The application deadline is March 1.
Welcome to a policy oriented international Master's programme focused on economic analysis that gives you international experience in a global network resulting in extensive career opportunities. The courses included in the programme give you the in-depth knowledge required to understand and assess the socio-economic and environmental effects of agricultural, food and environmental policies.
Afepa is a two-year double degree programme held in collaboration between SLU and three other renowned European universities, as well as three associated partner universities in Europe, Africa and South America. As a student in this programme you will spend your first year at one of the partner universities and your second year at another, gaining a degree from two universities.
The Master’s programme provides you with a thorough understanding of economics and policy analysis, the possibilities of an extensive international network, and good career opportunities. Graduates take on careers in international, national and regional agencies, non-governmental organisations, national and multinational firms, or continue their studies towards a PhD.
For further details about Afepa and information about application and scholarships, please visit http://www.afepa.eu/.
The application deadline is March 1.
Tuition Fees: Citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland are required to pay application and tuition fees.
Admission to the Master’s programme Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy Analysis requires a first-cycle qualification comprising 180 credits and including specialised studies comprising 90 credits within Economics.
Applicants with the equivalent qualifications obtained by means of a degree from another country, or with the equivalent knowledge obtained in some other way, may also be regarded as fulfilling the specific entry requirements.
This programme is taught in English. The applicant must further have a level of English equivalent to upper secondary school English, called English 6. An applicant with a first-cycle qualification from SLU comprising 180 credits automatically fulfils this requirement. Special rules apply for applicants with qualifications from one of the Nordic countries and some English-speaking countries.
Specific requirements apply for admission to the individual courses included in the programme.
To be admitted to the Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy Analysis – Master’s programme, the student has to apply through the AFEPA Consortium. For more information on how to apply, please see the AFEPA website, www.afepa.eu.
Specific requirements apply for admission to the individual courses included in the programme.
Degree awarded on completion of the programme
Upon completion of the programme, the degree of Master of Science is awarded. Other general qualifications may be awarded, provided that the requirements for them are fulfilled. More information can be found in SLU´s degree regulations.
Students who fulfil the qualification requirements for a degree will be issued a degree certificate upon request. The degree certificate will specify the qualification as Degree of Master of Science in Business and Economics (120 credits) with a Major in Economics.
In addition to a degree from SLU, the student has the possibility to apply for a degree (double degree) from one of the other participating universities: Rheinische-Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität Bonn, Germany, Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy.
Degree requirements
A degree of Master of Science in Business and Economics (120 credits) with a major in economics is awarded to students who fulfil the course requirements (courses with a Pass grade) of 120 credits, of which at least 90 credits at second-cycle level, according to the following:
In addition, the student must hold a degree of Bachelor or professional qualification of at least 180 credits or an equivalent qualification.
This European Master’s is a two-year programme with integrated and advanced theoretical and applied courses in economics and quantitative methods as well as in agricultural and trade policy, environmental and natural resource policy and rural development policy.
In the final semester, students will connect theory and methodology with practice by developing a problem-solving project which they will use as the basis of their Master’s dissertation. Students will study at two of the partner universities and be awarded a double degree.
The AFEPA programme is organised by four European main partner universities: the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (UCSC), Milan, Italy, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), the Rheinische-Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität Bonn (UBonn), Germany, and the Université catholique de Louvain (UCL), Belgium. There are also three associated partners: the Pontifica Universidad Catolica (PUC), Chile, the University of Alberta (UAlberta), Canada and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), Spain.
These seven partner universities are internationally renowned for their scientific achievements and quality of their programmes.
Graduates of this European Master’s programme will have the qualifications necessary for designing and assessing public policies oriented towards the agricultural and food sectors, rural areas and natural resources. They will also have the necessary knowledge for providing informed and relevant policy recommendations for increased sustainable development. They will be able to assume responsibility in international, national and regional authorities, non-governmental organisations, consultancy firms, professional organisations and companies.
Degree of Master of Science (120 credits) in Business and Economics with a Major in Economics
Programme Code: NM030
Education plan decided: 2023-02-17
Revised: 2023-02-17
Revised By: Programnämnden för utbildning inom naturresurser och jordbruk
SLU ID: SLU ua 2023.3.1.1-689
Education plan valid from: Autumn 2024
Responsible programme board: The programme board for education in natural resources and agriculture
Admission to the Master’s programme Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy Analysis requires a first-cycle qualification comprising 180 credits and including specialised studies comprising 90 credits within Economics.
Applicants with the equivalent qualifications obtained by means of a degree from another country, or with the equivalent knowledge obtained in some other way, may also be regarded as fulfilling the specific entry requirements.
This programme is taught in English. The applicant must further have a level of English equivalent to upper secondary school English, called English 6. An applicant with a first-cycle qualification from SLU comprising 180 credits automatically fulfils this requirement. Special rules apply for applicants with qualifications from one of the Nordic countries and some English-speaking countries.
Specific requirements apply for admission to the individual courses included in the programme.
To be admitted to the Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy Analysis – Master’s programme, the student has to apply through the AFEPA Consortium. For more information on how to apply, please see the AFEPA website, www.afepa.eu.
Specific requirements apply for admission to the individual courses included in the programme.
Programme description
The Master’s programme in Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy Analysis (AFEPA) aims at providing high quality education in designing and assessing public policies targeted at the agricultural and food sector as well as the rural environment to excellent students from all over the world. This Master’s programme responds to the increasing need to better understand and anticipate the various and often complex socio-economic and environmental effects of these policies either in a functioning market economy as in the European Union, or in economies in a development or transition phase world-wide.
The AFEPA programme offers a two-year academic curriculum with integrated and advanced theoretical, methodological and empirical courses in economics and quantitative methods as well as in the five subject areas proposed below. To connect theory and methodology to practice, a problem-solving project is developed and presented as a Master’s thesis at the end of the two-year curriculum.
The AFEPA programme is jointly organised by four European main partner universities: the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (UCSC) in Milano, Italy, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) in Sweden, the Rheinische-Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität Bonn (UBonn) in Germany, and the Université catholique de Louvain (UCL) in Belgium. The partnership also includes three associated partners: the Pontifica Universidad Catolica (PUC) in Chile, the University of Alberta (UAlberta) in Canada and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) in Spain. These seven partner universities are recognised worldwide for the quality of their degree programmes and scientific achievements.
The 120 ECTS credits required to obtain the Master’s degree of the AFEPA programme are structured into three blocks: a minimum of two semesters of studies (60 ECTS credits) at a first main partner university, as well as two semesters of studies (54 ECTS credits) at a second main partner university, and two joint summer schools (6 ECTS) at partner universities. Some of the ECTS credits can also be earned from an associated partner university during the second academic year of the programme. Besides the mandatory courses of 30 ECTS credits in theory and methods, optional courses can be selected to form a major of 30 ECTS credits or a minor of 15 ECTS credits in the following thematic fields: 1) agri-food and trade policy, 2) environmental and natural resource policy, 3) agribusiness and market analysis, 4) market and consumer research, and 5) development policy.
The language of instruction and examination is English for all the courses at SLU, UAlberta, UBonn and UCSC, and for most of the courses at UCL and UPC, but in Spanish for most of the courses at PUC. Examination can be organised in English at all partner universities. At UCL a sufficient number of courses are taught in English so that knowledge of French is not necessary. At UPC and especially at PUC, most courses are taught in Spanish and a sufficient knowledge of that language is therefore necessary. Students speaking French or Spanish respectively, at the three universities not only have a wider selection of courses to choose from, but knowing the language also facilitates ever-day life. In any case, because professors at these two latter institutions are fluent in English, examinations can be organised in English at the specific request of the international students.
Courses in the programme
Main fields of study FÖ=Business administration, NA=Economics, LB=Agricultural science, MX=Environmental science, ÖÄ=Other subject
Year 1
Microeconomic theory, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Analytical methods, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Production economics, 15 credits, NA/FÖ, A1N
Agricultural policy and international trade, 7,5 credits, NA, G1F
Econometric theory, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Applied econometrics, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Environmental policy, 7,5 credits, NA/MX, A1N
Value chains and networks in the bio-economy, 15 credits, FÖ, A1N
20th century agricultural economy and politics, 7,5 credits, LB, A1N
Policy evaluation, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Topics in econometrics, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Analysis of productivity and efficiency of food system firms, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Summer school, 3 credits, NA
Year 2
Cost benefit analysis of agricultural and environmental projects, 7,5 credits, NA/MX, A1N
Topics in agricultural economics for sustainable development, 7,5 credits, NA, A1F
Quantitative finance, 15 credits, FÖ/NA, A1N
Management of biological resources, 7,5 credits, NA/MX, A1N
Economic growth and sustainable development, 7,5 credits, NA, A1F
Experimental methods for economics and business studies, 7,5 credits, FÖ/NA, A1N
Macroeconomic theory, 7,5 credits, NA, A1N
Independent project in economics, 30 credits, NA, A2E
Summer school, 3 credits, NA
Additional courses
AFEPA internship, 7,5 credits, ÖÄ, AXX
The courses offered may change during the course of the programme. Decisions on the courses offered are taken well in advance of the next academic year.
For each course, there is a course syllabus providing more detailed course information. Information on when courses are offered is available on the SLU student web.
General objectives
The general objectives for first- and second-cycle courses and programmes are specified in the Swedish Higher Education Act (Chapter 1, Sections 8–9).
Objectives for a Degree
In accordance with the annex to the Ordinance for the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, for a degree of Master (120 credits) the student shall:
Knowledge and understanding
Competence and skills
Judgement and approach
Degree awarded on completion of the programme
Upon completion of the programme, the degree of Master of Science is awarded. Other general qualifications may be awarded, provided that the requirements for them are fulfilled. More information can be found in SLU´s degree regulations.
Students who fulfil the qualification requirements for a degree will be issued a degree certificate upon request. The degree certificate will specify the qualification as Degree of Master of Science in Business and Economics (120 credits) with a Major in Economics.
In addition to a degree from SLU, the student has the possibility to apply for a degree (double degree) from one of the other participating universities: Rheinische-Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität Bonn, Germany, Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy.
Degree requirements
A degree of Master of Science in Business and Economics (120 credits) with a major in economics is awarded to students who fulfil the course requirements (courses with a Pass grade) of 120 credits, of which at least 90 credits at second-cycle level, according to the following:
In addition, the student must hold a degree of Bachelor or professional qualification of at least 180 credits or an equivalent qualification.
General regulations for first- and second-cycle courses and programmes
For more information on semester dates, examination and credit transfer, see the Regulations for education at Bachelor´s and Master´s level available on the SLU student web.
Possibilities for further studies
Students who complete the programme and are awarded a degree of Master have the option to continue their studies at doctoral level.
Uppsala is Sweden’s fourth largest city, and the hub of SLU’s educational activities. Located just outside of the city centre, SLU’s Uppsala campus is spacious, leafy and picturesque. It is a fitting setting for Sweden’s only agricultural university, and possibly the most research-intensive of all universities. With two universities located in Uppsala, students can enjoy a lively, dynamic and stimulating atmosphere.
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