International Program in Agricultural Development Studies (IPADS)

2 years English applications-closed

3-stage learning journey

2 years · English

Semester 1 — A1/A2 terms, October to early February (coursework component) Students enrol on 1 October and begin the A1 term the next day. "Typically, students in MSc complete the coursework component of the program in their first six months whilst designing and preparing for their original research." The compulsory IPADS subjects and the bulk of elective credits are taken in this period, alongside the IPADS Introductory course delivered by a visiting ZEF professor and the weekly seminars of the Department of Global Agricultural Sciences. Course registration for A1 and A2 runs 2–15 October with a confirmation period on 16–19 October. IPADS Case Studies (2 credits) IPADS Crop Management (1 credit) IPADS Development Studies (2 credits) IPADS Research Seminars I (1 credit) IPADS Introductory Course (1 credit) IPADS Food Resources (2); IPADS Food Science (2); IPADS Plant Molecular Physiology (1); IPADS Plant Biotechnology (1); Sustainability and Crop Production (2); International Forest Development (1); IPADS Animal Science (1) IPADS Global Fisheries: Science and Policy (1); IPADS Global Fisheries: Science and Economics (1); IPADS Environmental Science (2); IPADS Economics: Quantitative Economics I (1); IPADS Economics: Quantitative Economics II (1); IPADS Statistics (2); IPADS Guest Seminars (2) Practice in International Agricultural Development (1); IPADS Soil Fertility Management (2); IPADS Soil Science (1); IPADS Plant Improvement (2); Forest Insect Ecology (2); IPADS Economics (2); IPADS Crop Science (1); IPADS Coastal Ecology (2); IPADS Environmental Policy (1) Courses of the Department of Global Agricultural Sciences, common courses of the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Common Graduate Courses of the University, and courses of other departments and graduate schools — with the prior approval of the supervisor, a limited number of credits counting towards the 30 required Non-credited ODSRC online lectures and workshops shared with ZEF Semester 2 onwards — approximately 18 months of full-time research "[Students] then engage in full-time research for the remaining 18 months." Research is carried out under one or more faculty supervisors and carries credit: "Credit points for the research component of the program (8 credits for International Master's Research and 4 credits for IPADS Research Seminars) are awarded for these activities, which are designed to build a foundation to write a high-quality Master's thesis." Any remaining elective credits are completed alongside; intensive and research courses are also held during the spring break period (5 February – 31 March). "With the program coordinator's prior approval, students can enroll in other subjects offered at the University in lieu of one or more of the above subjects." IPADS Master's Research (8 credits) IPADS Research Seminars II (3 credits) Remaining IPADS elective courses and approved courses from elsewhere in the University ZEF/IPADS field study courses, joint coursework and students' seminars Completion "To graduate, students must gain equal or more than 30 credit points and pass the defense of their Master's thesis." The MSc (Agricultural Sciences) degree is then conferred; the Graduate School holds its graduation ceremony at Yasuda Auditorium with a diploma presentation and commencement ceremony of IPADS / the Department of Global Agricultural Sciences on 18 September. Master's thesis and thesis defence

Semester 1 — A1/A2 terms, October to early February (coursework component) curriculum

The detailed course list for this stage has not been published yet.

Course domains

Plant Science — Studies on plant mechanisms to respond to different nutritional conditions; crop management assisted with modeling in Africa and South America; agro-ecosystem responses to the combinat
Plant Material Science — Technology development to use under-utilized plant resources; study on function of plant components in ecosystems; development of the techniques for performance evaluation of
Plant Biotechnology — Identification and isolation of Fe acquisition related genes from graminaceous plants; identification of Fe-deficiency inducible gene expression mechanism; plant tissue culture t
Economics and Sociology — Effect of global warming on world agriculture and forestry; food supply and demand in the world interpreted by system model; economic development and environmental problems i
Animal Science — Virus-based recombinant vaccines for animal diseases; molecular pathology of malaria and leishmaniasis; development of edible vaccines and other mucosal vaccines; studies on the morph
Food Science — Food engineering including the optimization of freeze-drying processes; value chain analysis in developing countries; application of membrane separation technology for food processing;
Agroinformatics — Constructing monitoring system for agricultural and soil information using IT technologies; engineering development in the conservation of agricultural farm.
Forestry — Policy options for collaborative forest governance; comparative analysis on participatory forest management policy; forest monitoring using satellite remote sensing; forest environment asse
Fisheries — Economics and policy for conserving marine biological resources; analysis of marine biodiversity and economic development; life histories, population dynamics and community structures of c
Environmental Science — Influence of rice paddy fields on iron dynamics in rivers and the structural features of humic acids in their sediments; influence of freshwater from terrestrial sources on iro
Soil Science — Unsaturated water and solute transport through soils; colloid facilitated migration of pollutants; behavior of Cs in soil; remediation of alkalization and salinization of clayey soil; e
Ecology — Land and vegetation dynamics in agro-ecosystem; sustainable land use planning/management; restoration and sustainable use of ecosystem services; biodiversity conservation.
Supervisor availability caveat — The research-component page flags individual faculty who are adjunct ("Adjunct faculty who can also supervise postgraduate students"), who are "Unable to become thesis

Careers — "A diverse range of career opportunities is available to graduates. Upon successful completion of IPADS, students can expect to pursue a career in: academia; government agencies; internation

Doctoral progression — "Graduates with excellent academic and research records may also have an opportunity to enter the School's doctoral program." IPADS runs a "three-year, research-only PhD program

English test exemption on continuing to the PhD — Students "completing Master's program in IPADS and are applying for IPADS Ph.D. program starting in the same year with your Master's graduation" are e

On-campus work after enrolment — "After enrollment, students can apply for a range of on-campus jobs including Teaching Assistant and Tutorship for newly entering international students. These job opp

"The program equips the students to be global leaders in the agricultural sector who have the capacity to identify and implement solutions to various agricultural, environmental, and resource manageme

"Issue-oriented rather than methodology-oriented, this exciting international program offers its candidates the opportunity to develop the requisite expertise and skills across discipline and country

"Students engage in a truly interdisciplinary curriculum filled with cutting-edge research from all sub-disciplines covering agriculture, encompassing both natural and social sciences."

"the faculty members have designed curricula that reflect frontier research in all sub-disciplines of agriculture, offering an interactive environment where the staff and students can work together fo

"In the educational program, we aim to nurture students who can contribute to the establishment of a peaceful and prosperous society where food production and conservation of the biosphere are achieve

"The Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences aims to promote advanced education and research in the field of agricultural and life sciences and nurture highly specialized human resources tha

"Having a will and basic capabilities to tackle the diverse issues surrounding food and the environment challenged by the agricultural and life sciences. Having a global perspective and being enthusia

"Having specialized knowledge in the field of the applicant's choice, as well as broad knowledge and sufficient English proficiency in the agricultural and life sciences in general. Having the willing

Core learning formats

"Typically, students in MSc complete the coursework component of the program in their first six months whilst designing and preparing for their original research, and then engage in full-time research
"The research component of the MSc program and the entire PhD program are conducted under the supervision of one or more of the School's faculty. Students have opportunities to work with suitable memb
"Throughout the program, students are actively involved in the School's research community, participating in weekly seminars, thematic workshops and academic conferences. Credit points for the researc
"As fully integrated members of the School's Department of Global Agricultural Sciences, IPADS students have numerous opportunities to participate in seminars and international symposia, and to work c
Field courses are run at ISAS (Institute for Sustainable Agro-Ecosystem Services) for both IPADS students and PhD students from ZEF under the IPADS/ZEF Joint Coursework Initiative; ZEF joint activitie
"IPADS Introductory course conducted each fall for newly enrolled IPADS students by Dr. Manfred Denich from ZEF"; the 2026/2027 calendar schedules the "IPADS Introductory course by Dr. Christian Borge
"IPADS has started collaboration on providing online lectures with ZEF (Center of Development Research, University of Bonn) from Autumn term 2020. The courses and workshops listed below are conducted
"students can take courses of the Department of Global Agricultural Sciences other than the IPADS-Department common courses, common Courses to the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Co
"Opportunities for internship in International Organizations such as UNOPS, UNIDO and FAO are available for IPADS students depending on a year."
Programme sources (18)