Woodland Management

We're holding online Q&A sessions with Forestry lecturers on Facebook throughout the summer. Check the schedule for the next session.

Why study with us?

Forest and woodland management is important! Woodlands are now managed for a variety of reasons, including timber, carbon and biomass and non-wood forest products, recreation, landscape development, biodiversity and conservation. Where better to study this than the National School of Forestry? This is our flagship course, exploring the science and practice of managing forests and management. You gain skills in broader conservation management and learn about all types of forests.

Our location is ideal for the studying forests and woodlands. Our degree has a strong professional focus. Our estate contains ancient woodlands, mixed woodlands and plantations. The increasing environmental, social and economic importance of forests leads to exciting opportunities for graduates worldwide. The optional placement year allows you to explore these opportunities.

Where will this course take place?

If you enrol with us in September 2013, you will have the opportunity to spend time at both our Penrith and Ambleside campuses. Each campus offers individual and distinctive advantages, providing easy access to the English Lake District with its unique geography. These exceptional locations in effect become your classroom.

From September 2014, all Forest and Woodland Management students will be based in Ambleside.

What can this course lead to?

This degree prepares you for a career in forest and woodland management in the UK and overseas. We have a very high level of graduate employment. Graduates work with, for example, the Forestry Commission, the Woodland Trust, private estates, local authorities and consultancy companies; some set up their own businesses; some work overseas. Others may wish to go on to masters-level study. The course also gives you Associate Level Two Membership of the UK Institute of Chartered Foresters.

Resources and facilities

The National School of Forestry is located near to the town of Penrith in Cumbria, a large county with variations in climate, topography, land use and vegetation. Our location is ideal for the study of forest and woodland management. In addition to the University's woodlands, within a 50-mile radius of the campus are some 100,000 hectares of forests and woodlands managed for a variety of objectives. You will be taught by staff from across the School and our Centre for Wildlife Conservation.

The National School of Forestry at the Newton Rigg campus of the University of Cumbria provides an exceptional range of facilities for both students and researchers. The campus encompasses over a hundred hectares of Cumbrian countryside, and has been recognised as an incredibly diverse and ecologically rich environment.

We are privileged to offer direct access to a wide range of habitats and forest types on-campus, including; mixed broadleaf woodland, coniferous woodland, willow plantations, a young oak orchard, wetland, arable farmland and pastureland, and associated hedgerows, shelterbelts, ways, and brooks.

In addition to this variety, we also have a large (and growing!) arboretum, a tropical plant house, temperate and research glass houses, and gardens, all on site. We also have excellent new laboratory facilities. This outstanding set of resources enables many classes and field visits to be conducted just outside the lecture rooms, providing an enhanced learning environment where learning is combined with cutting-edge research.

Have a look at our learning resources for Forestry.

Entry requirements

240 UCAS points.

Find out more about equivalent qualifications on the UCAS tariff table.

Please check any additional selection criteria below.

Credit and UCAS requirements UCAS code: D500; Sandwich course: D504 UCAS points: 240 Costs

Click to view information on your study type and home location.

Full-time students

Home

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year has been set at £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount).

As a full-time UK student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning £21,000 per annum (if you're from England) or £15,795 (if you're from Scotland). You may also be eligible for a maintenance loan (up to £5,500) and a maintenance grant (up to £3,354). For more information about student loans and grants, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Full-time students may be eligible for one of 110 NSP awards for full-time students worth up to £6,000.

Cumbria Bursary

The Cumbria Bursary is an annual cash award of £1,000 for up to three years of study. There are 300 Cumbria Bursaries available in 2013.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Access to Learning Fund
• Utilities trust

EU

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year has been set at £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount).

As a full-time EU student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning £21,000 per annum (or the equivalent in your country). For more information about student loans, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Full-time students may be eligible for one of 110 NSP awards for full-time students worth up to £6,000.

Cumbria Bursary

The Cumbria Bursary is an annual cash award of £1,000 for up to three years of study. There are 300 Cumbria Bursaries available in 2013.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Utilities trust

International

The tuition fee for the 2013/14 academic year is £9,960.

Fees are billed annually and may be paid by the student or a sponsor. 75 percent of the annual tuition fees must be paid before or at registration. For students requiring a Tier 4 Student Visa, a deposit of £3,500 is expected as a minimum before a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) will be issued. For more information, visit our international student finance page.

Early payment discount

If you are paying your own fees, you may be eligible for an early payment discount of £1,000. This discount is awarded to students who pay in full before registration.

International scholarship

If you are studying a full-time bachelor's degree (excluding teacher training and NHS-funded courses) or a top-up degree, you may be eligible for an international scholarship. The university has nine scholarships available. Find out more on our scholarships page.

Additional financial support

Our money doctors will be on hand throughout the year to help you manage your money while you’re in the UK. However, if you do happen to run into financial difficulty during your time here, you may be able to access a small emergency support fund.

Part-time students

Home

The tuition fee for students starting study in the 2013/14 academic year is £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount). This fee is billed annually. For part-time students, the annual fee is calculated based on the number of years you take to complete your course. For example, a student studying part-time for six years may expect to pay £4,125 per year.

As a part-time UK student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning over £21,000 a year (if you're from England) or £15,795 (if you're from Scotland). For more information about student loans and grants, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Part-time students may be eligible for one of 40 NSP awards worth up to £3,000.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Access to Learning Fund
• Utilities trust

EU

The tuition fee for students starting study in the 2013/14 academic year is £8,250 (including an automatic £750 fee discount). This fee is billed annually. For part-time students, the annual fee is calculated based on the number of years you take to complete your course. For example, a student studying part-time for six years may expect to pay £4,125 per year.

As a part-time EU student, you are entitled to a tuition fee loan which doesn’t have to be repaid until you start earning over £21,000 a year. For more information about student loans, visit our student finance page.

Additional funding

National Scholarship Programme

The National Scholarship Programme is designed to support students with a household income of less than £25,000. Part-time students may be eligible for one of 40 NSP awards worth up to £3,000.

More financial support

Access to financial support doesn’t end at registration. We have several awards and support funds available to our current students, including:

• Achievement scholarships
• Outstanding performance awards
• Utilities trust

Additional contact information Find out more at http://www.cumbria.ac.uk/forestry UCAS Link

Visit UCAS

Modules

For detailed summary of all course content please read our programme specification for this course (PDF).

Course summary

You will study the management of forests and woodlands for commercial, recreation and conservation management. In the first year you will take a range of core modules designed to give a good grounding in the underlying principles and practice of forest and woodland management.

As the course progresses your range of options increases. This allows you to study subjects as diverse as landscape ecology, woodland dynamics, conservation genetics, tropical forestry and the use of geographic information systems. Tutors help guide you in selecting modules that will give you the best chance of achieving your career ambitions.

If you decide to undertake a 12 month forestry placement, either in the UK or overseas, this may also form the basis for your final year dissertation, on a subject of particular interest to you. Career development skills including ICT, teamwork and forest skills are embedded in the programme.

Case studies In a recent survey of our first year students we asked ‘why did you choose to study with us?'

The top three reasons were:

• The National School of Forestry name and our reputation in the forest sector
• The quality of our courses
• Our location

We also asked ‘what do you like most about the course?'

The top three ‘likes’ were:

• The approachability of our lecturers
• The variety of our course, particularly the mix of lectures and practical fieldwork
• How interesting the course is.

"The course not only offers a brilliant theory degree but a practical element to those who are looking for it." David White, year two student