MSC IN AQUACULTURE AND FISHERIES MANAGEMENT
GRADUATE PROFILE
An MSc graduate in Aquaculture and Fisheries management will be able to:
- Teach aquaculture and fisheries courses in universities and other institutions
- Develop an intellectual integrity and respect for teaching and research ethics in aquaculture and fisheries management
- Devise appropriate management plans to meet national needs of using fisheries resources in a sustainable manner
- Apply appropriate technologies for the efficient and sustainable utilization of fisheries resources
- Identify gaps, write proposal, plan and conduct research on aquaculture and fisheries in order to generate relevant scientific information for policy makers
- Advise fish farmers and fishermen on the techniques of aquaculture and fisheries
- Operate and work with biological equipment useful for aquaculture and fisheries research.
ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Admissions to the program are competitive based on the following criteria:
- Applicants need to have Bachelor Degree in Aquaculture and/or Fisheries, Biology, Animal Sciences, Wetlands Management, Environmental Sciences and other related fields which will be determined by the Department Graduate Committee (DGC) of Department of Biology
- Applicants need to have a BSc cumulative grade point average (cGPA) of 2.00 and above from accredited higher learning institution
- Applicants need to score a minimum of 50% in the entrance examination; undergraduate cGPA accounting for 50% and entrance examination for 50% to be eligible for entry to the program
- If the DGC feels that a candidate is deficient in major area in the undergraduate program, remedial courses will be arranged
- Applicants should meet the general Jimma University admission requirements
DURATION OF THE STUDY PROGRAM
The study would require optimum use of two years. Only in unavoidable circumstances with strict approval of concerned bodies, it may extend to a maximum of three years. A candidate who fails to complete within the set schedule must present an acceptable justification in consultation with his/her research supervisor(s) for possible extension as per the existing JU regulation.
GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
A candidate must fulfill the following requirements of the School of Graduate studies (SGS) of Jimma University (JU) for graduation:
- A candidate should have a course work of 25 credit hours and Thesis work of 6 credit hours.
- A Cumulative Grade Point Average (cGPA) of 3.00 must be obtained in the course works
- No “F” grade(s) in any course(s) taken as well as not more than one “C” grade is tolerated.
- A candidate must successfully defend his/her Thesis work. If the student’s thesis is rated “Fail”, he/she may be allowed to re-correct his/her work in a maximum duration of 6 months grace period.
- The candidate will be evaluated by one external examiner (hereafter defined as a relevant professional from other parts of Ethiopia outside Jimma University) and one internal examiner (hereafter defined as a relevant professional from within Jimma University)
DEGREE NOMENCLATURE
Upon successful completion of the program, the candidate will be awarded a Master of Science (MSc) Degree in Biology (Aquaculture and Fisheries Management); In Amharic: የሳይንስ ማስተርስ ዲግሪ በስነ–ሕይወት(አኳካልቸር ና የዓሳ ሀብት አስተዳደር)
LIST OF COURSES
Given the specific nature of the program, only a list of compulsory courses that would make the students competent enough to undertake MSc research either in Aquaculture or in Fisheries Management for their MSc Thesis is provided here. Therefore, no rooms are given for elective courses.
| S. No. | Course Title | Course No. | Cr. hrs |
| 1 | Introduction to Fish Diversity and Biology | Biol 501 | 2 |
| 2 | Fisheries Economic and Extension | Biol 502 | 2 |
| 3 | Fish Breeding and Genetics | Biol 503 | 2 |
| 4 | Fisheries post-harvest Technology | Biol 504 | 2 |
| 5 | Statistics for a Biologist | Stat 505 | 2 |
| 6 | Fish Health Management | Biol 511 | 2 |
| 7 | Aquaculture Techniques | Biol 512 | 2 |
| 8 | Feed and Nutrition in Aquaculture | Biol 514 | 2 |
| 9 | Fish Stock Assessment and Management | Biol 522 | 2 |
| 10 | Inland Waters Ecology and Management | Biol 531 | 2 |
| 11 | Research Method and Scientific Writing | Biol 541 | 1 |
| 12 | Seminar (Current topics in Aquaculture and Fisheries) | Biol 542 | 1 |
| 13 | Developmental Team Training Program | DTTP 601 | 3 |
| 14 | MSc Thesis | Biol 641 | 6 (P/F) |
| Total | 31 |
COURSE BREAKDOWN
Year I Semester I
| Course Title | Course No. | Cr. hrs |
| Introduction to Fish Diversity and Biology | Biol 501 | 2 |
| Fish Breeding and Genetics | Biol 503 | 2 |
| Statistics for a Biologist | Stat 505 | 2 |
| Fish Health Management | Biol 511 | 2 |
| Inland Waters Ecology and Management | Biol 531 | 2 |
| Research Method and Scientific Writing | Biol 541 | 1 |
| Total | 11 |
Year I Semester II
| Course Title | Course No | Cr. hrs |
| Fisheries Economic and Extension | Biol 502 | 2 |
| Fisheries post-harvest Technology | Biol 504 | 2 |
| Aquaculture Techniques | Biol 512 | 2 |
| Feed and Nutrition in Aquaculture | Biol 514 | 2 |
| Fish stock Assessment and Management | Biol 522 | 2 |
| Seminar (Current topics in Aquaculture and Fisheries) | Biol 542 | 1 |
| Total | 11 |
Year II Semester I
| Course Title | Course No. | Cr. hrs |
| Developmental Team Training Program* | DTTP 601 | 3 |
| MSc Thesis | Biol 641 | 6 |
| Total | 9 | |
| *DTTP is JU’s mandatory community-based training |
Year II Semester II
| Course Title | Course No | Credit hr |
| MSc Thesis | Biol 643 | 6 |
| Total | 6 |