Engineering for Sustainable Development

Study mode:On campus Study type:Full-time Languages: English
Local:$ 27.9 k / Year(s) Foreign:$ 48.5 k / Year(s) Deadline: Jun 29, 2024
6 place StudyQA ranking:4712 Duration:1 year

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The MPhil course in Engineering for Sustainable Development is designed for graduates who want to help tackle pressing  global problems by developing practical engineering solutions. The course is about recognising that engineers have to operate within an increasingly complex set of constraints, and therefore must be capable of dealing with a range of challenges. The subject  is based on some very  straightforward  principles:  it is about living within Earth’s finite limits and resources, helping everyone on the planet to achieve an acceptable quality of life; acting as stewards of the environment for future generations;  dealing with complexity and handling the many trade-offs which have to be made.

The programme aims to:

  • produce engineers who are equipped to lead change with the understanding and skills necessary to conceive and deliver fitting solutions to society’s needs and to address global challenges within a sustainability framework;
  • explore value frameworks for engineers which are based on the concepts behind sustainable development and which can guide the design and management of engineering artefacts and schemes, so that their impacts are addressed at every stage of planning, implementation and disposal;
  • encourage a multi-disciplinary approach to problem formulation so that through a dialogue with other subject specialists suitable solutions can be developed and wider constraints on engineering activity can be understood, including awareness of natural, business and social environments;
  • encourage an appreciation of the trade-offs and conflicts inherent in decision making and the need to seek wider and alternative solutions to engineering problems so that graduates of the course can engage in strategic thinking during their future employment within industry, business or government.

Learning Outcomes

Graduates of the MPhil programme will be equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to meet the challenges of engineering work in a sustainable development context.  By the end of the programme, they will have:

  • the ability to work with complex or ill-defined problems both systematically and creatively, including being equipped for dialogue with stakeholder groups;
  • a knowledge of current and potential engineering responses and specific technologies for moving to sustainable development, of both the technical and non-technical barriers to change, and of both good and bad sustainability practice in a range of engineering sectors;
  • well-developed team-work and two-way communication skills;
  • the ability to evaluate, using a range of methodologies, the merits and demerits of options, taking into account environmental, economic, financial and political as well as technical factors;
  • a thorough understanding of the role of value-judgements in defining problems and implementing engineering solutions;
  • an understanding of how institutions, NGOs, public policy and regulation influence the rate of progress towards sustainable development;
  • the ability to act as a change-agent and to manage change effectively in an organisation, equipped with theories about and examples of organisational structure and change;
  • experience of planning, executing and critically evaluating an original and investigative piece of work.

Continuing

The MPhil is a professional practice programme and is not specifically designed to lead on to doctoral research. Nevertheless, students wishing to apply for continuation to a PhD in Engineering at Cambridge would normally be expected to attain an overall mark of at least 70%.

Inner Core Modules

  • ESD150 Driving Change Towards Sustainability
  • ESD200 Sustainability Methods and Metrics

Outer Core Modules

  • ESD E350 Design of Sustainable Built Environment – buildings and infrastructure
  • ESD 450 Policy, Legislation and Government
  • ESD550 Sustainable Design and Implementation
  • ESD650 International Development

Elective Modules

Students choose four of the following

From the Centre for Sustainable Development

  • Sustainable Water Engineering
  • Environmental Engineering

From the Engineering Department

  • Solar Electronic Power: Generation and Distribution
  • Renewable Electrical Power
  • Architectural Engineering
  • Contaminated Land and Waste Containment
  • Accounting and Finance
  • Electricity and the Environment
  • Sustainable Energy
  • Present and Future Energy Systems
  • International Business Economics
  • Strategic Management • Biomimetics
  • Environmental Fluid Mechanics
  • Management of Technology
  • Advanced Building Physics

From the Judge Business School

  • Introduction to Technology Policy
  • Uncertainty and Real Options in System Design
  • Negotiation Skills
  • System Dynamics
  • Political Economy of Technology Policy
  • Environment and Sustainability
  • Management of the Innovation Process
  • Project Management

From other University Departments

  • Sustainable Architecture and Urban Design
  • Sustainability and Chemical Engineering
  • Climate Change Policy and Land Development
  • Politics, Society and Nature
  • Magistr (Master's Degree) at Pass level. Diploma Specialista (completed post-1991) with a minimum overall grade of good or 4/5 Bachelor's from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and other prestigious institutions with an overall grade of 4/5 Bologna Bachelor's from other institutions with an overall grade of 5/5, Excellent
  • Diploma Specialista (completed post-1991) with a minimum overall grade of Excellent or 5/5 Bachelor's from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and other prestigious institutions with an overall grade of 5/5
  • IELTS (Academic) 7.0
  • TOEFL Internet Score 100
  • £50 application fee
  • First Academic Reference
  • Second Academic Reference
  • Transcript
  • Statement of Interests. We expect a 2 page reflection on why you want to undertake the course, and how you see it will be useful in your future career. This can be fairly open ended, and we don't want to be too prescriptive about what you should write; however, as well as referring to personal achievements, you should also demonstrate an empathy with sustainable development issues.
  • Personal Reference. This is only required if you are applying for the Gates Cambridge Scholarship.
  • Global Education
  • Gates Cambridge Scholarships
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