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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2024/2025

Timetable information in the Course Catalogue may be subject to change.

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies : Veterinary Sciences

Postgraduate Course: Poultry Breeding and Genetics (VESC11164)

Course Outline
SchoolRoyal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies CollegeCollege of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)
Course typeOnline Distance Learning AvailabilityNot available to visiting students
SCQF Credits10 ECTS Credits5
SummaryThis course will provide a critical understanding of the theories which underpin quantitative genetics and animal breeding and their application to poultry breeding; including theory of selection, interaction between genotype and environment and strategies to improve progress. The course will overview modern technologies such as genomics and how these have been used to revolutionise modern breeding programmes. The background theory will be used to underpin a practical understanding of poultry breeding programmes and their importance in modern global poultry production systems.
Course description Week 1: Animal breeding theory
Week 2: Phenotypes, genotypes and environment
Week 3: The breeding pyramid and balanced breeding goals
Week 4: Non-chicken breeding programmes
Week 5: New technologies and future challenges: the genomic revolution & globalisation and specialised markets
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2024/25, Not available to visiting students (SS1) Quota:  None
Course Start Flexible
Course Start Date 05/08/2024
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 100 ( Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 2, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 98 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) Formative:
MCQs in beginning of week 2.

Summative:
1) MCQs in weeks 2, 3, and 4 (each week worth 20%, 60% in total)
2) Students will pick their top discussion board post and critically reflect and expand on it, due week 6 (40%) Resources on critical reflection are provided as part of this assessment, including a specific discussion board.
Feedback Students will receive written or oral feedback on all formative and summative assessments within 15 working days of each assessment being due.
No Exam Information
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate a critical understanding of theories, principles and concepts of animal breeding and genetics
  2. Critically review, consolidate and extend knowledge and thinking in genetics and animal breeding
Reading List
To be provided during week 1
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Knowledge and skills will include:

A. Research and Enquiry
Graduates of the University will be able to create new knowledge and opportunities for learning through the process of research and enquiry. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- be able to identify, define and analyse problems and identify or create processes to solve them
- be able to exercise critical judgment in creating new understanding
- be ready to ask key questions and exercise rational enquiry
- be able to critically assess existing understanding and the limitations of their own knowledge and recognise the need to regularly challenge all knowledge
- search for, evaluate and use information to develop their knowledge and understanding
- have an informed respect for the principles, methods, standards, values and boundaries of their discipline(s) and the capacity to question these
- understand economic, legal, ethical, social, cultural and environmental issues in the use of information.

B. Personal and Intellectual Autonomy
Graduates of the University will be able to work independently and sustainably, in a way that is informed by openness, curiosity and a desire to meet new challenges. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- be independent learners who take responsibility for their own learning, and are committed to continuous reflection, self-evaluation and self-improvement
- be able to make decisions on the basis of rigorous and independent thought, taking into account ethical and professional issues
- be able to use collaboration and debate effectively to test, modify and strengthen their own views
- be intellectually curious and able to sustain intellectual interest
- be able to respond effectively to unfamiliar problems in unfamiliar contexts

C. Communication
Graduates of the University will recognise and value communication as the tool for negotiating and creating new understanding, collaborating with others, and furthering their own learning. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- make effective use of oral, written and visual means to critique, negotiate, create and communicate understanding
- use communication as a tool for collaborating and relating to others
- further their own learning through effective use of the full range of communication approaches
- seek and value open feedback to inform genuine self-awareness
- recognise the benefits of communicating with those beyond their immediate environments
- use effective communication to articulate their skills as identified through self-reflection

D. Personal Effectiveness
Graduates of the University will be able to effect change and be responsive to the situations and environments in which they operate. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- appreciate and use talents constructively, demonstrating self-discipline, motivation, adaptability, persistence and professionalism
- be able to manage risk while initiating and managing change
- be able to flexibly transfer their knowledge, learning, skills and abilities from one context to another
- understand social, cultural, global and environmental responsibilities and issues
- be able to work effectively with others, capitalising on their different thinking, experience and skills.

Keywordsbreeding,phenotype,genotype
Contacts
Course organiserDr Kellie Watson
Tel: (0131 6)51 9479
Email: kellie.watson@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMiss Stavriana Manti
Tel: (0131 6)50 5310
Email: stavriana.manti@ed.ac.uk
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