Entry requirements

Masters (MSc) level entry applicants must have one of the following:

Minimum of 2:2 honours degree or equivalent academic qualification in a related subject area
For postgraduate conversion courses, non-related degrees will be considered
Corporate (or chartered) membership of relevant professional institutions will also be considered

Candidates who do not meet the above entry requirements or have no formal academic qualifications will be considered individually based on their CV and possibly interview. Admission via this route will be at the discretion of the Director of Recruitment.

Recognition of Prior Learning

We are committed to providing study opportunities to applicants who have a wide range of prior experiences through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). For more information on RPL, please contact the Admissions Team (studywithus@hw.ac.uk) ahead of application. We can only consider requests for RPL at the time of application to a course of study.

Months of entry

September

Course content

MSc Subsurface Energy Systems equips you with the knowledge and skills to manage geoenergy resources in a holistic, safe, and cost-effective manner. It will appeal to science and engineering graduates or those of you from a different numerate academic background who are interested in the management of subsurface reservoirs used to switch from a fossil fuel-driven economy to a decarbonised one.

You’ll address key concepts in subsurface energy and CO2 storage, geothermal energy or transitional gas while integrating geoscience, engineering, and political and societal aspects into your learning. You’ll consider geoenergy resources, the application of technologies to geoenergy management, and ethics relevant to professional engineering practice. You’ll integrate theory and practice, and learn relevant statistical, scientific, and economical skills.  

This career-focused master’s programme will develop your technical, scientific, and managerial abilities, relevant for a career in academia, industry, government and non-governmental organisations.

Our expertise

Your learning will be informed by experts in geoenergy engineering and applied geoscience from our Institute of GeoEnergy Engineering at the Edinburgh campus, part of Heriot-Watt’s School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society. The School is one of the United Kingdom’s leading institutions for multidisciplinary research and teaching in areas critical to economic development and societal equity.

You’ll also benefit from teaching and research at the Lyell Centre, a leading centre in earth, marine and ecosystem sciences, and a collaboration between the British Geological Survey and Heriot-Watt University.

Finally, you will experience guest lecturers from industry who share best-practices and real-world case studies.

The research relevance of this postgraduate programme ensures your studies remain innovative and industry focused. 

Information for international students

If your first language is not English, we'll need to see evidence of your English language ability.

The minimum English language requirement for entry to this programme is IELTS 6.0 (or equivalent) with no score lower than 5.5.

If you do not have IELTS 6.0, we offer a range of English language courses to help you meet the English language requirement for this programme prior to commencing your studies.

Please see our detailed English language requirements.