Environmental Science and Engineering

Overview

What is Environmental Science and Engineering?

Environmental Science and Engineering is a new integrated undergraduate with postgraduate degree course that aims to train the next generation of graduates who have the competencies, knowledge and experience necessary to design and deploy solutions that protect and improve our environment and human wellbeing, and that work with rather than against the natural world to foster biodiversity, climate action and sustainable use of Earth’s finite resources

Students complete an integrated five-year course consisting of four year B.Sc. plus an additional year of study leading to either Master in Engineering (Studies) a M.A.I. (St.) or Master in Applied Environmental Science MAES.

Environmental Science and Engineering: The course for you?

The course will provide students with fundamental grounding in the natural sciences and engineering, and in the applied skills required to develop sustainable solutions for major societal and environmental challenges. The unique combination of engineering and natural sciences modules represents one of the first in Ireland and internationally. Strong emphasis is placed on students acquiring practical laboratory and field skills, as well as working in teams.

Environmental Science and Engineering at Trinity

This new integrated degree programme is delivered through the expertise of two Schools (School of Natural Science and the School of Engineering).

The School of Natural Sciences conducts research, and delivers teaching, on all aspects of the natural world, from the formation of the earth, the behaviour of the environment, the evolution and ecology of its organisms and its interactions with human society.

Trinity’s School of Engineering is ranked in the top 100 engineering schools in the world and offers outstanding teaching by Engineers who are at the forefront of their field worldwide. The School of Engineering is a vibrant, intellectual community of innovative researchers, teachers and students, which combines high-quality teaching with expansive research activity.

Graduate skills and career opportunities

Environmental Engineers and Applied Environmental Scientists who graduate from this new interdisciplinary programme will address some of the most challenging and important issues of our time in terms of sustainable development, particularly with respect to the protection of the environment. Graduates will have a strong grounding in Environmental Science in conjunction with applied Engineering skills and problem solving approaches and will therefore be at the forefront of initiatives to solve the challenges of many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Graduates from this programme will be highly skilled and employable in both industrial and governmental organisations both here in Ireland as well as overseas. Recent graduates from the Civil Engineering stream who have specialised in Environmental Engineering are working in R&D, Civil Engineering and Environmental Consultancies, Project Engineers, Environmental Regulation, Energy companies, mining companies as well as setting up new ventures and spin outs.

Our environmental engineers and scientist graduates are also working in the design and development of environmental solutions with leading engineering consultancies such as Arup, RPS, ESB International, Shell, IBM etc. Such companies have a strong demand for high quality graduates at the Masters (and Ph.D.) level due to the high technical level off their work. Environmental Engineers and scientists also find employment in governmental regulatory organisations and other institutions such as Local Authorities, Environmental Protection Agency, Geological Survey Ireland, Teagsac as well in Humanitarian Non-Governmental Organisations (Concern, GOAL, Selfhelp Africa).

Your degree and what you’ll study

Drawing on the expertise of the School of Engineering and the School of Natural Science at Trinity, this programme focuses on delivering a research-inspired, outcome-based educational experience to students.

Students complete an integrated five-year course consisting of four year B.Sc. plus an additional year of study leading to a M.A.I. (St.) or MAES. During the first three years a balanced and integrated programme of modules in environmental science and engineering is provided.

Following completion of the first three years of the course, students start to follow a more specialised programme in one of the following strands, although there is still many shared courses and projects between the two strands:

Environmental Engineering

This strand of the Environmental Science and Engineering course places stronger emphasis on modules and project work with an engineering focus in years 4 and 5.

Applied Environmental Science

This strand of the Environmental Science and Engineering course places stronger emphasis on modules and project work in the discipline of environmental sciences in years 4 and 5.

In Year 4, students have the option to undertake an Industry Internship or International Exchange in their chosen stream. These options include Erasmus, UNITECH (as a paid industrial partnership) and CLUSTER. Alternatively, a student can stay for the full year in Trinity and undertake a Capstone Project module which aligns with their chosen stream, in addition to at least 2 optional modules associated with their chosen stream. Following completion of the fourth year of the environmental science and engineering degree course it is anticipated that most eligible students would elect to complete one further year of study in their chosen strand leading to a M.A.I. (St.) or MAES degree.

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Assessment

This new course will be delivered through laboratory practicals, lectures and field work which includes international trips. The course has been designed to embed a diverse array of assessment approaches across the entire 5 year programme. These include summative and formative assessment approaches, peer assessment, group assessment, self- assessment and more conventional continuous and exam assessment methods.

Study abroad and language options

Students who spend the first semester of fourth year in Trinity may then spend the second semester on an industrial placement where they complete an industry-based project. Students following this mode will have two project supervisors: a staff member of the host company, to provide day-to- day guidance whilst on placement as well as liaison with Trinity and a member of Trinity’s academic staff. Alternatively, students who have chosen the Environmental Engineering route may opt to spend the fourth year on the Cluster/Unitech programme in a partner University, or on an Erasmus exchange as per existing M.A.I. (St.).

Students who have chosen the Applied Environmental Science route may opt to spend the fourth year on an Erasmus exchange. The Erasmus programme will build on a current shared programme run by the Schools of Natural Sciences and Engineering.

Due to the multi-disciplinary, inter-school nature of the course with its essential foundation courses in both natural sciences and engineering taken in the freshman years, we are not in a position to consider applications for Advanced entry to the Environmental Science and Engineering course.