Environmental Policy

Please note the accredited version of this programme, MSc Environmental Policy (W271) is a ‘Specialist Degree’ accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) in the UK and is only available to UCD internal students progressing from UCD’s Planning, Geography and Environmental Policy degree or UCD's City Planning & Environmental Policy degree. All other eligible applicants should apply for the alternative non- accredited version of the programme MSc Environmental Policy (W269).



Societies, governments, and businesses across the globe are faced with increasingly complex environmental challenges, in areas such as climate change and adaptation and local environmental quality in our cities and regions. The UCD MSc in Environmental Policy arms graduates with the capacity to develop environmental policy choices, analyse them critically, and to provide guidance in regard to their implementation and evaluation. The programme introduces graduates to research-based economic and environmental tools and insights to enable graduates to be effective change management leaders and management leaders and environmental and sustainability experts in both the public and private sectors.



UCD Environmental Policy has an established international track record as a leading research centre in environmental policy and is in the Top 150 QS World University Rankings by subject area. Students may also chose to undertake either a thesis, an internship, or an academic research project during the Summer trimester.



Also for professionals who want to balance their passion for the environment while advancing their career this programme is offered as a two-year part-time degree (W580). The part-time program is scheduled to be completed over two years with one or two modules (10 credits per module) per semester. Part-time students join the full-time students for the classes and hence can meet two cohorts of the full-time MSc programme.



Who should apply?

Full Time option suitable for:



Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes

International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. Yes



Part Time option suitable for:



Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes

International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. No

All students undertake 90 credits across a range of modules that help them develop foundational knowledge and skills in policymaking, and equip them to employ these new skills to manage a diverse range of contemporary environmental challenges. In addition to taught modules, students undertake a practice-based studio module, and can also pursue their own specialist interest through completion of a thesis, an internship, or an academic research project.



Stage 1 - Core

Tools for Sust Development ENVP40040

Environmental Economics & Climate Policy ENVP40100

Research for Environmental Pol ENVP40170

European Environmental Policy ENVP40180

Applications of Enviro Policy ENVP40190

Environment and Development ENVP40240



Stage 1 Options

Environmental Policy ThesisENVP40030

Internship - Research ProjectENVP40160

This programme is intended for applicants with a degree in any discipline such as social sciences and arts, environmental sciences, law, business studies or engineering.



An honours undergraduate degree (NFQ Level 8) with a minimum upper second class honours or international equivalence is required



Applicants whose first language is not English must also demonstrate English language proficiency of IELTS 6.5 (no band less than 6.0 in each element), or equivalent.



Students meeting the programme’s academic entry requirements but not the English language requirements, may enter the programme upon successful completion of UCD’s Pre-Sessional or International Pre-Master’s Pathway programmes. Please see the following link for further information http://www.ucd.ie/alc/programmes/pathways/



These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested for some programmes

How to apply?



The following entry routes are available:



MSc Environmental Policy (Accredited) FT (W271)

Duration 1 Years

Attend Full Time

Deadline Rolling*



MSc Environmental Policy FT (W269)

Duration 1 Years

Attend Full Time

Deadline Rolling*



* Courses will remain open until such time as all places have been filled, therefore early application is advised

1 year full-time or 2 Years Part Time

Next Intake: 2024/2025 September.

Career & Graduate Study Opportunity

To date, our graduates have been very successful in gaining employment in environment related fields in a diverse range of public, private and NGO organisations. Past graduates are now working for a number of agencies both nationally and internationally including private (e.g. Samsung Electronics; Wisetek; Citi Bank; AWN Consulting; EnvEcon; Irish Water), public bodies (e.g. Department of Public Expenditure and Reform; Dutch Ministry for Foreign Affairs) and NGO organisations (e.g. Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice; Plant life Economy Foundation; Amazon Environmental Research Institute Brazil; publicpolicy.ie; Global Action plan Ireland), in a range of environmental positions (e.g. environmental consultants; policy officers; researchers; climate officers; environmental justice officers). Our graduates have also gone on to pursue further study (PhDs).