Postgraduate Diploma in Science
Advance your understanding of science, or computer and mathematical sciences in as little as one year with the Postgraduate Diploma in Science.
This coursework-based qualification includes papers from the Master of Science. You can choose from a wide range of papers in science, or computer and mathematical sciences. Throughout your studies you develop advanced analytical, planning and critical thinking skills. Graduates may progress to further study in the Master of Science or Master of Science (Research).
Start date: 2020
- Download our programme brochure [PDF, 9.4 MB]
- Download our programme brochure [PDF, 9.4 MB]
Minimum entry requirements
- Bachelor of Science or equivalent OR
- Graduate Diploma in Science or equivalent OR
International student entry requirements
English language requirements
- IELTS (Academic) 6.5 overall with all bands 6.0 or higher; or equivalent
The Postgraduate Diploma in Science is a coursework programme with papers drawn from those in the Master of Science. You complete papers to make up a total of 120 points. Enrolment in papers is subject to meeting all requirements and availability of papers.
Choose from a wide range of papers
You can complete this postgraduate diploma without a specialisation, and choose from a wide range of papers in computer and mathematical sciences, or science.
You must complete 120 points from the papers below, including
- SCIE805 Quantitative Analysis OR SCIE806 Scientific Research and Communication; and
- SCIE807 Advanced Ecological Data Analysis
- Another 90 points from the papers below
Semester 1 papers
- CHEM805 Biological Inorganic Chemistry I (15 points) - taught by Nicola Brasch
- CHEM808 Molecular Spectroscopy (15 points) - taught by Marcus Jones
- CONS803 Socio-Ecological Systems (15 points) - taught by Rebecca Jarvis
- ECOL802 Macroecology and Biogeography (15 points) - taught by Hannah Buckley
- ECOL801 Advanced Ecology (15 points) - taught by Hannah Buckley
- ENVS801 Applications of Geographical Information Systems (15 points) - taught by Dan Breen
- ENVS803 GIS Programming (15 points) - taught by Brad Case
- FOOD801 Food Science (30 points) - taught by Owen Young
- MELS801 Biomedical Ethics (15 points) - taught by Colleen Higgins
- PHIL880 Ethics of Biotechnology (15 points) - taught by Colleen Higgins
- SCIE805 Quantitative Analysis (15 points) - taught by Kevin Lee
- SCIE806 Scientific Research (15 points) - taught by Kay Vopel
- SCIE807 Advanced Ecological Data Analysis (15 points) - taught by Martin Bader
Semester 2 papers
- BIOL801 Biomedical Science & Technology (30 points) - taught by Jun Lu
- CHEM801 Physical Chemistry I (15 points) - taught by Allan Blackman
- CHEM803 Chemistry for Drug Discovery (15 points) taught by Jack Chen
- CHEM807 Analytical and Environmental Chemistry (15 points) - taught by TBC
- CONS801 International Conservation Biology (15 points) - taught by Dave Towns
- CONS802 Applied New Zealand Conservation (15 points) - taught by Dave Towns
- CONS804 Global Change Biology (15 points) - taught by Sebastian Leuzinger
- ENVS802 Advanced Applications of Geographic Information Systems (30 points) - taught by Brad Case
- ENVS804 Geospatial Science for Conservation (15 points) - taught by Barbara Bollard
- FOOD802 Frontiers of Food Microbiology (30 points) - taught by Brent Seale
- FOOD803 Recent Trends in Food Science (15 points) - taught by Nazimah Hamid
- FOOD804 Current Topics in Food Science (30 points) - taught by Nazimah Hamid
- FOOD805 Advanced Sensory Analysis of Food (15 points) - taught by Nazimah Hamid
- GENE802 Contemporary Molecular Genetics (30 points) - taught by Colleen Higgins
- INFS812 Bioinformatics (15 points)
- MASC801 Advanced Biological Oceanography (15 points) - taught by Kay Vopel
- MASC802 Fisheries Science (15 points) - taught by Armagan Sabetian
- MASC803 Marine Ecosystem Functions (15 points) - taught by Armagan Sabetian and Kay Vopel
- MASC804 Marine Spatial Planning (15 points) - taught by Dan Breen
- MELS802 Quality Assurance in Laboratory Services (15 points) - taught by Joe Chang
- MICR801 Selected Topics in Microbiology (30 points) - taught by Noemi Gutierrez-Maddox and Donna Lacap-Bugler
- SCIE803 Specialist Readings in Applied Science (30 points) - taught by Holly Perry
Other papers that may be offered in some years
You must complete 90 points from the papers listed below and 30 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science or other relevant postgraduate papers with the approval of the programme leader.
ASTR800 Advanced Topics in Astronomy and Astrophysics (15 points)
COMP800 Neuroinformatics (15 points)
COMP807 Algorithms, Graphs and Combinatorics (15 points)
COMP808 Logic, Games and Automata (15 points)
COMP809 Data Mining and Machine Learning (15 points)
COMP810 Data Warehousing and Big Data (15 points)
COMP811 Research Methods (15 points)
COMP813 Artificial Intelligence (15 points)
COMP815 Nature Inspired Computing (15 points)
COMP826 Mobile System Development (15 points)
COMP827 Advanced Computer Graphics (15 points)
COMP835 Server System Development (15 points)
COMP840 Specialist Topic A* (15 points)
COMP841 Specialist Topic B* (15 points)
MATH800 Advanced Topics in Applied Mathematics (15 points)
MATH802 Advanced Financial Modelling and Analytics (15 points)
MATH803 Mathematical Modelling and Simulation (15 points)
MATH805 Advanced Numerical Analysis (15 points)
STAT800 Stochastic Modelling (15 points)
STAT801 Multivariate Analysis (15 points)
STAT802 Advanced Topics in Analytics (15 points)
STAT803 Official Statistics (15 points)
STAT804 Optimisation and Operation Research (15 points)
STAT805 Computational Mathematics and Statistics (15 points)
More details about papers in this programme
Email cmspg@aut.ac.nz
Detailed programme structure and paper outlines (Blackboard)
Specialisations
To specialise in one of the areas listed below, complete the papers listed for this specialisation.
Complete 60 points from:
- CONS801 International Conservation Biology (15 points)
- CONS802 Applied New Zealand Conservation (15 points)
- CONS803 Socio-ecological Systems Analysis (15 points)
- CONS804 Global Change Biology (15 points)
- GISC416 Special Topic in Conservation GIS (15 points)
And 60 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science.
Complete the following paper:
And 30 points from:
- MELS802 Quality Assurance in Laboratory Services (30 points)
- PHIL880 Ethics of Biotechnology (30 points)
And 60 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science.
Complete 60 points from:
- CHEM801 Physical Chemistry I (15 points)
- CHEM803 Chemistry for Drug Discovery (15 points)
- CHEM805 Biological Inorganic Chemistry I (15 points)
- CHEM807 Environmental and Analytical chemistry (15 points)
- CHEM808 Molecular Spectroscopy (15 points)
And 60 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science.
Complete 60 points from:
- SCIE807 Advanced Data Analysis
- ECOL801 Advanced Ecology
- ECOL802 Macroecology & Biogeography
- ENVS801 Applications of Geographical Information Systems
- MASC801 Advanced Biological Oceanography
- MASC802 Fisheries Science
- MASC803 Marine Ecosystem Functions
- MASC804 Marine Spatial Planning
And 60 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science.
Complete 60 points from:
- FOOD801 Food Science (30 points)
- FOOD802 Frontiers of Food Microbiology (30 points)
- FOOD803 Recent Trends in Food Science (15 points)
- FOOD804 Current Topics in Food Science (30 points)
- FOOD805 Advanced Sensory Analysis of Food (15 points)
And 60 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science.
Complete at least 60 points from:
- ENVS801 Applications of Geographical Information Systems (15 points)
- ENVS802 Advanced Applications in Geographic Information Systems (30 points)
- ENVS803 GIS Programming (15 points)
- ENVS804 Geospatial Science for Conservation (15 points)
- ENVS805 Advances in Remote Sensing (15 points)
- ENVS806 Advances in Geospatial Analysis (15 points)
- ENVS807 Geospatial Customisation and Visualisation (15 points)
And the remaining points from other papers in the Master of Science.
Complete 60 points from:
- FOOD802 Frontiers of Food Microbiology (30 points)
- GENE802 Contemporary Molecular Genetics (30 points)
- MICR801 Selected Topics in Microbiology (30 points)
And 60 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science.
Complete the following papers:
- GENE802 Contemporary Molecular Genetics (30 points)
- INFS812 Bioinformatics (15 points)
- PHIL880 Ethics of Biotechnology (15 points)
And 60 points from other papers listed in the Master of Science.
24 Feb 2020
13 Jul 2020
$8,540
- This represents the approximate tuition fee based on a full-time workload of 120 points in 2019. The exact tuition fee will depend on papers selected and may exceed this figure.
- Fees are subject to change year to year, if you are planning for beyond 2019, the tuition fee may vary from the figure stated.
- There may also be other fees and charges you need to pay. Learn more about fees to study at AUT
$35,820
- This represents the approximate tuition fee based on a full-time workload of 120 points in 2019. The exact tuition fee will depend on papers selected and may exceed this figure.
- Fees are subject to change year to year, if you are planning for beyond 2019, the tuition fee may vary from the figure stated.
- There may also be other fees and charges you need to pay. Learn more about fees to study at AUT
- International students' tuition fees reflect the full cost of tuition. Domestic students' tuition fees are less due to a proportion of the tuition fees being funded by the New Zealand Government.
The information on this page was correct at time of publication. For a comprehensive overview of AUT qualifications, please refer to the Academic Calendar.