AOS-SAMOS Course Structure

This module introduces the concept of the Sustainable Blue Economy, equipping students to weigh the benefits, trade-offs and tensions involved in using ocean resources responsibly. Working across sectors such as aquaculture, fisheries, biotechnology, maritime transport, renewable energy, seabed mining and tourism, students engage with ecosystem services, valuation methods and approaches to sustainable development in an explicitly interdisciplinary way. Through parallel thematic courses and an applied project set in the South African context, participants develop a practical, sector-specific sustainability plan.

This module tackles the “hot topics” reshaping ocean social-ecological systems, from climate change, blue carbon and ocean acidification to fisheries in the Anthropocene, harmful algal blooms, plastic pollution and invasive species. It integrates environmental, biological and human dimensions, keeping students abreast of contemporary debates and equipped to stay current as the science evolves. Assessment centres on developing a draft national development plan framework for a chosen issue, combining science, policy and stakeholder perspectives.

This module gives students a working understanding of ecosystem-based management (EBM) in the marine context - why it is needed, how it differs from single-sector approaches, and which tools support integrated decision-making. Students engage with Integrated Ecosystem Assessments, Marine Spatial Planning, indicator-based assessments and ecosystem models (Ecopath/Ecosim/Ecospace and Atlantis), and build their own conceptual ecosystem model to address a management question. Hands-on presentations, panel discussions and scientific gaming develop both analytical and communication skills.

This module introduces the application of models across the ocean sciences, with worked examples spanning physical, biogeochemical, atmospheric, molecular, fisheries and ecosystem modelling. Drawing on both off-the-shelf and student-developed models, the emphasis is on learning to apply models and interpret and use their results, rather than on the underlying mathematics. Expert-led seminars and hands-on exercises culminate in a modelling mini-project.

This module builds both the theory and the practical skills needed to analyse, visualise and interpret ecological and environmental data using multivariate techniques. Working with real marine datasets in PRIMER with PERMANOVA+, students learn to classify, ordinate and test ecological patterns using methods including cluster analysis, MDS, PCA, SIMPER, ANOSIM, PERMANOVA and dbRDA. The module is assessed through a draft manuscript written in the style of a peer-reviewed journal article.

This module introduces participants to Earth Observation (EO) and Operational Oceanography as complementary approaches to monitoring, understanding, and predicting the marine environment. Remote sensing has transformed how the ocean is observed at scale, while operational oceanography translates these observations, along with in-situ data and numerical models, into routine products and forecasts that support decision-making across science, policy, and industry. Part 1 focuses on Marine EO and grounds participants in the physical and methodological basis of satellite oceanography, including the principles of electromagnetic radiation, atmospheric effects, ocean–light interactions, and the distinction between passive and active sensors on polar-orbiting and geostationary platforms. Part 2 turns to Operational Oceanography, introducing its core elements and the role of integrated satellite and in-situ observations in sustaining marine forecasting services, with particular attention to the Copernicus Marine Service and visualization tools such as the Ocean Data Lab portal. 

This module covers analytical and computational tools that demand a deeper level of understanding before they can be applied to data. Students are taught the theory behind a chosen advanced tool - selected from areas such as bioinformatics, geographical information systems, multivariate analysis, scientific programming, or satellite oceanography - and gain hands-on experience applying it to real data, including high-performance computing for large datasets and advanced data visualisation. Assessment is through a mini-project demonstrating competent use of the tool.

This module introduces the increasingly sophisticated instruments and technologies used in ocean sciences research, drawing on specialised expertise and facilities distributed across the consortium's partner sites. Focusing on one or more tools - for example, advanced microscopy, flow cytometry, high-throughput sequencing and metagenomics, imaging tools, mass spectrometry, proteomics or stable isotope analysis - students learn the underlying theory, best practice in sample preparation and analysis, and how to critically evaluate the results, so that they are competent to use the equipment in their own research. Assessment is through a mini-project demonstrating use of the tool or technique.

This module addresses the foundational knowledge needed to understand and monitor the impacts of human activity in the ocean, making specialised expertise from across the consortium available to all students. Topics include the taxonomy of key marine groups, field and laboratory skills for monitoring marine environments, experimental approaches for sea-ice and cold-water polar systems, environmental impact assessment and ecotoxicology, tangible and intangible ocean heritage, and the application of research in conservation and management. Students generate and interpret baseline information and learn to use multiple sources of evidence to detect change, with the assessment through a mini-project that connects a practical tool to the assessment of impacts and change.