European Master’s in Resilient Farming and Food Systems (double degree EUR-Organic)

This double degree programme offers a unique opportunity to study at multiple universities and gain an international perspective on organic agriculture and sustainable food systems. You start your studies at one of the home universities and continue your second year at another host partner institution. More courses and detailed information can be found in the Study Handbook.

Download the overview of mobility within this programme.

You will start at the home university. This is either at Wageningen University, University of Hohenheim, or BOKU University. At Wageningen University, your first year (semesters 1 & 2) will start with the Joint StartUp Module which brings together all EUR-Organic students at the beginning of the programme. The first year is followed by courses such as Functional Agricultural Resource Management and The Politics of Food Systems Transformations.

In the second semester, courses are combined with Academic Master Cluster (AMC). For AMC, students in the Double Degree Resilient Farming and Food Systems can choose between Academic Consultancy Training + Modular Skills Training or Capacity Building for Sustainable Development.

After the first year at Wageningen University, you can continue your programme with year two at the host university, either ISARA-Lyon (additional registration required; see MSc Agroecology at ISARA), University of Hohenheim, or BOKU University (both via Erasmus Exchange; see EUR-Organic at the University of Hohenheim, and EUR-Organic at BOKU University). After the first year at UHOH or BOKU as the home university, you can continue with year two at Wageningen University as the host university (via Erasmus exchange). You will follow courses in semester 3 and complete your master's with a 30-credit thesis in the final semester 4. The thesis is co-supervised by your home and host universities.

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The master's is experiential (learning by doing), authentic (departing from real-world issues and utilising real-life case studies), and interactive (involving multiple stakeholders and social learning). The courses are diverse in their topics as well as their teaching methods, including excursions, lectures, (field) practicals and group projects. In addition, students form a community of learners where they share their academic and professional expertise in an international classroom.

At WUR, we believe that personal support drives success, and our study guidance is known for being highly accessible. We support students academically, professionally, and personally throughout their studies. Our study advisers help with monitoring study progress, choosing an internship, and preparing a thesis. The study adviser is key contact for navigating your academic journey and aligning your studies with your career goals. All new students will be invited for an intake meeting with their study adviser before the start of the academic year to discuss the specialisation of choice and course planning.

The European Master’s in Resilient Farming and Food Systems (double degree EUR-Organic) offers an international learning experience where you combine studying at Wageningen University with complementary expertise at one of our partner universities. The programme is perfectly suited for students with a bachelor's degree in Biology, or an agricultural bachelor's from a university of applied sciences.

• The Master's in Resilient Farming and Food Systems combines an integrated approach with specialisations in agroecology and sustainable food systems and a strong social science component. It is fully taught at Wageningen University, where the European Master’s double degree EUR-Organic combines studying at Wageningen University with studying at a partner university.
• The Master's in Plant Sciences focuses on all aspects of the plant production chain with a focus on the plant-, crop- or ecosystem level. This programme also applies molecular biology and biotechnology to develop new crop varieties and protect plants against pests and diseases.

Would you like to compare the European Master's in Resilient Farming and Food Systems to similar programmes? You can check out the numbers on Studiekeuze123.nl.

The programme prepares students for a wide range of positions in consultancy, policy, (social) entrepreneurship, or research & development that are related to land use, agroecology, and sustainable food systems on a global scale. Some job opportunities after graduation consist of: 

• Researchers;
• Consultants;
• Quality Assurance Officers;
• Extension Officers;
• Policy advisers, and more. 

If you need help with your orientation towards your future career, Student Career Services facilitates students' transition towards the labour market.

This page specifically describes the previous knowledge and skills required for admission to the European Master’s in Resilient Farming and Food Systems (double degree EUR-Organic) programme. For the additional general admission requirements of Wageningen University & Research, application deadlines and the application procedure, visit How to apply for a master's programme?

WU as home university

Purpose and reason for the admission requirements

The master’s programme Resilient Farming and Food Systems combines natural sciences and social sciences for an interdisciplinary approach towards sustainable food systems. The admission requirements for the master's programme Resilient Farming and Food Systems are defined in such a way that students with either a natural science or social science bachelor's should be able to successfully complete the programme nominally in two years. To comply, students should have sufficient knowledge on concepts and methodologies related to Sustainable agriculture (crop and animal) and sustainable food systems. For experimental design and analysis of experimental data, a solid basis in research methodology and statistics is necessary.

The criterion used for admission is:

a WUR BSc degree in Plant Sciences, Animal Sciences, or equivalent.

The norm for this equivalence is:

an assessment of the student’s experience with the following topics:

• Agricultural sciences (agronomy, agroecology, crop and animal production)
• Biology (physiology, organismal biology, ecology)
• Social sciences (for example management studies, rural development, human geography, sociology, economics)

And all the following topics:

• Statistics (formulate hypotheses for population means, t-tests, confidence intervals, binomial and normal distributions)
• Mathematics (calculus)
• Research methodology

Not all topics mentioned need to be mastered at the same level; they will be weighed by the Admission Board per individual application.

Method of assessment whether this norm is met

• Transcript of records displaying the content of previous course subjects and project work;
• Curriculum vitae displaying relevant work, internship and/or project experience on an academic level in a relevant field if applicable.

Scores attributed by the Admission Board

Admitted / not admitted / admitted under condition obtaining the BSc or MSc degree / not admitted with offer of pre-master's.

Ready to start your application process? Find everything you need to know about Application & Admission before applying for a master's.

UHOH or BOKU as home university

Visit the website of UHOH for information about the admission criteria and application procedure and study structure of this programme.

Compensation of knowledge gaps

The Admission Board may allow and/or suggest compensation of knowledge gaps by:

• a GPA≥7.0* for the previous education for small discrepancies as new knowledge is sufficiently easily acquired;
• a GPA≥7.0* and an individual pre-master's programme for larger discrepancies that can be compensated in ≤30 ECTS and one year of study.

*Check the Application & Admission page for master's for the International credentials evaluation guide for international equivalencies to a Dutch GPA>7.0. This guide includes compensating factors for a slightly lower GPA the Admission Board may include in their judgement.

Contact us to discuss the possibilities of a pre-master's or how to mitigate knowledge gaps if you are still in the process of obtaining your degree.

Find out more about pre-master's programmes.

Admissible study programmes

Graduates from study programmes that may meet the knowledge requirements for Resilient Farming and Food Systems are for example: Crop Sciences, Animal Sciences, Biology, Ecology, and Environmental Sciences.

Study programmes with knowledge gaps

Study programmes whose students may have to follow additional courses during the previous study programme or a pre-master's to fulfil the knowledge requirements are for example: Forest and Nature Conservation, International land and Water Management, Management and Economics, and Nutrition and Health.

Explore more about Tuition fees and study finances.

Your student life is about more than just studying. Wageningen is a small, international student city surrounded by nature, where it’s easy to feel at home. With students from all over the world, there’s a strong sense of community both on and off the campus. Whether you enjoy cycling through nature, joining study or sports associations, or relaxing at cafés and events in the city centre, there’s something for everyone. The atmosphere is friendly and informal, making it easy to connect with others and balance your studies with social life.  

Explore more about Student life in Wageningen.