Ecology

Study ecology at the University of Reading and develop the knowledge and skills to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing the world today.

Our ecology programmes reveal how living things behave, evolve and interact with their environments, providing you with the expertise to confront global issues such as:

• the protection of ecosystems and endangered species
• biological control of diseases
• habitat conservation
• water management. 

Our Whiteknights campus is home to more than one thousand different animal species and multiple habitats: a lake, meadows, woodlands and extensive parkland. This offers a unique learning environment for practical classes, allowing you to step straight from the laboratory into the field.

We have recently invested £60m in our new Health and Life Sciences Building, which provides:

• dedicated research and teaching laboratories
• seminar rooms
• study and social space
• The Cole Museum of Zoology – a fantastic resource with 3,500 natural history specimens for you to study.

Fieldwork and placements

During your degree you will have the opportunity to practise species identification and ecology skills through field trips to Spain and the tropics. These will also enable you to study biodiversity in other habitats such as arid landscapes, forests and oceans.

The University has strong links with the RSPB wildlife charity, the Environment Agency, and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust. Several of our students have undertaken placements with these organisations and gained valuable experience within the sector.