Wildlife Ecology and Conservation including Foundation Year
Accredited by the Royal Society of Biology, our course gives you the knowledge to understand, protect, and support wildlife. You will learn from research-active experts, explore modern tools and theory, and gain real-world experience in the UK, South Africa, and South America.
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Key Course Details
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UCAS Code
C35F
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Start Date
September
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Location
Pontypridd
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Campus Code
A
Fees
Home students
£9,790*
International students
£17,200*
- Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits.
Immerse yourself in wildlife ecology and conservation through fieldwork across three continents. Develop the skills to study, manage, and sustain wildlife, and build the confidence to make a real difference in a world where environments and species are constantly changing.
DESIGNED FOR
Ideal for those starting or transitioning to a wildlife-oriented career. This course offers extensive field experiences and addresses key themes in contemporary wildlife ecology and conservation. You’ll gain internationally sought-after skills, preparing you for success in conservation and wildlife management roles.
Dedicated to excellence
- Accredited by the Royal Society of Biology
Career paths
- Conservation officer
- Ecological consultant
- Protected Area manager
- Academic researcher
- Wildlife policy advisor
Skills taught
- Wildlife research techniques
- Conservation planning and management
- Geospatial technology
- Data analysis and interpretation
- Professional development
Course Highlights
Module Overview
In your Foundation Year, you’ll explore biology, chemistry, and real-world challenges, build practical, academic, and teamwork skills, and develop curiosity, confidence, and problem-solving abilities to prepare for future study and impact.
Starting your University Journey
This module helps you develop academic, personal and professional skills for university study. You’ll reflect on your progress, build confidence, and create an evidence-based portfolio to support your future learning.
The Science of Life: Foundations in Biology
You’ll explore core biological principles from molecules to whole organisms, develop practical laboratory skills, and use real-world examples to support your learning and prepare you for further study in the life sciences.
Chemistry in Action: Science That Shapes the World
You'll develop an understanding of key chemical concepts, from molecules to reactions, build practical laboratory skills, and gain essential experience to support your future scientific studies.
The Impact Challenge
You’ll work in teams with other Foundation Year students to tackle real-world challenges, developing solutions through research, curiosity, collaboration, and responsible problem-solving while building skills that will support your future studies.
Course Highlights
How you’ll learn
You’ll learn by doing, through real-world activities that help you understand how learning works at university. You’ll be encouraged to ask questions, explore new ideas and work with others, as well as independently. Teaching builds confidence, critical thinking and reflection, supported by digital tools. Regular feedback helps you track progress, plan next steps and build resilience and a strong sense of belonging as you prepare for higher-level study.
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How you'll be assessed
You’ll be assessed in different ways, including short tasks, coursework, presentations, and group work. Early assessments are designed to support your learning and help you understand what is expected at university. Most assessments are coursework-based and help you develop key skills such as research, academic writing, teamwork, and communication. You’ll also reflect on your progress and use university systems and digital tools. Clear, timely feedback will help you understand how to improve and support your next steps.
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Placements
As you progress onto your degree, you can take the optional Professional Practice and Placement module, usually after your second year. It gives you the chance to gain real-world experience by working with an employer, completing a simulated project, or studying abroad at a partner university. Physical placements take place with companies, while simulated projects can be done remotely. Placements can be arranged by the university or by you, with guidance from our Professional Services team. Fieldwork is included locally and internationally, with partners such as the Wildlife Trust and Operation Wallacea.
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Facilities
By studying Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, you'll benefit from our state-of-the-art facilities at Glyntaff Campus. We have an abundance of essential and contemporary field equipment, as well as fully equipped labs and computer rooms with specialist software for your learning. You'll use our campus's wild spaces for practical activities and conduct fieldwork in key conservation areas in South Wales. Additionally, you'll have access to the vibrant Student Union on the nearby Treforest campus, offering a range of activities and support.
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Accreditations and partnerships
Why USW?
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ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
UCAS points: 48 (or above)
Typical qualification requirements:
- A Level: DD to include a relevant Science subject but exclude General Studies
- BTEC: BTEC Extended Diploma Pass Pass Pass or BTEC Diploma Pass Pass in a relevant subject
- Access to HE: Pass Access to HE Diploma in Science with a minimum of 48 UCAS Tariff points.
Additional requirements include:
The University normally requires a minimum 3 GCSEs including Mathematics and English at Grade C/Grade 4 or above, or their equivalent but consideration is given to individual circumstances.
International applications welcomed:
We welcome international applications with equivalent qualifications of our entry requirements. For more details related to your country of residence, please view our dedicated country pages.
English language requirements
International applicants will need to have achieved an overall of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component/TOEFL 72 overall and a minimum of 18 in reading, 17 in listening, 20 in speaking and 17 in writing or equivalent.
Equivalents can be located on our English Language pages.
If you have previously studied through the medium of English, IELTS might not be required, please visit our country specific page for further details. If your country is not featured, please contact us.
If you do not meet the English entry criteria, please visit our Pre-Sessional course pages.
Contextual offers
We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended, for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer, and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.
USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.
We're here to help
Whether you a have a question about your course, fees and funding, the application process or anything else, there are plenty of ways you can get in touch, and we'd love to talk to you. You can contact our friendly admissions team by phone, email or chat to us online.
Fees and Funding
£9,790
per year*£17,200
per year*Additional Costs
As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.
*Obligatory
Students undertaking courses that contain elements of outdoor fieldwork must wear appropriate clothing and footwear. Students will be informed of these requirements at the start of their studies and before each activity. Please note that inappropriate clothing/footwear will prevent students from participating in an activity.
Cost: Up to £300
Students will need to supply suitable stationary supplies, field notebooks and digital memory devices (USB etc.), for work both in the classroom and on fieldwork.
Cost: Up to £50
Flights cost £800 in 2023 but this vary considerably. Students travel as a university group via a group booking and every effort is made to identify travel needs early and secure low prices. Travel will also be necessary within the UK (i.e., to and from the airport), and other incidental costs (e.g. snacks while travelling) are likely
Cost: £800+
The four-week compulsory residential field trip to South Africa represents two modules of study that run consecutively over the summer vacation period in between the first and second years. The trip is partially subsidised (approximately half the total cost) by the School of Biological and Forensic Sciences
Additional costs to students are approximately £1,100 to £1,300 for travel, activities, etc. in South Africa (i.e., transportation in South Africa, meals at field stations, field equipment, local staff, and accommodation).
Cost: Up to £1,300
Some international fieldwork may require visas and vaccinations, which are at the cost to the student and will vary depending on individual circumstances.
Cost: Variable
This residential field trip of up to two and a half weeks in a tropical location, including marine and terrestrial study sites, represents an optional module. Recent field sites have included Belize, Mexico, Honduras, and Borneo.
Additional costs to students are approximately £1,750 for travel, activities, etc. in the host country (which includes permits, accommodation and food at the two field sites, field equipment, local staff, transportation in Belize, dive equipment, dive masters and boat skipper, travel to/from the University and London airport).
Cost: £1,750+
Flights may vary considerably. Other incidental costs (e.g. snacks while travelling) are likely.
Cost: £1300
Tropical Padi dive training. This is optional and not a requirement.
Cost: £350.
Students who successfully secure a placement in industry or abroad to complete their research projects would be expected to pay their own costs – which may vary considerably - during the period of placement.
Cost: Variable
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Course Kit Bursary
As a student of BSc (Hons) Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, you'll receive outdoor clothing voucher and a kit bag when you enrol, to support you with course costs.
University Quality Assurance
At USW, we regularly review our courses in response to changing patterns of employment and skills demand to ensure we offer learning designed to reflect today’s student needs and tomorrow’s employer demands.
If during a review process course content is significantly changed, we’ll write to inform you and talk you through the changes for the coming year. But whatever the outcome, we aim to equip our students with the skillset and the mindset to succeed whatever tomorrow may bring. Your future, future-proofed.
How to apply
All applications for full-time undergraduate courses or foundation degrees should be made via UCAS. Take the next step: Apply through UCAS. You can apply to us directly for all part-time undergraduate courses, if you’re seeking advanced entry or you’re an international student. To apply directly, please choose the application form below for your preferred start date and mode of study (full-time or part-time.)
Advanced entry
If you already have a relevant qualification or experience related to the course you're applying for, you may be eligible to start at a later stage of the course. For example, students from partner colleges can ‘top up’ their qualifications to a degree by joining us in Year Two or Year Three of a course. This process is known as ‘advanced entry’, you can apply directly to the University for 'advanced entry' using the application forms provided above.
International admissions
International applicants can apply to us directly. If the University has an in-country team in your region, your application will be assigned to them for assistance.
Life at USW
Halls are a big part of your student experience and there’s accommodation at all three of our locations. If you don’t want to live near the campus, there are great transport links to keep you connected.