Harper Adams University

Taught

Taught postgraduate courses offered at Harper Adams, cover a wide range of agriculture, technology, food production, business, economics, environmental management and animal science subject areas. Courses have been designed to produce well-qualified, expert individuals who are highly employable throughout the food and agriculture industries or in government/policy-making positions.

Most courses have various study level options; students can choose between Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma, or a master’s degree. Courses are offered on full-time or part-time basis, providing flexibility to those who wish to study around work or other commitments.

Courses are delivered via a unique ‘block-based study’ programme, whereby each module is delivered in one or two week blocks of face-to-face teaching on campus, with additional self-study conducted by students away from campus, fully supported by the university’s interactive virtual learning environment, ‘The Learning Hub’.

Research

Harper Adams offers Master of Research (MRes) courses covering subjects such as applied mechatronic engineering, entomology, and ruminant nutrition and more. These one-year courses combine a series of taught modules with a research project of the student’s choosing.

They also offer a number of two-year MPhil and three-year PhD opportunities, both university-funded (studentships) and self-funded, across all academic departments, giving researchers the chance to work on some of the world’s most ground-breaking and innovative agri-business research projects. Together students and staff are improving animal welfare, developing innovative farming technologies and tackling food scarcity and wastage in the food chain. A list of current PhD projects can be found on the university’s website.

All MPhil and PhD students will be provided with their own office space. They will also have access to a wide range of state-of-the-art research and expert academic staff to fully support their research.

In the 2022 Research Excellence Framework, more than 60% of Harper Adams’ research was considered ‘world leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’.

Distance learning

Harper Adams offers a small number of courses that are delivered primarily through distance learning, with optional study days on campus where students can access practical classes to support their learning.

Students on these courses will be given access to The Learning Hub, the university’s interactive virtual learning environment, where they can access study notes, PowerPoint presentations, study tools such as quizzes and feedback tools. These courses make the university's high-quality curriculum available to students from all over the world, giving them the flexibility to organise their studies around existing commitments.