Compulsory elective modules

The modules are assigned to two areas:

• Agriculture and Ecology
• Society and Environment

Out of each specialisation students need at least 12 credits.

To complete the degree Master of Science, students have to choose at least 30 credits in the specialisation Agriculture and Ecology.

To complete the degree of Master of Arts, students have to choose at least 30 credits in the specialisation Society and Environment .

To strengthen methodical skills each student needs at least 12 credits in methodological modules. All modules with an M in the code number are method modules. They are offered in two specialisations each semester. Students can choose also more than 12 credits of method modules.

External modules from other Master's degree programmes in agriculture or social sciences, economics or humanities amounting to up to 30 credits can be recognised in individual cases. This requires individual counselling and recognition by the examination board in advance.

Language courses at B2 level or higher can be accepted as elective up to 6 credits (Excluded are language courses in English and in the student’s native language).

The compulsory elective area offers a wide range of modules that qualify students for different professional profiles. In order to give students an orientation on how they can develop an individual profile for certain fields, we recommend choosing modules accordingly, taking into account the examination regulations. The profiles presented are informal and are not listed on the degree certificate. See module handbook for detailed module descriptions.

Profile Management of transformation in the agricultural and food sector

In this area, students deal in particular with the motivations of private actors (farmers, processing companies, consumers) in the agricultural and food sector and the structures that determine their actions. The modules mentioned enable students to work in the sustainability and transformation-oriented private sector of the food system as well as in the corresponding associations and cooperatives. Employers include, for example, suppliers of agricultural inputs, retailers, processors, NGOs and business sector associations. Recommended modules include:

• International organic food markets and marketing
• Marketing research
• Supply chain management
• Management and management accounting
• Sustainable food systems and management
• Sustainable behavior and governance
• Environmental economics
• Organic agriculture in Europe
• Food processing
• Ecology and agroecosystems
• Participatory research methods for sustainability

Profile Governance and transformation of the agricultural and food system

In this area, students focus in particular on the role of public policy and policy-making as well as public actors at different levels of social organization in the agricultural and food system. The modules deal with how these actors shape the food system and which approaches and strategies they pursue for a comprehensive transformation of the food system or which restrictions they are confronted with. The modules mentioned qualify students in particular for activities in public administration and in lobbying organizations at local, national or international level. Recommended modules include

• Political agroecology
• Global political economy and development
• Sustainable behavior and governance
• EU policies, organic farming and food system transformation
• Climate change governance
• Organic agriculture in Europe
• Sustainability-oriented environmental social science
• Methods of sociology and humanities
• Participatory research methods for sustainability
• Environment and health
• One health: human, animal and environmental interactions
• Sustainable land-use and climate mitigation
• Ecology and agroecosystems
• Sustainable agricultural practices in the Mediterranean region
• Environmental economics
• Intermediate behavioral economics
• Sustainable food systems and management

Profile Social movements and advocacy

In this area, students critically reflect on the current agricultural and food system and its influence on agriculture. Links are made to political theory and historical and philosophical perspectives in order to provide a basis for evaluating the current agricultural and food system and the role of agriculture within it. Indirectly, the modules prepare students for employment and involvement in social movements, non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations and corresponding lobby groups. Recommended modules include:

• Rural sociology
• Philosophy of sciences
• Philosophy of environment and society
• Global political economy and development
• Sustainable? Development?
• Political agroecology
• Critical and collective perspectives on the global food system
• Social-ecology in livestock production systems
• Methods of sociology and humanities
• Participatory research methods for sustainability
• Sustainability-oriented environmental social science
• Intermediate behavioral economics

Profile Sustainable Agroecosystems

In this area, students deal with crop cultivation, livestock science and technical knowledge relevant to the development and transformation of sustainable agricultural and food systems in the global South and North. The modules qualify students for work in companies, agricultural enterprises, think tanks and public institutions that deal with the production side of agriculture and its transformation towards more sustainability, but also how such technologies and methods can be embedded in specific socio-economic contexts. Recommended modules include:

• Agrobiodiversity and plant genetic resources in the tropics
• Ecology and agroecosystems
• Soil-plant interactions
• Organic cropping systems under temperate and (sub)tropical conditions
• Biodynamic agriculture
• Grassland-based livestock systems and climate change mitigation
• Livestock nutrition and feed evaluation under (sub)tropical conditions
• Livestock-based sustainable land use
• Innovative sustainable breeding
• Unconventional livestock and wildlife
• Management of (sub-)tropical landuse systems
• Sustainable agricultural practices in the Mediterranean region
• Food processing
• Participatory research methods for sustainability

Profile Innovation and modeling of agroecosystems in transition

In this area, students deal with innovative approaches and technologies in agroecological management and incorporate this knowledge into modeling the future of agroecosystems. The focus is particularly on system analysis and quantitative methods. The modules qualify students for employment in think tanks, specialized government agencies or technical companies. Recommended modules include

• Water in the soil-plant system
• Nutrient dynamics, experimental design and statistical modeling
• Digitalization in agriculture
• Digitalization in livestock systems
• GIS and remote sensing in agriculture
• Modeling climate impacts on agroecosystems
• Modeling of environmental processes
• Sustainable land use and climate mitigation
• Applied statistical modeling

Profile Research and teaching on agriculture and food systems

Students wishing to work in research should contact Researchers in their preferred field at the University of Kassel at an early stage to discuss their choice of modules. The choice of modules should be more strongly oriented towards the content in which they would like to continue their academic career.