A fellow blogger recently suggested that I make a post about the distance learning course I completed with Exeter University, so here it is. It comprised of five months home-based study from September to February, which was divided into twenty weekly units containing topics such as: Ecological Niches, Mammal-Plant interactions, Predator-Prey relationships, Island Biogeography, Habitat Fragmentation, Territoriality, The Effects of Culling Policies, Small Mammal Population Cycles, Minimum Viable Populations, Reintroductions and Biodiversity.

Each unit consisted of online material and a discussion forum in which the course tutor would pose a question relating to the subject you had just covered. The discussion forum was an effective platform for encouraging you to undertake your own research and supplement and enhance your learning from the course material, which was brief, but thoughtfully constructed. The quality of the research provided by the few students who regularly contributed was of a high standard and often succeeded in stimulating a discussion. However, any discussion was restricted by the fact that only a handful of people were participating.

The course, for which there is the opportunity to attain a certificate for Continuous Professional Development, has a broad spectrum of appeal. It attracted people who had a casual interest in wildlife who wanted to broaden their knowledge and understanding of mammals, through to people like myself who already had a comprehensive knowledge gained in a non-academic environment, who were looking to expand their grasp of the scientific principles and the inner-workings of ecosystems. There were also a couple of students who were already working in a wildlife related profession who were seeking to increase their knowledge of this particularly diverse and complex family of animals.

If I put my critical hat on, there could have been more supplementary reading material provided on the main study page and a tad more involvement from the tutor, but given that the course cost a couple of hundred pounds as opposed to a couple of thousand, you can’t set your expectations too high in terms of the resources on offer. I viewed it as the first stepping stone to getting in to say, a Zoology degree. Those expecting degree levels of support and resources- do not apply! But in terms of what it promised and what it delivered, you can’t really fault it.

The onus is on you the student to make the most of it through your own research and contributions to the discussion forums. You can do as little or as much study as you want, as there aren’t any assessments. Don’t be too quick to dismiss its merit based upon that though, as giving the student the freedom to conduct their own research is a highly effective means of learning, instead of piling countless material on them that they’re unlikely to read in the timeframe given. Quite simply, what you get out of it is directly connected to what you put in.

So to sum up, it was a very digestible, flexible and illuminating course that provided a comprehensive introduction into mammal ecology and conservation, lightly dressed up in scientific terminology without being overwhelming. I would recommend it to anyone with an existing interest and understanding of mammals, and to those wishing to ‘test the water’ before committing to a full time, high-cost Zoology, Ecology or Wildlife Conservation degree.