Animal Behaviour

Passionate teaching staff who are expert in their field 

You’ll be taught by experts in behaviour who conduct research ranging from global patterns of animal behaviour, through studies of behaviour in individual animals, down to studies of the molecular basis of behaviour. Our behaviour lecturers are enthusiastic teachers too. You may already have seen some of them on TV documentaries, or listened in to them on your favourite science radio show.

Fantastic facilities 

As a future behaviourist, you’ll need access to exceptional research and teaching facilities. We have modern, well-equipped teaching laboratories, lecture theatres, and seminar rooms as well as unrivalled wildlife and countryside. You’ll also benefit from other facilities including: 

• a modern aquarium housing cold-water and tropical, marine and freshwater species; 
• a university woodland with over a hundred purpose built nest boxes and homes for nature; 
• beautiful habitats on our doorstep, including marine, moorland, mountain, grassland and coast, providing you with a fabulous variety of fieldwork and recreational opportunities;
• charismatic species such as red kites, bottlenose dolphins, and more;
• a wonderful museum full of historic zoological specimens. 

And if you've still more appetite for filed work, take the residential field course in animal behaviour too.

A prize-winning institute that can help you achieve your full potential

• Our students have won the “Biology Student of the Year” award at the European Science, Engineering, and Technology (SET); Awards, and the Welsh Ornithologists’ Union Student Prize!
• Our Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS) received the ''Outstanding Contribution to Innovation and Technology'' award at the 2013 Times Higher Education Awards. 
• Our Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS) in conjunction with Bangor University had the 5th strongest submission in the UK for the Research Excellence Framework assessment (2014).

International opportunities 

If you’re feeling adventurous, why not take the chance to study abroad during your degree? We have exchange agreements with universities in Europe, USA, Canada, and elsewhere, so you can apply to spend all or part of your 2nd year studying behaviour overseas. You’ll miss Aberystwyth, but you’ll love the new perspectives international study can bring. 

Want to study in Welsh? 

Students can elect to study a number of IBERS modules in the medium of Welsh. Check out the module tab for more information!

What professions do our students go into?

Many of our students go on to postgraduate study at Masters or PhD level, aiming for careers in pure or applied science, or science communication. Others have gone on to careers as scientific animal technicians and medical laboratory assistants. During their studies, many of our students have volunteered for conservation projects such as the Pine Martin Recovery Project and Iberian Lynx captive breeding program, or for organisations such as the RSPB.

What do I gain from studying Animal Behaviour?

Our degree at Aberystwyth University teaches you a broad range of skills such as observation, research, analysis and reflection.You will also be studying in a department that has invested over £55 million in the infrastructure of student facilities. The department has played host to the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour (ASAB)’s Easter postgraduate conference in recent years, and some of our students have attended or helped organise these meetings