ECTS
120 credits
Duration
2 years
Training structure
Faculty of Science
Language(s) of instruction
French
Presentation
The Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement (BAPT) program is based on teaching units (UE) common to the BiPa, IPM, and MEV programs, designed to provide students with a foundation of fundamental knowledge in the fields of genetics and genomics, cellular and molecular biology, plant biology (development, ecophysiology, basics of interactions with microorganisms, etc.), and the tools required for a scientific approach (statistics, bioinformatics, critical analysis, project management, etc.). This core curriculum also includes an internship in M1 and M2, which allows students to contribute to the development of a research project in a laboratory at a public institute or private company.
Thanks to specific course units, including a specialized thematic school and a choice of options offered in M1 and M2, the Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program focuses on the acquisition of biotechnology tools and knowledge of plant improvement practices, targeting in particular the main food and cash crops of Mediterranean and tropical environments. A specific M1 module shared with the IBION-Tec program provides an introduction to engineering approaches aimed at producing phytomolecules of interest.
One of the major challenges of development, given the global population growth predicted for the coming years, is to support increased agricultural production in southern countries in a context of global warming. The two specific modules of the M2 program allow students to work in small groups on a project focusing on a research question aimed at improving a crop in response to environmental changes (water deficit, poor soil, etc.). To do this, students are required to draw on their knowledge to analyze plant phenotypes and adaptive strategies, model them, and propose an improvement objective (ideotype). The thematic school "Functional Genomics of Tropical and Mediterranean Plants" aims to illustrate, through case studies, how knowledge acquired on model species and the use of genomic data on species that have not yet been extensively studied can be used to design conventional or biotechnological improvement strategies adapted to the stress resistance of the main tropical species. This school, which facilitates exchanges between master's students, doctoral students, and researchers, also illustrates the structures and tools for partnerships that enable the development of international and inter-institutional collaborative research aimed at development aid. Through the options available to them, students can refine their training and either go further by working on the adaptation of plants to climate change or their resistance to biotic stresses, or open up to the human and social dimensions of plant breeding. Finally, drawing on the international campus in Montpellier, which is Europe's leading center for plant science research dedicated to the improvement of Mediterranean and tropical crop species, thanks in particular to the presence ofthe IRD (Institut de Recherche pour le Développement) and CIRAD (Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement), students will have access to a wide range of internships in France or abroad, giving them the opportunity to explore the practical aspects of conducting research on a tropical crop species and/or a research project in the South in partnership with a national or international research institute.
In addition to this specialization, skills that complement scientific expertise are considered essential in all Biology and Agrosciences Master's programs and are fully integrated into the Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program. These include documentary research, database management and use, scientific communication, and project planning, management, and implementation.
For more information about this course and its content, visit https://bioagro.edu.umontpellier.fr/biologie-des-plantes/biotechnologie-et-amelioration-des-plantes-tropicales/.
> 80%
Success rate
Objectives
The objective of the BAPT program is to train students to undertake doctoral thesis work and become researchers who will be recruited by fundamental or applied research organizations in the plant sciences. Alternative career paths exist for students who do not wish to pursue this path (research engineers, scientific communication, consulting in local authorities, associations, etc.). For research, all research organizations are targeted (universities, CNRS, IRD, INRAe, and CIRAD), including applied research programs in partnership with companies in the plant improvement, plant biotechnology, or development aid research sectors, as well as international research centers (e.g., CGIAR centers). The Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program specifically allows students, through several specific modules and optional choices, to acquire a more advanced specialization in translational biology (transfer of knowledge acquired and approaches developed on model species to the improvement of non-model species of agronomic interest) and to raise their awareness of international project management for development aid. The choice of M1 and M2 internship topics also reinforces this specialization in a privileged context where demand in this field is exceptional both in France and internationally (national research institutes, CIRAD, IRD, international institutes, CGIAR, and private companies internationally).
Know-how and skills
Knowledge:
- Acquire in-depth knowledge in the fields of genetics and genomics, cellular and molecular biology, plant biology (development, ecophysiology, basis of interactions with microorganisms, etc.).
- Acquire the tools required for the scientific approach (statistics, bioinformatics, critical analysis, project management, etc.)
- Master modern research strategies used to address plant improvement (high-throughput genotyping and phenotyping, association genetics, modeling, comparative genomics and translational biology, molecular engineering, etc.).
- Have an understanding of the related disciplines that need to be mobilized to carry out a plant improvement project in a development aid context (biological rights, ethno-ecology, fair and equitable partnerships, etc.).
Expertise:
- Know how to use concepts and tools from different disciplines to define a research question and set up an experiment, analyze results, and draw conclusions and/or develop operating models.
- Know how to identify issues at different levels of integration (molecule, cell, whole plant, plant in relation to its environment, plant in relation to a human and social context) and integrate them into a multi-level approach in order to develop an improvement strategy.
- Know how to search for or collect relevant scientific information to address a given problem, prioritize this information, compare it, synthesize it, and develop working hypotheses for further research.
- Know how to communicate and argue rigorously and accurately in a manner appropriate to different audiences or contexts, through oral or written presentations.
- Knowing how to lead a project within a team, knowing how to identify and develop collaborations with researchers or professionals who bring complementary skills and expertise.
Interpersonal skills:
- Knowing how to work as part of a team, develop and implement a joint project.
- Know how to work independently.
- Know how to comply with legal, ethical, and scientific rules and standards related to experimentation, publication, and use of documents, sharing of biological resources, and partnerships.
- Knowing how to adapt to multicultural work environments.
Organization
Internships, supervised projects
Internship | Mandatory |
|---|---|
Duration of the internship | 5 and 6 months |
Internship abroad | Possible |
Internships and supervised projects are essential components of the Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program.
A five-month internship is offered in M1 and a six-month internship is offered in M2, with a defense before a jury of experts in conditions reminiscent of a high-level scientific debate. The Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program draws on Montpellier's particularly rich scientific environment in the field of tropical plant improvement. Students will thus be able to join a laboratory working on this issue, either directly in France in a team belonging to a research unit associated with CIRAD or IRD, or in the field in the Global South with which these research units collaborate (CIRAD partnership programs, IRD international joint laboratories, or international or national institutes in the Global South). This configuration ensures that these issues are addressed at a high scientific level and with supervision that meets Master's degree standards, and gives students an international outlook and exposure to multicultural partnerships.
Many courses in the Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program are based on participatory approaches that place a strong emphasis on students carrying out supervised work and projects designed to link the knowledge acquired in more academic courses in order to define and/or resolve a research question related to plant improvement.
Program
The Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program is spread over four semesters, each comprising teaching units (UE) validated by ECTS credits. It is integrated following a Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences. It is an academic program, but many of the teaching units make extensive use of a participatory, project-based teaching approach.
The first year (M1) is mainly devoted to acquiring the fundamental and technical basics of research in Plant Biology, focusing on several major themes: genetics and plant breeding, plant adaptation to the environment and ecophysiology, development, plant-microorganism interactions, metabolic engineering, as well as research tools such as statistics and bioinformatics. The five-month internship completes the M1 program with a first research experience in a laboratory.
The second year (M2) aims to broaden this knowledge by exploring these disciplinary fields in greater depth and offering students the opportunity, in several modules, to apply and integrate their knowledge to solve research questions or develop projects related to plant improvement. The six-month internship provides experience relevant to the student's career plans.
The list of teaching units that make up the program can be found on the Master's website: https://bioagro.edu.umontpellier.fr/master-biologie-agrosciences/biologie-des-plantes/.
Select a program
M1 - Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement (BAPT)
The list of teaching units that make up the program can be found on the Master's website: https://bioagro.edu.umontpellier.fr/master-biologie-agrosciences/biologie-des-plantes/.
Biostatistics with R
5 creditsPlant development
5 creditsPlant-Microorganism Interactions
5 creditsFundamentals of ecophysiology
2 creditsPlant molecular genetics
5 creditsMetabolic engineering of plant biomolecules of interest
3 creditsTools for plant improvement
3 creditsPlant nutrition
2 credits
Bioinformatics: Data and Databases
2 creditsBibliographic summary
2 credits4-month internship
15 creditsOPTION 1
3 creditsChoose one of two options:
Gene Networks—Modeling
3 creditsImprovement of tropical and Mediterranean plants
3 credits
Experimental approaches to plant biology
5 creditsProject management
3 credits
M2 - Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement (BAPT)
The list of teaching units that make up the program can be found on the Master's website: https://bioagro.edu.umontpellier.fr/master-biologie-agrosciences/biologie-des-plantes/.
Integrated approach to plant improvement: case study
3 creditsEpigenetics in plants
3 creditsBigOmics, comparative genomics
2 creditsEcophysiology: from phenotype to ideotype
2 creditsQuantitative genetics
3 creditsData processing
3 creditsIntegrated Plant Improvement Project: Phenotypes
3 creditsBioinformatics: building queries
2 creditsOPTION 1
3 creditsChoose 1 out of 4
Adaptation of tropical field crops to climate change
3 creditsPlants and Humans, a shared history
3 creditsModel plants, modeling
3 creditsVirology
3 credits
Project management
3 credits
Admission
Registration procedures
Applications can be submitted on the following platforms:
French & European students:
- For the M1, follow the "My Master's Degree" procedure on the website:https://www.monmaster.gouv.fr/
- For M2 students, applicants must submit their application via the e-candidat application:https://candidature.umontpellier.fr/candidature
International students from outside the EU: follow the "Études en France" procedure:https://pastel.diplomatie.gouv.fr/etudesenfrance/dyn/public/authentification/login.html
Applications are reviewed by an academic committee comprising the main teachers on the Master's program.
Successful applicants must complete their administrative registration as soon as possible, then proceed with their academic registration, indicating the nature of the teaching modules chosen.
Target audience
The Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program is open to students with at least a bachelor's degree in life sciences or equivalent for the first year, and to students with at least a master's degree in plant biology or equivalent for the second year. The program is open to French students as well as international students through the "Bienvenue en France" program, subject to acceptance of applications.
Mandatory prerequisites
Plant biology and physiology, molecular biology, biotechnology
Recommended prerequisites
Genetics
Concepts of statistics and bioinformatics
Interest in plant breeding
Interest in international partnership research
Basic knowledge of English (reading publications)
And after
Continuing education
A very high proportion of students who graduate with a Master's degree in Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement go on to pursue a PhD in France or abroad, where they are highly valued.
Some students supplement their education with management training to pursue entrepreneurship, or bioinformatics to strengthen skills at the interface of experimental biology and computer science.
After completing their master's degree, some students join research organizations as research engineers or as international volunteers in the field in the Global South. Other students go into scientific communication (museums, popularization) or consulting (local authorities, associations, non-governmental organizations).
Continuing studies abroad
Thanks to the numerous links between the Master's teaching teams and the exceptional network of international collaborations maintained by Montpellier's laboratories, both M1 and M2 internships can be carried out abroad (Africa, North and Latin America, Asia, Europe). This gives students the opportunity to pursue a PhD in the host laboratory or to join international PhD programs. This opportunity is not limited to students completing their Master's internship abroad, but is also widely open to those completing their internships in Montpellier or other research centers in France.
Gateways and reorientation
Students enrolled in the Biotechnology and Tropical Plant Improvement program may switch programs between the first and second years of the Master's in Biology and Agrosciences, particularly to the BiPa, IPM, and MEV programs, subject to acceptance by the program directors concerned.
Professional integration
- Doctoral contracts with public or private organizations
- National and international research organizations
- Research and Development Sector in Private Enterprise
- Advice and expertise within local authorities, associations, or non-governmental organizations
- Scientific communication (press, museum)