Information Session

It has come to my attention that i have left out a good many details of what i am doing with my time here in Oxford, and my plans for the future. Well, the dark period is over - i'd like to explain some things, and invite you to write to me if there is still confusion. Then we can keep having "banter" posts about British culture and American culture and conservation.

My classes
I have seven classes at the moment. Seven is a lot. I've told my supervisor i think its a lot. That's about all i can do. The list is in order of when they occur during the week. A word to the wise: a "professor" is a level of distinction above "doctor" in oxbridge.

• International Conservation Law - my favorite class. Mostly the UN conventions and especially the Convention on Biological Diversity, UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Taught by Dr. Catherine MacKenzie who is fabulous and knows everything about law. I want to be like her. She stands in front of the class and can deliver two hours worth of well thought out, organized material from memory.
• Conservation Values - do we care about conservation? Why? These are the delightful topics you will address in this fun-filled, action packed module. Led by Dr. Richard Ladle (our course supervisor) who is wildly entertaining and a very good ecologist. A bit outside my range of interest, and i didn't like the guest presentation this week on bushmeat. I'd rather not look at pictures of dead gorillas, thankyouverymuch.
• Statistics - introduction to stats. Second favorite class (i know, i'm demented) but its taught by the charming Dr. James Tilley. Thank god for James Tilley. He actually manages to present this information using examples that we can relate to (buying a car, the voting population, etc) and makes it very entertaining. This week one of the examples was about whether there is a correlation between duration of marriage and the nagging rate, and if it differs for men or women. As it turns out, there is a correlation and men nag more as the marriage duration increases. At first, it seems like women nag more, but actually (assuming the marriage lasts more than 10 years) men nag more. Brilliant.
• Environment and development - instructor is Dr. Diana Liverman who is really good and has really good answers to our hammering questions. Content isthird-world development since post-colonial independence. Some topics covered: Green revolution, structural adjustment programs, debt crisis, NAFTA, trade policies, and development theory.
  
• Research skills - as far as i can gather, the purpose of this class is to frustrate the Master's students to the brink of insanity. Last week: you must publish [your Master's thesis which will probably be impossible since you only have 4 months!]. This week: "sorry, folks: no class! Richard fucked up, and we just don't have a class prepared. Go home, and come back this time next week." So, i'm paying HOW much and i have HOW much other work to do, and this is how you behave? Richard: you owe us an apology. And don't expect to see me attending this class anymore.
• Contemporary issues in biodiversity - led by Dr. Kathy Willis, this is our own exclusive little seminar series. Its hit and miss, but the hits are WORTH it. Dr. Martin Speight, from the Tropical Ecology research group was really excellent. And this week was my new hero and favorite person, Dr(Prof?) Andrew Balmford of Cambridge. Balmford for president. Of the world. Or at least the US. Well, the UK would be ok too. Balmford is working on creating a budget for the earth's wild nature. He's done a cost/benefit analysis of preserving the Earth's wild places, and we WIN if we do this. Thank you for doing something revolutionary, and for giving us some hope, Dr. Balmford!
• Professional skills - taught by Dr. Paul Jepson, with others. Class #2 designed to annoy the Master's students. Redeeming quality: only occurs three times over the whole term. Last week we had a presentation on fundraising, with two guest speakers from NGOs in the UK. I was very impressed with the Development Director from Campaign for Rural England. She was great. But the woman from Elephant Family (Ruth) was -er- objectionable. At one point, she was advocating seduction as a method to solicit large donors. Dear Ruth - i wouldn't give you a dime. I know you are proud of what you've done, but there are other (successful) ways to fundraise for your organization without degrading women in the process.
  

That's the lineup. Statistics is the only optional course - all the others are "required". What this means, is i'll be assessed on the required courses in May when i have exams.

Assessment
There will be questions (usually you get to choose something like three out of ten questions) on anything from the required course content and all the required readings. So its in my best interest to keep up, although i could spend my breaks trying to catch up if i get behind. Well, i am behind, so now you also know how i'll be spending my winter break. For the optional course: we have to take two of these over the course of the year. Then we are assessed on the option by writing an essay (20 pgs) on the course or some piece of content therein. Sometimes the instructor will assign specific essays for the assessment. For statistics, there are a set of word problems we have to work through - its not an essay assessment.

Thesis
Then, after exams, i have to write a 15,000 word dissertation. It can involve field work, if i wish, but i have to pay for any travel and expenses. Many students do a literature review, or a meta-analysis. There are several forms the research can take:
1. First chapter of the PhD (research question and lit review)
2. Publishable paper (shorter than 15K words)
3. Stand-alone project

Q: "Ok, that's great. But what are you going to do next year, after you get the MSc?"
Naomi: "Well, its funny you should ask! I'm planning on applying into the PhD program at Oxford, in the OUCE. The deadline to qualify for funding, though is coming up in December. So, i'm researching a proposal right now. My outline thinking is to do something evaluating nature reserves on Java, Indonesia."
Q: "Wow, that sounds cool! Indonesia? So, the department must help you with travel or research costs then?"
N: "Yeah, its pretty far away, but no, the department sadly does not have any internal or project funding to leverage for students. Its different than the US system in that students acquire all their own grants and secure 100% of their own budget. So you get your PhD in three years, but you might lose that many years off your life from the stress caused by fundraising for a project that no one really cares about."
Q: "Oh! Well, i'm sure its still worth it - so you should go for it."
N: "Thanks blog. I appreciate your vote of confidence."

Questions for me? I'll do my best to answer accurately (sorry about that bitter tinge to the post. i've been a little frustrated lately...)