IN 2006, Dorset was hit by civil conflict. The Hampshirians began breaking away to declare themselves an independent republic, urging Hampshirians living in the east of the county to join them.

However, Dorset resisted and fighting soon led to ethnic cleansing. People were forced out of their villages, houses were burned to the ground and people were reported missing.

Sound familiar? Probably not, as this was the fictional scenario facing forensic archaeology students when they took part in a mock mass grave dig at Holton Heath.

The team, made up of students from all over the world, donned their white suits and descended upon Holton Lee to take part in the unique course hosted by Bournemouth University.

"We tell them there's been a request for a forensic team from Bournemouth and that there are aerial photos that show evidence of disturbed land here," explained Ian Hanson, senior lecturer of forensic archaeology and course director.

The students are given a day at the university where they learn about the mass grave process in terms of procedures for searching for graves, finding them, confirming they are graves and recovery before they are let loose on the scene.

"First of all we hand over to the students," said Ian.

"We ask them what they're going to do, so they've got to confirm there's something there. They've been told that it's been de-mined for safety reasons, then they do line searching, so they walk across in lines searching for things.

"They find scatters of shell cases, clothes and some scattered bones. Some of them are nothing to do with what we've done because they have deer bones here, so part of it is what's relevant and what's not.

"They we say How many people?' and they go and count the bones up. Then when we've found the bones, we do a careful fingertip search so they get down on their hands and knees."

The scene is then declared a crime scene and cordoned off before the students get to work photographing and surveying the evidence, then logging and packaging it.

A search then begins for graves and students receive "intelligence" throughout the week to help them piece together what has occurred.

While not part of the forensic archaeology degree, the programme allows students on that course to put what they've learned into practice.

"The aim of the course is to give, in six days, a complete demonstration and a chance to try all the techniques we use in a real investigation, so they get all the experience," said Ian.

"By the end of the week they will be doing everything with limited interaction from me. They will be doing it themselves because they've learned the practice.

"We've got 24 students and it's full every year so we have to turn people away. We advertise internationally for students and we've got people from America, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and Europe and also from various places around the UK.

"It's nice because we've got people with different backgrounds coming together."

It's clear the course, which has been running since 2005, is internationally renowned and Ian stresses it is important for people to be trained in this kind of work so they can be deployed when needed.

"There's a lot of interest in people around the world on human rights issues," he said."People care about these things and they want to be trained in doing that kind of work. There are very few places that do courses like this.

"They all see the news about Zimbabwe and I say to them: If the UN or other agencies need helping, then you're trained to do it'.

"Many of our students went to Bosnia and Kosovo with the UN."

The course also helps students get careers in the police, as all the principles used are taken from the UK force.

Katie Goatley, 21, is doing her masters degree in forensic archaeology at Bournemouth University and is certain the experience will help her career.

"It gets you all the experience in digging as well as photography," she explained.

"You need good experience because you can't really get a job without experience."

Ann-Marie Day, 44, came all the way from New Zealand to take part.

"New Zealand programmes are very rare so I knew it would be a good experience," she said.

"It's been really good. It's what you learn from your fellow students as well. I'm very much a beginner.

"The forensic side of it is new but I'm finding it fascinating."