The field of evolutionary genetics rests on genetic and evolutionary principles, (often) mathematical models, and molecular data. The explosion in the availability of genome-wide data makes competencies in "making sense" of such data more and more relevant. This course will cover selected topics that are both fundamental and/or currently very active research fields.

The colloquium “Challenges in Plant Sciences” is a core class of the Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center's PhD program. The colloquium introduces participants to the broad spectrum of plant sciences within the network. The course offers the opportunity to approach interdisciplinary topics in the field of plant sciences.

The concept course 'Evolutionary Genetics' consists of two lectures that jointly provide an introduction to the fields of population and quantitative genetics (emphasis on basic concepts) and ecological genetics (more emphasis on evolutionary and ecological processes of adaptation and speciation).

This course is an introduction to the rapidly developing fields of population and quantitative genetics, emphasizing the major concepts and ideas over mathematical formalism. An overview is given of how mutation, genetic drift, gene flow, mating systems, and selection affect the genetic structure of populations. Evolutionary processes affecting quantitative and Mendelian characters are discussed.

The organization and functioning of academic research as well as academic publishing are introduced and applied: students critically review two term papers written by their student colleagues. Based on the reviews, the authors of the papers write reply letters and revise their own term papers. They finally present their topic during an in-house "mini-conference" with a talk.

Individual writing of an essay-type review paper about a specialized topic in the field of ecology and evolution, based on substantial reading of original literature and discussions with a senior scientist.

Lab course:The lab course in evolutionary biology introduces students to key techniques and concepts in modern population genetics and phylogenetics. Students use molecular techniques to carry out lab projects in small teams and present their results and conclusions in a final talk.

The lab course in evolutionary biology introduces students to key techniques and concepts in modern population genetics and phylogenetics. Students use molecular techniques to carry out lab projects in small teams and present their results and conclusions in a final talk.