​The track is open for students who has started the Desert Studies program starting 2022-2023 academic year.

The M.Sc. program is a two-year program.

The chairperson of the teaching committee is: Prof. Osnat Gillor.

Students are required to complete the following courses during the two-year program:

​Subject​Credits
​A. Mandatory courses
B. Core courses
C. Departmental and student seminars
D. Limited choice
E. Elective courses
F. General courses
​30
​Thesis writing
​12
​Total​42

A. Mandatory courses:​


Course #
LecturerSubjectCredit
00​1-2-0153Dr. Scott Hansen and Dr. Christopher J. Arnusch​​Writing a Scientific Paper
​2

B. Core courses (at least 6 credits):


Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​001-2-3021​Prof. Itamar Giladi
​Biostatistics (can be completed during the program)
​3
001-2-5011​Prof. Zeev Ronen
​Environmental Microbiology
​3
​New course
​Dr. Max Kolton
​Bioinfomatics3​

C. Departmental and students seminars - Mandatory Courses:


Students are required to attend 4 departmental seminars (one seminar per semester).
Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​001-2-2222*​Please check the university course file
​French Associate Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands Seminar*
​0
​001-2-5555*Please check the university course file​Zuckerberg Institite for Water Research Seminar*
​0
​001-2-6666*Please check the university course file​Marco and Louise Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology Seminar*
​0
* Students will take the seminars at their home institites.

Students are required to present two seminars (one student seminar per year).
Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​001-2-2666Please check the university course file​French Associate Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands Seminar*​0.5
​001-2-2667Please check the university course file​French Associate Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands Seminar*​0.5

Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​001-2-9995Please check the university course fileZuckerberg Institite for Water Research Seminar*​0.5
​001-2-9996Please check the university course fileZuckerberg Institite for Water Research Seminar*​0.5

Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​205-2-2521Prof. Itamar Giladi & Prof. Yaron ZivMarco and Louise Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology Seminar*​0.5
205-2-2522Prof. Itamar Giladi & Prof. Yaron ZivMarco and Louise Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology Seminar*​0.5
205-2-2523Prof. Itamar Giladi & Prof. Yaron ZivMarco and Louise Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology Seminar*​0.5
205-2-2524Prof. Itamar Giladi & Prof. Yaron ZivMarco and Louise Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology Seminar*​0.5
* Students will take the seminars at their home institutes.

In the third and fourth semesters, student must register for Thesis writing.
Course #
SubjectCredits
​001-2-9991​Third semester
​Thesis writing A
​6
​001-2-9992​Fourth semester
​Thesis writing B
​6

Students who have completed the above thesis writing courses and continue their studies for a fifth semster must register for the following course:
Course #
SubjectCredits
​001-2-1000​Thesis writing - continuation
​0

D. Limited choice (at least 9 credits):


Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​001-2-2015​Prof. Dina Zilberg & Prof. Amit Gross
​Introduction to Desert Aquaculture
​3
​001-2-3086​Dr. Hadas Hawlena
​Microbial Ecology from the Ecologist point of view
3​
​001-2-5005​Prof. Amit Gross & Prof. Zeev Ronen
​Laboratory Methods for Environmental Studies
​3
​001-2-5010​Prof. Zeev Ronen
​Groundwater Microbiology
​2
​001-2-5012​Prof. Zeev Ronen
​Biodegradation Process of Synthetic Organic Compound in Water soil
​2
​001-2-5059Prof. Osnat Gillor​​Water Microbiology
​3
​001-2-5062​Prof. Edo Bar-Zeev
​Microbial Sociology: From a Single Bacterium to Biofilm and Biofouling
3​
001-2-5063​Prof. Edo Bar-Zeev
​Lab-course: New Methods in Biofilm Characterization
​2

E. Elective courses (at least 9 credits):


Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​001-2-0009​Prof. Avraham Be'er​Physics of Bacterial Communities3​
​001-2-0022Dr. Anat BernsteinStable Isotope Application in Contaminant Hydrology​2
001-2-1103Dr. Hadas Hawlana​Introduction to Dryland Ecology​4
​001-2-2021​Prof. Dina Zilberg
​Aquatic Animal Health
​3
​001-2-2025/6/7​Prof. Dina Zilberg
Practical Fish Diagnosis (A/B/C) (prerequisite: Theoretical fish diseases course)​​1
​001-2-2036​Prof. Gideon Grafi
​Molecular Biology and Epigenetics
2​
​001-2-2038​Prof. Naftali Lazarovich
​Soil Physics
2​
​001-2-2040​Prof. Gideon Grafi
​Lab Course in Epigenetetics - A Concentrated course
​3
​001-2-2046Prof. Aaron Fait
Analysis of Biological Networks
2.5​
001-2-2070Dr. Inna Khozin-Goldberg (Coordinator)
​Biology and Biotechnology of Microalga
​3
​001-2-2076​Dr. Nina Kamennaya
​Practical Environmental Cytometry
​2.5
​001-2-2080Dr. Nina Kamennaya​Physiology of aquatic microbes​3
​001-2-2290​Prof. Dina Zilberg
​Aquatic Animal Health - Guided Reading Course​2
​001-2-3035​Prof. Berry Pinshow, Prof. Nurit Agam, Prof. Scott Turner & Dr. Eugene Marais​Biophysical Ecology in the Namib Desert: Online Course and Field Workshop​4
​001-2-3045​Dr. Shirli Bar-David
​Conservation genetics​3
001-2-3047​Prof. Merav Seifan
​Global changes and the biodiversity crisis
​2
001-2-3079​Prof. Ariel Novoplansky
​Scientific Presentation​2
001-2-3080​Prof. Michal Segoli
​Evolution of Life Histories​3
001-2-3082​Prof. Itamar Giladi
​Ecology and Evolution of Dispersal​3
​001-2-3083​Prof. Merav Seifan
​Community Ecology ​3
​001-2-3084​Prof. Michal Segoli
​Evolutionary Ecology​4
​001-2-3094​Dr. Uri Roll
​Macro ecology​2
​001-2-3333​Prof. Boris Krasnov
​Guided Reading on the Ecology of Parasites and Parasitism​2
​001-2-3344​Dr. Shirli Bar-David
​Guided Reading on Molecular Ecology​2
​001-2-3355​Dr. Hadas Hawlena
​Guided Reading on Microbial Ecology​2
​001-2-5028​Prof. Moshe Herzberg​Microbial Biofilms in Water and Wastewater Treatment Processes ​2
​001-2-5044​Prof. Shai Arnon
​Biogeochemical Processes in Surface Water Systems​2
​001-2-5060Prof. Moshe Herzberg​Biological Processes in Wastewater Treatment​2
001-2-5072​Dr. Max Kolton
​Discussions in microbial ecology​1
​001-2-5073​Dr. Max Kolton
​Practical microbial bioinformatics​3
205-2-2123
​Prof. Itzik Mizrahi
​Microbical Ecology
​4

F. General Courses (at least 3 credits):


This is a partial list. The student is allowed to select other courses that are related to the area of his/her research with the approval of the supervisor.
Course #
LecturerSubjectCredits
​001-2-1200​Prof. Simon Barak
​BGU Radio Academy – Podcast production course ​2
​001-2-2069​Prof. Inna Khozin-Goldberg​Prof. Inna Khozin-Goldberg​3
​001-2-5029​Prof. Noam Weisbrod
​Rural Water Development​2
​001-2-5036​Dr. Avner Ronen
​Environmental micropollutants & emerging contaminants​2
​001-2-5037​Dr. Michal Adler Sela
​Organic micropollutant identification and quantification in the lab​1
001-2-5069​Prof. Amit Gross
​Water & the Environment: Current challenges and solutions​3
​001-2-5129​Prof. Noam Weisbrod
​Rural Water Development (field trip) Prerequisite: Course # 001-2-5029​2
​205-2-1601​Prof. Ofer Ovadia
​Ecology of Populations​3
​205-2-1609​Dr. Shai Pilosoph
​Networks in Biology and Ecology​3
​205-2-4162​Prof. Michal Segoli
​Insect Ecology​3
​369-2-3171​Prof. Ariel Kushmaro
​Microbiology in films, literature, and art​1
​369-2-6451Prof. Ariel Kushmaro​Molecular approaches to microbial ecology and biotechnology​3
​372-2-5331​Dr. Assaf Zaritsky
​Data science in cell imaging​3
​IUI*​Dr. Moshe Kiflawi & Prof. Roi Holzman​Statistical Methods in Marine Ecology​3
​IUI*Prof. Ilana Berman-Frank, Prof. Dan Tchernov & Prof. Nir Keren
​Marine photosynthesis​3
​IUI*​Prof. Daniel Sher, Dr. David Morgenstern, Dr. Tal Luzzatto Knaan​Marine Venoms and Defense Systems​3
* Please refer to the following link http://iui-eilat.ac.il/Courses/Courses.aspx