Follow in the footsteps of John Stevens Henslow, the pioneering botanist who mentored Charles Darwin. Established under Henslow’s leadership as a hands-on teaching resource for students of botany, Cambridge University Botanic Garden has a long tradition of botanical education. 2026 sees the launch of a new botany teaching programme, which draws on the current living collection and the historic teaching materials used to teach Darwin himself. Running 6 July – 1 August 2026, the Certificate in Botany will provide a rigorous grounding in comparative morphology and plant systematics, training the next generation of botanists in one of the world’s largest university-owned botanic gardens.
Find out more about the programme in the sections below.
- Overview
- Botany today
- What does the course cover?
- What will you gain?
- Who is the course for?
- Teaching and location
- Dates, accommodation and fees
- Applications – open in February, but complete an expression of interest form today
Overview
Plant science is advancing at pace. Genomics, metabolomics and computational biology are transforming how we study plants, yet these advances still depend on something increasingly rare: a deep, first-hand knowledge of plants. The ability to recognise, describe and compare plant form remains fundamental to framing research questions, interpreting data and applying plant science meaningfully in the real world. This month-long, immersive course responds directly to that need. Based entirely on site at the Botanic Garden, the programme combines lectures, practical classes and close study of living collections to reconnect modern plant science with its botanical foundations.
Botany today
Botany has been steadily eroded from university undergraduate curricula, yet it forms the core of modern plant sciences.
Dedicated undergraduate botany degrees no longer exist in the UK, and many plant science programmes offer only limited training in plant morphology and diversity. As a result, even highly skilled students may graduate with strong molecular or computational expertise but limited confidence in recognising plants, describing phenotypes or situating their work within a broader evolutionary and ecological context.
The Certificate in Botany addresses this gap. It offers sustained, in-person botanical training over a full month – currently unique in the UK – enabling participants to develop a fluency with plant form and diversity that cannot be gained through short courses or online learning alone.
What does the course cover?
This course introduces basic plant morphology and plant systematics and applies this information to key temperate and tropical flowering plant families.
During the residency, participants will study more than sixty temperate and tropical plant families in depth. Teaching integrates theory and practice, with daily lectures supported by hands-on examination of living material from across the Garden’s collections. The course focuses on:
- Plant morphology and structural diversity
- Comparative systematics and evolutionary relationships
- Plant identification using morphological, phylogenetic and floristic frameworks
- Linking whole-organism biology with molecular and genetic approaches
Specialist seminars, guided study sessions and excursions complement core teaching, providing insight into living collections and their role in research, conservation and education.
What will you gain?
Participants will acquire specialist knowledge and biodiversity skills, allowing them to frame their work or research within a broader evolutionary and ecological context.
By the end of the programme, participants will have developed:
- A strong working knowledge of botanical and morphological terminology.
- Confidence in describing, comparing and identifying plant species.
- The ability to understand plant diversity in an evolutionary and ecological context.
- The skills to develop research questions related to plant diversity.
- The knowledge to select suitable plant groups for study, including species beyond standard model organisms.
In addition to technical skills, participants will gain access to the living and archival collections of the Botanic Garden. These include the Botanic Garden and the Herbarium as well as Cambridge’s wider botanical collections. Participants will also access a professional network spanning botanic gardens, academia and applied plant sciences.
Who is the course for?
This course is ideal for people interested in plant diversity, morphology and evolutionary relationships, but with little or no formal training in these fields.
The Certificate in Botany is aimed at:
- Undergraduate and postgraduate students in plant sciences, biology or related disciplines
- Academic researchers in plant sciences, biology or related disciplines
- Professionals working in ecology, horticulture, conservation or related fields
Applications are also welcomed from those in adjacent fields who can demonstrate strong motivation to develop their botanical and systematic understanding.
Places are limited to 15 participants to ensure intensive teaching and close engagement with staff and collections.
Teaching and location
All teaching takes place at Cambridge University Botanic Garden and the Herbarium and is delivered by Botanic Garden staff with specialist expertise in botany, plant diversity and living collections, alongside University academics.
The Garden’s temperate and tropical collections form the core teaching resource, allowing participants to work directly with a wide range of living plant material throughout the course.
Dates, accommodation and fees
The Certificate in Botany will run from 6 July – 1 August 2026.
Participants requiring accommodation will be housed at Queens’ College, Cambridge, within walking distance of the Botanic Garden. A reduced course fee is available for those who do not require accommodation.
Applications
Applications will be made via an online form and will include:
- A short letter of motivation
- A CV
- The name and contact details of a referee
Further details on fees, funding support and the application process will be released in February 2026.
Register your interest to ensure you are notified when applications open by filling in this expression of interest form.
