New seafood degree
The project has been established following a dialogue between industry players and expert participants in Bergen's newly founded Seafood Innovation Cluster.
"In the industry there is a widespread perception that the various education departments are relatively narrowly focused. Industry players themselves want candidates to have a somewhat broader educational background," Vice Dean Jarl Giske at the Mathematical and Natural Sciences Institute at the University of Bergen told Norsk Fiskeoppdrett / kyst.no. He is the project coordinator for the new masters program.
"Although we are well underway with planning, it will take at least two years before the new degree can be offered to the students," he says. The Seafood Engineering masters program will consist of biology, technology, law and social sciences.
Food = biology
"This is about food production in close interaction with the environment where the focus on ecology is important. It is therefore natural that the main focus of the new academic degree is in biology. As a cobsequence the new educational path will be organised under the Department of Biology," Giske says. He also mentions that the University of Bergen has a BIOCE, which means that the institution holds a so-called Center of Excellence in Education.
R&D giant
Rector of the University of Bergen, Dag Rune Olsen, comments to Norsk Fiskeoppdrett/kyst.no that the new course is a good example of what is possible when the industry communicates its R&D needs.
"This close dialogue enables customized programs for the industry players," he reflects.
"At the same time it is also a good example of how important it is to collect the marine research resources," says Olsen. There is an initiative for cooperation between several research institutions. The University of Bergen, the Veterinary Institute, Nofima and the Institute for Marine Research have already signed an agreement which will allow collocation and shared use of equipment.
"This will give good results for the knowledge-intensive sector of industry," Olsen adds.
