Course overview
- Description
The Master of Oceans Leadership prepares graduates from a range of fields for ocean-related leadership positions. Graduates will be equipped with skills and knowledge across marine science, ocean engineering, marine management, law, policy and governance to enable them to work in a range of government, industry and non-governmental sectors. Strategic leadership and management expertise will be developed of relevance to activities to conserve and utilise ocean environments and resources, and to implement solutions for the future of our coasts and seas. By teaching students about multi-, inter-, trans- and cross-disciplinarity, as well as strategic leadership, it will equip graduates to work in multi-disciplinary contexts and lead and contribute to effective teams. It offers an opportunity for individuals to grow professionally and personally through student-centred teaching approaches and multi-disciplinary learning.
- Course title
- Master of Ocean Leadership (coursework)
- Award abbreviation
- MOL
- Course code
- 62540
- Course type
- Master's degree by coursework only
- Status
- Current / 2025
- Administered by
- Oceans Graduate School
- CRICOS code
- 096270F
Course details
- Intake periods
- Beginning of year and mid-year
- Attendance type
- Full- or part-time (Student visa holders should read Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 for more information.)
- Articulation
- The Master of Ocean Leadership has the following exit awards: 62240 Graduate Certificate in Ocean Leadership (24 points) (24 points), 62340 Graduate Diploma in Ocean Leadership (48 points) (48 points)
- Credit points required
- 96
A standard full-time load is 24 points per semester. - Standard course duration
- 2 years
- Time limit
- 5 years
- Delivery mode
- Internal
- Locations offered
- UWA (Perth)
- Domestic fee type
- Commonwealth supported and/or HECS-HELP; or postgraduate fee-paying/FEE-HELP
- Available to international students
- Yes. For information on international student fees see 'Student Procedures: Fees'. (Enquiries: https://www.uwa.edu.au/askuwa)
- Course Coordinator(s)
- Professor Britta Bienen
- Fees
- Visit the fees calculator.
Prospective students should see the Future Students website for details on admission requirements, intake periods, fees, availability to international students, careers information etc.
Example Study Plans
See study plans for more information.
Specialisations
Course structure
Key to availability of units:
- S1
- Semester 1
- S2
- Semester 2
- N/A
- not available in 2025 – may be available in 2026 or 2027
- NS
- non-standard teaching period
All units have a value of six points unless otherwise stated.
Take all units (48 points):
| Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S2 | BIOL4407 | Marine Conservation and Fisheries Management |
| 150 hours in total |
| NS | EART4415 | Coastal Hazards and Adaptation |
| 2 x 4 hour blocks of contact hours per week for six weeks; up to 2 x one day fieldtrips |
| S2 | LAWS5577 | Governing the Commons: Oceans, ice and outer space |
| Sessions will run from 9am - 5pm on Wednesdays for six weeks across semester 2. Refer to timetable for more details. Students must attend all sessions. |
| NS | MGMT5523 | Becoming a Leader: Perspectives on Leadership Development |
| trimester—lectures/seminars/workshops: up to 3 hours per week; non-standard teaching period—lectures/seminars/workshops: up to 5 hours per week over 7 weeks |
| NS | OCEN4003 | Strategic Leadership for the Blue Economy | None | |
| S2 | OCEN4005 | The Indian Ocean Environment | None | |
| NS | OCEN5001 | Ocean Data Analysis | None | |
| S1 | OCEN5002 | Ocean Engineering and Technology | None |
Take units to the value of 48 points from Group A or Group B, including at least 36 points at Level 5.
Group A
| Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NS | BIOL4400 | Advanced Marine Mammal Science |
| Lectures/interactive discussions: 15 lectures, 3 interactive discussions on Teams. Field trip: 5 days. |
| S2 | BIOL4407 | Marine Conservation and Fisheries Management |
| 150 hours in total |
| S2 | BIOL5504 | Sex in the Sea |
| one day per week for six weeks |
| S1, S2 | BUSN5100 | Applied Professional Business Communications |
| lectures/seminars/workshops: up to 3 hours per week |
| S1 | ECON4410 | Environmental and Resource Economics |
| lectures: 2 hours; tutorials: 1 hour; labs: 1 hour (4 hours/week for 12 weeks) |
| S2 | ECON5001 | Economic Development in Theory and Practice |
| lectures/tutorials/labs: 4 hours per week (for 10 weeks) |
| S1 | ECON5516 | The Economics of Public Policy | None | seminars: 3 hours per week |
| S1 | ENVE4405 | Ecological Engineering and Nature-based Solutions | ||
| S1, S2 | ENVT4411 | Geographic Information Systems Applications |
| The total workload for the unit is 150 hours. This includes podcasts for viewing and reading to be undertaken prior to attending one compulsory 3-hour workshop per week where students will be contributing to interactive discussions together with practical lab work using GIS software. Completion of the practical workshop labs is necessary to enable skills for completing written unit assessment. Independent learning is required throughout the unit. |
| S1, S2 | GENG5505 | Project Management and Engineering Practice |
| lectures: 26 hours; practical classes: 13 hours |
| N/A | GEOG5502 | Conservation, Development and Sustainability |
| 2 hours per week |
| NS | LAWS5114 | International Environmental Law | Students must attend all sessions on allocated Tuesdays in April and May - please see timetable for more details. | |
| NS | LAWS5521 | Climate Change Law |
| Students must attend every day of the intensive period 10-11 and 17 April 2025. Refer to the timetable website for further information. |
| S2 | MGMT5506 | Ethics and Sustainability Management |
| Up to 6 hours per week which may include seminars/lectures/workshops/dedicated meeting time with the unit coordinator as well as self-directed learning. Delivery of this unit is over two days per week and may include some Saturday sessions. |
| S2 | MGMT5508 | Organisational Behaviour and Leadership | None | 1-hour lecture and 2-hour workshop per week for 12 weeks |
| S1 | MGMT5526 | Principles for Responsible Management |
| Intensive mode up to 6 hours per week over 6 weeks, which will include 2 lectures and 2 workshops/tutorials per week, and may include dedicated meeting time with the unit coordinator/tutors as well as self-directed learning, and the viewing of pre-recorded lecture videos and readings ahead of timetabled sessions each week. |
| S1 | MGMT5660 | Applied Project Management |
| lectures/seminars: up to 3 hours per week |
| S1 | MKTG5503 | Enterprise and Innovation | None | lectures/workshops/seminars: total of 36 hours over 8 weeks |
| S2 | MKTG5604 | Technology Commercialisation | lectures/seminars: 36 hours (12 x 3 hours) | |
| N/A | PLNG5511 | Climate Change Policy and Planning | None | One day a week over six weeks. |
| NS | POLS5010 | NGOs, Governance and Development | None | seminars: 18 hours |
| NS | POLS5501 | The Politics of Public Policy |
| 18 hours per semester. |
| NS | POLS5503 | Public Administration | None | 6 x 3 hour format to align with intensive teaching period |
| NS | POLS5661 | Approaches to International Relations |
| |
| NS | POLS5681 | Governance in the International System | None | seminars: 18 hours |
Take unit notes as per the sequences notes in Group A.
Note: units in Group B have pre-requisites.
Group B
| Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NS | BIOL4408 | Marine Ecology |
| This unit is block-taught during the summer semester and involves a field trip of five days plus travel time at a cost of up to 0 to the student, plus up to four days of lectures and planning (including occupational health and safety) and up to four days of analysis and presentation of results. The total workload for the unit is 150 hours, up to 100 of which are contact hours. |
| S2 | CIVL5505 | Design of Offshore Energy Facilities |
| |
| S2 | ECON5511 | Climate, Energy and Water Economics | lectures/tutorials: 3 hours per week for 10 weeks | |
| S1 | ENVE4403 | Fluid Transport, Mixing and Dispersion | lectures: 2 per week; practical sessions: 2 per week; laboratories: two 3-hour sessions per semester | |
| S1 | ENVT5512 | Ecosystem Biogeochemistry |
| one full day per week for six consecutive weeks (the total workload for the unit is 150 hours) |
| S1 | ENVT5518 | The Sustainable Development Goals | Lectures: 2 hours per week for nine weeks; workshop/practical classes: 2 hours a week for nine weeks | |
| S1 | GENG5501 | Coastal and Offshore Engineering |
| |
| S2 | GENG5506 | Renewable Energy |
| lectures and practical classes |
| S1, S2 | GENG5507 | Risk, Reliability and Safety | lectures: 2 hour per week; practical classes: 1 hour per week; workshops: 3 hours per week | |
| S2 | OCEN4007 | Renewable Ocean Energy |
| lectures: 3 x 45 mins per week; practical classes: 2 x 1 hrs per week; labs: 3 hours every third week |
| S1, S2 | OCEN5511 | Ocean Leadership Research Project Part 1 |
| |
| S1, S2 | OCEN5512 | Ocean Leadership Research Project Part 2 |
| |
| S1 | SCIE5505 | Global Change and the Marine Environment | 7 hours per week for 6 weeks |
See also the rules for the course and the Student Rules.
Rules
Applicability of the Student Rules, policies and procedures
1.(1) The Student Rules apply to students in this course.
(2) The policy, policy statements and guidance documents and student procedures apply, except as otherwise indicated in the rules for this course.
Academic Conduct Essentials and Communication and Research Skills modules
2.(1) A student who enrols in this course for the first time irrespective of whether they have previously been enrolled in another course of the University, must undertake the Academic Conduct Essentials module (the ACE module) and the Communication and Research Skills module (the CARS module).
(2) A student must successfully complete the ACE module within the first teaching period of their enrolment. Failure to complete the module within this timeframe will result in the student's unit results from this teaching period being withheld. These results will continue to be withheld until students avail themselves of a subsequent opportunity to achieve a passing grade in the ACE module. In the event that students complete units in subsequent teaching periods without completing the ACE module, these results will similarly be withheld. Students will not be permitted to submit late review or appeal applications regarding results which have been withheld for this reason and which they were unable to access in the normally permitted review period.
English Language competency requirements
3. To be considered eligible for consideration for admission to this course an applicant must satisfy the University's English language competence requirement as set out in the University Policy on Admission: Coursework.
Admission requirements
4. To be considered for admission to this course an applicant must have—
(a) a Bachelor's degree, or an equivalent qualification, as recognised by UWA;
and
(b) the equivalent of a UWA weighted average mark of at least 50 per cent.
Admission ranking and selection
5. Where relevant, admission will be awarded to the highest ranked applicants or applicants selected based on the relevant requirements.
Articulations and exit awards
6.(1) This course has the following exit awards:
- 62240 Graduate Certificate in Ocean Leadership (24 points)
- 62340 Graduate Diploma in Ocean Leadership (48 points)
(2) A student who withdraws from the Master of Ocean Leadership course before completing it, but after completing Level 4 and Level 5 units to the value of 24 points,, may apply to the School to be awarded the Graduate Certificate in Ocean Leadership.
(3) A student who withdraws from the Master of Ocean Leadership course before completing it, but after completing Level 4 and Level 5 units to the value of 48 points,, may apply to the School to be awarded the Graduate Diploma in Ocean Leadership.
Course structure
7.(1) The course consists of units to a total value of 96 points.
(2) Units must be selected in accordance with the course structure, as set out in these rules.
Satisfactory progress
8. To make satisfactory progress a student must pass units to a point value greater than half the total value of units in which they remain enrolled after the final date for withdrawal without academic penalty.
9. A student who has not achieved a result of Ungraded Pass (UP) for the Communication and Research Skills module (the CARS module) when their progress status is assessed will not have made satisfactory progress even if they have met the other requirements for satisfactory progress in Rule 8.
Progress status
10.(1) A student who makes satisfactory progress in terms of Rule 8 is assigned the status of 'Good Standing'.
(2) Unless the relevant board determines otherwise because of exceptional circumstances—
(a) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the first time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'On Probation';
(b) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the second time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'Suspended';
(c) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the third time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'Excluded'.
11. A student who does not make satisfactory progress in terms of Rule 6 is assigned the progress status of 'On Probation', unless they have been assigned a progress status of 'Suspended' or 'Excluded' for failure to meet other satisfactory progress requirements in Rule 6.
Award with distinction
12. To be awarded the degree with distinction a student must achieve a course weighted average mark (WAM) of at least 80 per cent which is calculated based on—
(a) all units above Level 3 attempted as part of the course that are awarded a final percentage mark;
(b) all relevant units above Level 3 undertaken in articulating courses of this University that are awarded a final percentage mark;
and
(c) all units above Level 3 completed at this University that are credited to the master's degree course.
Deferrals
13. Applicants awarded admission to the course are entitled to a deferral of up to 12 months, as per the University Policy on: Admissions (Coursework).