In this Certificate course, evolutionary biologists, geneticists and ecologists from across Cambridge explore the evidence for evolution in the behaviour, morphology and genomes of living animals and plants as well as in the fossil record. We learn how the process of natural selection affects the way organisms look and behave, how they survive in a changing world, how they reproduce and how these differences are encoded in the genome. We discover how groups of organisms can co-evolve and interact to form complex ecosystems. The course finishes with a look at human evolution and the impacts of artificial selection and anthropogenic changes on evolutionary processes.
The course will be based at Madingley Hall, the headquarters of the Institute of Continuing Education, with additional venues such as the University Museum of Zoology, the Sedgwick Museum and Christ's College, Darwin's College as an undergraduate.
What will I be studying?
The programme is arranged into three complementary units which build participants’ knowledge and understanding of evolutionary processes and their outcomes for the way organisms look and behave.
Unit 1: Darwin's idea
Teaching will take place on 4 Saturday day-schools, on 6 October 2018, 27 October 2018, 17 November 2018, and 8 December 2018.
Unit 1 will introduce participants to the history of Darwin’s discovery, provide evidence for evolution from living organisms and the fossil record, explain modern advances in evolutionary biology, and examine in detail the interplay between an organism’s outward characteristics and its genetics.
Unit 2: Behaviour and biodiversity
Teaching will take place on 4 Saturday day-schools on 12 January 2019, 2 February 2019, 09 March 2019 and 23 March 2019.
Unit 2 will take an evolutionary perspective on the behavioural characteristics that organisms display and their consequences for reproduction and survival. It will examine how speciation can occur, species diversity in natural ecosystems, and the interplay between species in functioning communities.
Unit 3: Plants and people
Teaching will take place on 4 Saturday day-schools on 27 April 2019, 18 May 2019, 1 June 2019 and 22 June 2019.
Unit 3 will include a detailed examination of evolution in plants, co-evolution with animals, and the role of selective breeding in producing crop plants. It will consider evolutionary processes with respect to humans and the consequences of global change for evolutionary processes in the future.
What can I go on to do?
If you wish, you may develop your studies by taking the Certificate in Genetics, which can be combined with the Certificate in Evolutionary Biology to make the award of the Certificate of Higher Education in Genetics and Evolution. Altrernatively, you may choose to deepen your study by taking the Diploma in Evolutionary Biology. Please see the biological and life sciences webpage.
In addition, we are in the process of developing a range of new undergraduate courses in the biological sciences including courses exploring immunology, infection and a more in-depth study of genetics.
