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MSc in Holistic Science
A full-time one-year programme starting September
Schumacher College, in partnership with the University of Plymouth , is the first in the world to offer a postgraduate programme in Holistic Science.
For detailed application instructions, term dates and other information, please refer to the menu bar below left
About the MSc Programme
The MSc in Holistic Science is a full-time one-year programme starting in September. The student group is small, with a maximum of 13 students. During the first four months students cover the 3 Core Modules by attending lectures, discussions and carrying out practical work. They are taught by resident MSc Co-ordinator Stephan Harding and a series of visiting teachers. From January, students begin work on their dissertation research and also attend two three-week residential short courses chosen from an approved selection from the College’s short course programme. Teachers on Schumacher short courses have included: Fritjof Capra, Jane Goodall, Vandana Shiva, John Todd, David Orr, Deepak Chopra, Patch Adams and Margaret Wheatley.
The MSc is made up of a total of 180 credits. 60 of these are achieved through the three Core Modules and 20 credits from each of the two short courses. The remaining 80 credits are gained from the final dissertation.
Why Holistic Science?
Holistic Science advocates a participatory science of qualities, values and interactions which underpins an ecological world view. Western scientific method is dominated by specialisation in disciplines and by ‘reductionism’ — the idea that natural phenomena can be explained and understood in terms of their smallest parts. The MSc in Holistic Science explores new transdisciplinary methodologies that go beyond reductionism in understanding whole systems.
This approach is more capable than traditional science of relating to the problems of environmental degradation, collapsing communities and spiritual decline that face humanity today. Graduates of the MSc in Holistic Science are able to take a broad, integrated approach within a wide range of disciplines such as environmental management, sustainable education, biological and social research, business management and design.
For more information about Holistic Science and why it is important click here.
Core Courses
Course Module One: 20 credits
Science with Qualities: New Scientific Methodologies.
This module explores the philosophy and methodologies of an expanded science that values qualities as much as quantities. This new approach cultivates intuition, sensory experience and ethics as well as rational thought as a way of understanding and interacting with the natural world.
In this module, students explore basic philosophical questions central to science such as: ‘How do we acquire reliable knowledge?’ and ‘How do we investigate natural processes?’ Principles and concepts from phenomenology, cognitive science and the history of ideas are applied to the understanding of relationships between parts, wholes and emergent phenomena. Students will review the fundamental principles of Western science and explore both the usefulness and drawbacks of the reductionist approach using examples from the history of science and biology. Alternative methodologies will be offered, including Goethe’s scientific approach to the study of colour, morphology and landscape. The use of Free Choice Profiling which involves the qualitative evaluation of phenomena in various domains will also be explored.
Assessment: Students are required to produce an essay of 3,000 – 3,500 words, or a creative project of equivalent standing, for handing in at the start of the second term.
Course Module Two: 20 credits
The Living Earth: Gaia, Complexity and Chaos Theories
In this module, students work with the concept of emergent self-organisation to understand how the health and well-being of individual organisms, biotic communities and entire ecosystems contribute to the health of Gaia: planet Earth as an integrated whole.
Using a combination of experiential work, rational analysis, computer modelling and careful observation of nature, students develop an understanding of emergence at different levels of organisation. Chaos and complexity theories will be used to explore how complex order emerges within a wide range of phenomena, including the chaotic pendulum, the development of form in plants and animals, the pulsing of the human heart, and the workings of ecological communities. Students will use these insights to explore James Lovelock’s Gaia Theory, which proposes that the tightly coupled interactions between living beings and their nonliving environment give rise to emergent self-regulation at the level of the Earth itself. Through these investigations, students will see how complex systems tune themselves towards the ‘edge of chaos’, a domain of rich possibilities for creativity and meaningful expression of innate wholeness.
Assessment: Students are required to produce an essay of 3,000 – 3,500 words, or a creative project of equivalent standing, for handing in at the start of the second term.
Course Module Three: 20 credits
Applied Holistic Science: Social Ecology, Design and Planning
Holistic science can contribute to the understanding of human affairs and to the development of an ecologically, culturally, economically and socially sustainable society. This module seeks to translate the theory of holistic science into a vision of a sustainable future.
In its exploration of principles such as self-organisation, wholeness, emergence, participation, quality and meaning, holistic science can be used to assess the health of society and its relationship to the natural world, and to evaluate the appropriateness of the artefacts it creates – from the simplest household items to complex built environments. These principles have radical and far reaching implications for the society we are creating and the artefacts we design and manufacture. In this module students work with these principles to envision social forms and artefacts that are in harmony with the natural world and look to nature as a way to design more appropriately and responsibly. Integrating design, action research and social theory with holistic science, students work collaboratively to conceptualise and model visions of sustainable solutions to contemporary problems.
Since 2007/08 students have been required to engage with Transition Town Totnes (TTT) as a means of applying holistic science in the world. Students may opt for one of two ways of collaborating with TTT or the Transition Town Network (TTN):
Option 1
Observation and participation with one of the working groups within TTT/TTN.
The assessment for Option 1 is a journal of the student’s engagement with their chosen group.
Option 2
Offering a specific contribution to the TTT process – such as a talk, workshop, training, research or other useful input to the TTT/TTN.
The assessment for Option 2 is based on the quality of the student’s contribution to TTT/TTN.
The assessments for both Options require students to reflect on their TTT/TTN experiences, based on their understanding of holistic science.
Short Courses
MSc in Holistic Science students take two short courses, usually from a choice of three. As these courses are available to professionals and interested and active individuals, this is an excellent opportunity for students to engage with these specialist areas in a holistic way.
The course options for the 2008/09 MSc year are shown below. The 2009/10 MSc course options will be posted here in the summer of 2009.
Exploring Science Matter and Consciousness 20 credits
Embedding Holistic Economics: For a Global Community 20 credits
Systems Thinking in Practice 20 credits
For more information see Short Course Options for MSc Students
Research & Dissertation
80 credits
In the dissertation module, students have the chance to apply their knowledge of holistic science and its methodologies to a real research problem. In the past, students have chosen to explore the applications of holistic science to a wide range of disciplines including education, agriculture, economics, design, biology, medicine, and landscape assessment.
As a new type of masters degree which encourages novel approaches to scientific investigation, students’ holistic investigations for the dissertation often result in different outcomes to traditional styles of research and reporting. The dissertation can involve the use of alternative creative formats such as personal narrative, artwork and experiential material alongside those normally used in scientific writing in order to integrate intuitive insights and feelings that arise during the course of the work. Students are encouraged to blend the analytic-synthetic and the narrative-experiential as extensions and complements of each other in a coherent, holistic manner.
The ABOCA Scholarship for students of Holistic Science.
We are proud to announce the establishment of a scholarship fund in support of our MSc in Holistic Science by the Italian company ABOCA, one of Europe’s leading producers of organic herbal remedies.
The scholarship provides a contribution towards fees and is intended for practitioners of herbal medicine and for ethnobotanists who are interested in applying insights from holistic science to their work with medicinal plants. For more details please contact the MSc administrator. Extensive information about ABOCA is available on www.ABOCA.com.
Schumacher College is part of the Dartington Hall Trust, a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and as a charity (company no. 1485560, charity no. 279756). Registered office: The Elmhirst Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6EL, UK.