a dissertation methodology module and participate in the assessed European Study Tour. Students are expected to work for the dissertation throughout the year on a topic of their choice, reflecting their academic interests and career intentions. 

Teaching involves a combination of approaches including lectures, seminars, presentation by students- either individually or in small groups, site-based case studies, directed reading, individual project work and research, and the use of Internet resources. In many modules, visiting speakers offering recognised expertise in specialised areas contribute to teaching.

The course is organised around a 180-credit modular structure. An individual module can be of 10, 20 or 50 (for dissertation) credits, representing 100, 200 or 500 hours of work for the student, respectively.  The two pathways consist of the following modules.

The Surveying Pathway:

Rural Property Law

Rural Policy and Planning

The Land Market and Valuation

Property and Business Taxation

Entrepreneurship and Diversification

Elective Modules

The Agriculture Pathway:

Business Management Economics

Advanced Marketing

Food Industry Analysis

Human Resource Management

Elective Modules

Common modules (all students):

European Study Tour

Dissertation

Management Case Studies

Career Opportunities
Graduates from the surveying pathway will find employment as trainee Chartered Surveyors with firms either specialising in or undertaking substantial rural work.  A number of the larger firms actively recruit direct from the University on a regular basis, recognising its position within the profession as one of the leading providers of high quality rural estate management education. 

The School of Agriculture, Policy and Development enjoys enviable links with agricultural organisations and national firms; many organisations and firms regularly take graduates from the University into their employment.  Students on the agriculture pathway will have a variety of potential employment prospects, ranging from direct involvement in agricultural management to employment in the food chain and the professional service sector and the wider professional business management sector. 

Entry Requirements
A good honours undergraduate degree (normally upper second class or equivalent from a University outside the UK) is required.  This degree should be in a cognate subject such as Agriculture, Agricultural Business Management, Agricultural Economics, Rural Resource Management or Science, Biological or other natural sciences, Land Management, Economics, Geography or any other related subject

Candidates from outside the UK are expected to take the IELTS test (International English Language Testing System), obtaining a minimum average score of 7.0.

All applications should be sent to:

The Sub-Dean
Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences
The University of Reading
Whiteknights
PO Box 219
Reading RG6 6AW

For further Information contact:

Dr. Tahir Rehman FIAgr.M
School of Agriculture, Policy and Development
New Agriculture Building
Earley Gate, PO Box 237
Reading RG6 6AR

Tel: +44 (0) 118 378 8480
Email: t.u.rehman@reading.ac.uk
 

Mr. Roger Gibbard BSc. FRICS, FAAV
Department of Real Estate and Planning
School of Business
The University of Reading
PO Box 219
Reading RG6 6AW

Te: +44 (0)118 378 6488
Email: r.gibbard@reading.ac.uk