Master’s degree in Human Evolution and Biology

General Objectives of the Course

This course has as main goal to offer advanced formation on issues related with human evolution and human biology, as follows: i) the importance of the knowledge of natural history to the understanding of the present and to envision the future; ii) to understand humans as primates; to be aware of climatic changes and the major animal extinctions; iii) human adaptation capacity; to know how to deal with the incessant rhythm of change that characterizes human paleontology; v) an approach to brain evolution; vi) to get an interdisciplinary approach about humans and humanity; vii) to be able to interpret and deal with human skeletons from archaeological contexts.

Admission Requirements

Admission to the Master’s degree in Human Biology and Evolution is granted to: holders of a Bachelor’s degree or legal equivalent in: Anthropology, Biology, Geology, Biology and Geology, Archaeology and Psychology or holders of a Bachelor’s degree or legal equivalent in any another area of Human and Natural Sciences.

Candidates should check the admission requirements available on this site, in addition to the information provided here.

Professional Goals

Municipalities, Museums, Archaeology Enterprises, Teaching, Consulting.

Mode of Study

Full-time, face-to-face

Teaching / Evaluation language(s)

Portuguese

Examination Regulations, Assessment and Grading

The evaluation is a pedagogical activity inseparable from teaching, intended to determine the skills and knowledge acquired by students, their critical thinking, the ability to formulate and solve problems as well as their command of written and oral expression. The students enrolled in curricular units of a specific academic year are admitted to the assessment tests during the academic year, and also register in these tests when such registration is required, in accordance with nr. 8 of Article 11 of the Teaching Regulations of the University of Coimbra. The following are examples of evaluation elements: written exams or oral tests, written and practical assignments and projects, individual or in group, which may have to be defended orally, and class participation. The evaluation of each module may include one or more of the evaluation elements listed above. The classification of each student for each course corresponds to an integer value between 0 to 20. Students are approved if they obtain a final mark of 10 or above. Whenever the assessment of a course unit comprises more than one element of assessment, the final grade is calculated from the marks obtained in each assessment element, using a formula made public according to nr. 3 of Article 16 and nr. 2 of Article 7 of RPUC.

Learning Objectives and Intended Skills

The master in Human Evolution and Biology has as goal to offer a specialized formation, inter and multidisciplinary at an advanced level in distinct areas of Biological Anthropology, such as human evolution, skeletal biology, paleopathology, human ecology, human ethology and human genetics. The acquired scientific and technical formation in this matter is fundamental to understand the Natural history of man, its present and its future. Students should acquire: 1. Instrumental competencies, e.g. competence in synthesis and analysis, competency in organization and planning, competency in oral and writing communication, capacity to express themselves in English, to use informatics within the scope of their activities, competency in managing information, to solve problems and to make decisions. 2. Personal and Inter-personal competencies, e.g. competency in group work, competency in working in interdisciplinary teams, competencies in working within an international context, competency in critical reasoning, competency in understanding specialists language. 3. Systemic competencies, e.g. competencies in autonomous learning, in searching, capability to adjust to new situations, creativity, leadership, initiative and enterprising spirit, care about rigor and quality, competency in applying practically the theoretical knowledge, competency in planning and managing, in auto-criticism and auto-evaluation.
The general objectives of the Master will be concretized in each curricular unit in a specific way through the realization of different tasks (practical or theoretical) of each subject. The way and quality in which they are performed by the students express their degree of fulfillment and is subjected to evaluation. Each responsible for the curricular unit defines and provides the students the information of the FUC that contains the indications needed for a successful performance by the students through their study programme that also includes a project with an experimental component evaluated in the defense of the dissertation.

Course Coordinator(s)

Ana Luísa da Conceição dos Santos
alsantos@antrop.uc.pt

ECTS Departmental Coordinator(s)

António Xavier de Barros e Cunha Pereira Coutinho
cafe@bot.uc.pt

Recognition of Prior Learning

Recognition of prior learning is carried out in accordance with the Academic Regulation of the University of Coimbra.

Qualification Requirements and Regulations

The legal framework for the qualification is established by the decrees: Decree-Law nº 74/2006, 24th March, the current wording.

Graduation Requirements

The number of credits required to obtain the degree or diploma is 120 ECTS. 90 ECTS are mandatory in Biology. The remaining ones can be done either in Biology or Archaeology. All mandatory curricular units are about Biological Anthropology. The thesis has 57 ECTS.

Access to Further Studies

3rd cycle in Anthropology.

Study Programme

Evolution and Human Biology

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Course Type
2nd Cycle Studies - Continuity Master Programme

DGES Code: 6124

Qualification Awarded: Mestre

Duration: 4 Semester(s)

ECTS Credits: 120.0

Category: Continuity second cycle

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Applications

Call for Applications

• 2nd Cycle Course
• Readmission

• Application submission
• Web page with information for candidates

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Calendar

1st Semester

Start date: 20-09-2021
End date: 18-12-2021

2nd Semester

Start date: 14-02-2022
End date: 21-05-2022

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Accreditations

Agência de Avaliação e Acreditação do Ensino Superior

2021-07-31 a 2027-07-30

Direcção Geral de Ensino Superior

Nº Registo: R/A-Ef 1575/2011/AL03

2022-05-03

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Documents