Conservation Genetics

Last changed: 24 March 2025

Come and learn about conservation genetics where you will delve into the basics, theory and practical aspects in a fun and engaging course. Through this course, you will acquire in-demand skills, such as bioinformatics, that will help set you on your path to a successful career in wildlife conservation.

Genetics is an exciting, powerful and widely used approach for gaining deeper insights into wild populations.

Its versatility is extensive:

From estimating population size -both past and present- to understanding how landscapes shape genetic diversity.
From determining relatedness, to revealing dispersal patterns, social structures and mating systems.
From exploring adaptive potential in changing environments to deciphering broader evolutionary patterns; and much more.

The course starts with the basics of conservation genetics (e.g. sampling methods and types of genetic markers), then delves into the theory, and finishes off with a set of case studies where students can take a deeper dive into specific conservation genetics applications in a fun and interactive session.

Throughout, students will gain practical experience in the lab and with basic bioinformatics where they will work directly with sequence data to address some common conservation genetics questions. Finally, students will put all their new knowledge and skills together in a course project.

Students who take this course will gain valuable, in-demand skills that will make them highly employable in governmental and non-governmental agencies working with wildlife. For those aiming to pursue a career in academia, these skills will provide a competitive edge, laying a strong foundation for research in conservation.

Course leader is Anita Norman.

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