Sustainable Energy MSc - 2024/5

Awarding body

University of Surrey

Teaching institute

University of Surrey

Framework

FHEQ Levels 6 and 7

Final award and programme/pathway title

MSc Sustainable Energy

Subsidiary award(s)

Award Title
PGDip Sustainable Energy
PGCert Sustainable Energy

Modes of study

Route code Credits and ECTS Credits
Full-time PFJ61003 180 credits and 90 ECTS credits
Part-time PFJ61004 180 credits and 90 ECTS credits

QAA Subject benchmark statement (if applicable)

Other internal and / or external reference points

N/A

Faculty and Department / School

Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences - Chemistry and Chemical Engineering

Programme Leader

AMINI HORRI Bahman (Chst Chm Eng)

Date of production/revision of spec

11/12/2024

Educational aims of the programme

  • To prepare students to address complex energy challenges toward net-zero transition through interdisciplinary skills and practical management principles.
  • To equip students with the knowledge and skills required to understand the current challenges in energy systems, identify the appropriate technological solutions to deploy sustainable energy systems, and appreciate the prioritisation of proposing viable, practical, and long-lasting solutions toward the energy sector.
  • To focus on sustainability, employability, and the UN SDGs, we foster resilience, digital capability, and a professional workforce that could direct impactful changes to achieve a sustainable economy with secured energy resources.

Programme learning outcomes

Attributes Developed Awards Ref.
To understand the key concepts of renewable energy sources and the requirements of sustainable energy conversion devices applied in the ¿net-zero¿ transition and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). KC PGCert, PGDip, MSc
To recognise, describe, and suggest appropriate modern sustainable energy storage, distribution, and demand side flexibility technologies for developing a more resilient and energy-secured economy. KC PGCert, PGDip, MSc
To develop skills for applying appropriate methods to analyse, develop, and assess smart systems operating based on renewable and sustainable energy sources. KCP PGDip, MSc
To apply state-of-the-art knowledge to design and size various storage and conversion technologies for renewable energy sources. KCP PGDip, MSc
To demonstrate knowledge, understanding, and ability to quantify the performance and efficiency of sustainable energy systems based on the socio-economic energy impacts, project financial performance, and marketing principles. KCPT MSc
To strengthen a range of transferable skills that are relevant to the needs of existing and future professionals in knowledge-intensive industries, irrespective of their sector of operation. KCPT MSc

Attributes Developed

C - Cognitive/analytical

K - Subject knowledge

T - Transferable skills

P - Professional/Practical skills

Programme structure

Full-time

This Master's Degree programme is studied full-time over one academic year, consisting of 180 credits at FHEQ level 7. All modules are semester based and worth 15 credits with the exception of project, practice based and dissertation modules.
Possible exit awards include:
- Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits)
- Postgraduate Certificate (60 credits)

Part-time

This Master's Degree programme is studied part-time over two academic years, consisting of 180 credits at FHEQ level 7. All modules are semester based and worth 15 credits with the exception of project, practice based and dissertation modules.
Possible exit awards include:
- Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits)
- Postgraduate Certificate (60 credits)

Programme Adjustments (if applicable)

N/A

Modules

Year 1 (full-time) - FHEQ Level 7

Module Selection for Year 1 (full-time) - FHEQ Level 7

FEBRUARY START - FULL TIME
First Semester (Semester 2 according to the University calendar) you will study TWO compulsory modules :
ENGM311 - Introduction to Renewable Energy Systems
ENGM313 - Sustainable Energy Storage and Distribution

And you will need to choose ONE of the following optional modules:
ENGM314 - Smart Energy Systems Design and Analysis
ENGM246 - Solar Energy Technology
ENGM265 - Sustainability and Infrastructure
ENGM303 - Nature Based Solutions in Environmental Engineering
ENGM299 - Environmental Aerodynamics and Wind Power
PHYM064 - Nuclear Energy and Applications

Second Semester (Semester 1 according to the University calendar), you will study ONE compulsory module:

ENGM312 - Economics and Policy of Sustainable Energy

And you will need to choose TWO of the following optional modules:

EEEM058 - Renewable Energy Technologies
ENGM310 - Foundations and Applications of Sustainable Development
ENGM245 - Solar Energy Technology
ENGM270 - Energy Geotechnics

You will also study the following compulsory modules:
ENGM321 - Group Project (Across Academic Year)
ENGM083 - Research Dissertation (PRISE) (Across Academic Year)

SEPTEMBER START - FULL TIME
First Semester you will study these TWO compulsory modules:

ENGM311 - Introduction to Renewable Energy Systems
ENGM312 - Economics and Policy of Sustainable Energy

And you will need to choose ONE of the following optional modules:

EEEM058 - Renewable Energy Technologies
ENGM310 - Foundations and Applications of Sustainable Development
ENGM245 - Solar Energy Technology
ENGM270 - Energy Geotechnics

Second Semester you will study the compulsory module:
ENGM313 - Sustainable Energy Storage and Distribution

And you will need to choose TWO of the following optional modules:
ENGM314 - Smart Energy Systems Design and Analysis
ENGM246 - Solar Energy Technology
ENGM265 - Sustainability and Infrastructure
ENGM303 - Nature Based Solutions in Environmental Engineering
ENGM299 - Environmental Aerodynamics and Wind Power
PHYM064 - Nuclear Energy and Applications

You will also study the following compulsory modules:
ENGM321 - Group Project (Across Academic Year)
ENGM083 - Research Dissertation (PRISE) (Across Academic Year)

Opportunities for placements / work related learning / collaborative activity

Associate Tutor(s) / Guest Speakers / Visiting Academics Y
Professional Training Year (PTY) N
Placement(s) (study or work that are not part of PTY) N
Clinical Placement(s) (that are not part of the PTY scheme) N
Study exchange (Level 5) N
Dual degree N

Other information

The School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering / Sustainable Energy is committed to developing graduates with strengths in Employability, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities, Sustainability, and Resourcefulness and Resilience. This programme is designed to allow students to develop knowledge, skills, and capabilities in the following areas:

Digital Capabilities:
Throughout the programme, students learn to navigate and utilise the Virtual Learning Environment at Surrey (SurreyLearn) and other digital resources and online databases to aid their learning and undertake research. Students are also introduced to and gain proficiency in specific digital tools, such as general modelling software MATLAB, renewables and process systems modelling software (HYSYS and Aspen+), and optimisation modelling software GAMS, which all assist in building their skills to deal with engineering problems, generate, analyse, and present data mainly by means of computer. Students are also encouraged to use current media such as Teams and utilise cloud/file sharing for communication and teamwork. Appropriate use of digital media and communication platforms is increasingly important for engineering practitioners, and through use and discussion, these students gain an awareness of their roles, plus their limitations and misuse, which can have a wider impact (e.g., on digital well-being).

Employability:
The programme is designed to equip students with all the core competencies required for an engineering professional in general and a professional in renewable and sustainable energy systems and industry in particular. Throughout the course, students will encounter real-life examples and problems to be prepared, solved and hence competitive in the job market. They will also be taught by and exposed to a variety of internal and external speakers, exposing students to the variety of specific roles and real-life cases engineers have in the workplace. The tasks and assessments undertaken across the modules are specifically chosen to equip students with knowledge and skills that are key to the role of modern and forward-looking engineers. Key to this, and underpinning everything through this programme, students develop the ability to appraise evidence critically and the appropriate application of this knowledge to specific individuals, groups, or populations, all in the course of development of new products or advancing research in a commercial world.

Global and Cultural Capabilities:
The programme is taught in an interactive and collaborative way in a cohort that commonly represents a wealth of nationalities and backgrounds. Students are encouraged to engage with and learn from diverse perspectives through interaction and teamwork. It is evident that main advances in engineering originate from cross-cultural studies, and differences between ethnic groups are explored and appreciated as key to understanding the interrelationship between various aspects of engineering: research, design, and operation. Students also develop an understanding of inequalities in the commercial world and the underlying causes of differences with an exploration of how the diversity of lived experience and culture can impact processes. Invited speakers contribute to diverse global perspectives on cutting-edge advancement in renewable and sustainable engineering and science as well as global effects.

Resourcefulness and Resilience
This programme requires practical problem-solving skills that teach a student how to reason about and solve new unseen problems, starting with a problem scenario and designing and developing a complex and practical solution to the problem. As such, students will have experience in taking an idea from concept through to implementation and evaluation in both as an individual and within a group. The Information obtained in the new modules, including Introduction to Renewable Energy, Policy and Economics, Sustainable Energy Storage, and Smart Energy Systems, is interrelated and closely complements the programme¿s objectives by providing a full picture of the sustainable energy systems from standalone systems design and device manufacture to process design, supply chain management, and market awareness. This programme¿s modules provide the necessary knowledge of analytical tools and approaches used to critically design, analyse, and evaluate efficient and modern energy systems.

Sustainability:
This is the flag-ship aspect of this programme provided from the introductory modules in renewable up to the advanced knowledge in smart systems, students begin to consider the foundations of sustainable engineering, science, and technology-related knowledge in the context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The sustainability aspects are directly involved in most of the modules in this programme. Broader aspects relevant to sustainability, including manufacturing processes, energy saving, storage and distribution, retail and impact on global resources and the environment, are topics that are addressed across the programme. Seminars and tutorials give students the opportunity to explore specific topical aspects of sustainability. In particular, students can choose optional modules dealing with current sustainability problems to further master and advance sustainability in the technology sector of their interest through the Dissertation topics and their optional Professional Placement Year.

Quality assurance

The Regulations and Codes of Practice for taught programmes can be found at:

https://www.surrey.ac.uk/quality-enhancement-standards

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2024/5 academic year.