Home

Environmental Systems Engineering MSc

London, Bloomsbury

Address global challenges in environmental sustainability on this unique one-year MSc at UCL. Join us to explore complex environmental issues and technological systems through the lens of systems engineering and gain the expertise to advance your career in this rapidly-growing and critical field.

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£20,500
£10,250
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£39,800
£19,900
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Duration
1 calendar year
2 calendar years
5 calendar years
Programme starts
September 2025
Applications accepted
Applicants who require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 04 Apr 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Applicants who do not require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 29 Aug 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

A minimum of an upper second-class UK Bachelor's degree in a cognate subject or related discipline or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard is usually required. Extensive work experience covering related areas will be considered.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 2

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree


As global populations grow and the demand for better living standards and a move to a circular economy increases, the need for environmental systems engineers is rising. This Master's will equip you with the tools you need to succeed.

This comprehensive course offers the theoretical underpinnings of environmental engineering, to hands-on project-based experience with an industrial client. 

You'll cover a range of topics, including policy, urban water systems, water resource management, green infrastructure, waste management, decarbonisation, hydraulics and hydrology, and more – to examine the complex interactions between the natural environment, people, processes, and technologies. 

You’ll learn all about the decisions engineers need to make from sustainable and environmental engineering points of view, so you can design holistic engineering projects and technological systems that can help the world to reverse climate change, and move to Net Zero. 

There’s a big emphasis on transferable skills too, like problem-solving, management, diplomacy, systems thinking, collaboration, and contextual intelligence. You'll also gain significant understanding of your work in alignment to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals This, when coupled with your technical expertise, will make you highly sought after for engineering jobs in regional and municipal authorities, consulting, research and development organisations, and more.

Who this course is for

This programme is ideal if you aspire to a high-level career in the environmental and sustainable engineering sector. 

It is suitable for applicants with a first degree in civil engineering, environmental engineering, or a similar field, who want to pursue a life-long and fulfilling career as an engineer or who want to conduct further research.

Read about what it takes to study for a Master's at UCL

What this course will give you

This programme offers you the following benefits and opportunities:

  • A postgraduate degree from a top-ranked university. UCL is consistently ranked among the best universities globally (ranked 9th in the latest QS World University Rankings 2025), providing you with a prestigious qualification that is highly regarded by employers worldwide. 
  • Work with expert academics and researchers in UCL Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering, who specialise in different disciplines, including environment, industrial ecology and policy, water, urban resilience, energy, waste and more. 
  • Build strong collaborative skills, working alongside experts from UCL and carrying out an environmental systems research projects with one of our industry partners. 
  • Take advantage of our industry and research links, including attending seminars and exhibitions by industry leaders taking place at UCL. 
  • Study in the world's best city for university students (QS Best Student Cities 2024). UCL’s Bloomsbury campus is in the heart of a London district famous for its cultural and educational institutions.
Read about what you'll get out of a graduate programme

The foundation of your career

Our graduates excel in engineering roles in consultancies, agencies, government and non-governmental bodies. Graduates from our department have gone on to work with employers such as Ford Motor Company, KPMG, EDF Energy, Jacobs Solutions, Multiplex, Thames Tideway Tunnel Project, and more.  

I preferred UCL's Environmental Systems Engineering because it seemed the most applied, bringing more real-world Engineering into it.

Headshot of alumni student Madeleine Lawson talking to camera

Madeleine Lawson

MSc Environmental Systems Engineering

Hear more from our students

Employability

Our programme offers a combination of theory, practice, and innovation that will give you the strong technical and contextual foundation you need to progress into an environmental engineering career in either industry or research.  

Networking

You’ll have regular opportunities to connect, collaborate and build professional contacts as part of your Master’s.  

  • Engage with peers, industry experts and faculty members at guest lectures and special seminars.
  • Take part in collaborative group projects, field trips, site visits, case studies, and workshops within the department and with industry partners.
  • Access UCL Careers for a variety of resources and events to support your career development, including CV workshops and 1-2-1 guidance. 

Accreditation

This degree is accredited as meeting the requirements for Further Learning for a Chartered Engineer (CEng) for candidates who have already acquired a partial CEng accredited undergraduate first degree. See www.jbm.org.uk for further information.

Teaching and learning

This MSc programme is delivered through a mix of seminars, lectures, laboratory work, projects and practicals, which frequently draw upon real-life industry case studies.

Assessment is through examinations (short-answer and multiple-choice questions), presentations, essays, coursework, and your individual research project, which you will submit as a dissertation.

Full-time students can expect 12-16 hours of contact time per teaching week. The exact number of contact hours, composition, and assessment varies throughout the terms, and depends on the module choices of the student.

This is a full-time course, which means students should expect a working schedule of approximately 35-40 hours a week.

A Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits) is offered.

Modules

The programme structure for full-time students encompasses a total of 180 credits. There are 6 compulsory modules (90 credits), and you'll select 2 optional modules (30 credits) to specialise in a desired area.

In Term 3, you'll complete an individual research project (60 credits).

The programme structure for part-time students encompasses a total of 180 credits over the course of 2 years. 

The programme structure for part-time students encompasses a total of 180 credits over 2 years. There are 6 compulsory modules (90 credits) and you'll select 2 optional modules (30 credits) to specialise in a desired area.

You'll complete an individual research project (60 credits) in the second year.

Compulsory modules








Optional modules















Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change. Modules that are in use for the current academic year are linked for further information. Where no link is present, further information is not yet available.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MSc in Environmental Systems Engineering. Upon successful completion of 120 credits, you will be awarded a PG Dip in Environmental Systems Engineering.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services team.

Where you'll study

UCL PEARL building pictured from outside on sunny day

The Department boasts award-winning next-generation research facilities across UCL’s estate. Over the past few years, we have developed new state-of-the-art facilities dedicated to versatile and ambitious research aimed at creating safer and more inclusive public spaces. CAVE (Controlled Active Ventilation Environment) and PEARL (Person Environment Activity Research Laboratory) are two innovative research spaces that provide a full-scale testing facility where researchers can simulate real-life environments. These facilities are in line with UCL's Sustainability Strategy, supporting our bold ambition to become a net-zero carbon institution by 2030. PEARL is UCL's first net-zero carbon building. The StrEnTHE (Structural & Environmental Testing at Here East) laboratory offers large-scale structural and environmental testing capabilities, including the UK's only integrated environmental-mechanical rig for testing masonry wall specimens and other large structural elements under various loading and environmental conditions.

Find out more

Visit us

All open days and events

Online - Open day

Graduate Open Events: Study at UCL Faculty of Engineering Sciences

—

At UCL Engineering, our graduates turn discoveries into solutions - improving medical treatments, housing, transportation, the products, processes and students we produce change the world. Join us at this virtual event to hear more about our Faculty and where a UCL Engineering degree could take you. You'll learn about our huge range of programmes, our research, industry connections and careers support, with a chance for Q&A.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time Part-time
Tuition fees (2025/26) £20,500 £10,250
Tuition fees (2025/26) £39,800 £19,900

Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary. Where the programme is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

For Full-time and Part-time offer holders a fee deposit will be charged at 10% of the first year fee.

For flexible/modular offer holders a £500 fee deposit will be charged.

There is no fee deposit required for PG Dip and PG Cert applicants.

Further information can be found in the Tuition fee deposits section on this page: Tuition fees.

There are no additional costs associated with this programme.

The costs of any possible field trips or site visits will be covered by the department.

UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £114.50. This price was published by TfL in 2024. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Next steps

Students are advised to apply as early as possible due to competition for places. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.

There is an application processing fee for this programme of £90 for online applications. Further information can be found at Application fees.

When we assess your application, we would like to learn:

  • why you want to study environmental systems engineering at graduate level
  • why you want to study environmental systems engineering at UCL
  • what particularly attracts you to this programme
  • how your academic and professional background meets the demands of this programme
  • where you would like to go professionally with your degree

Together with essential academic requirements, the personal statement is your opportunity to illustrate whether your reasons for applying to this programme match what the programme will deliver. 

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2025-2026

Apply for this course

Got questions? Get in touch

Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering
Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering

cege-pg-admissions@ucl.ac.uk

UCL is regulated by the Office for Students.