The MSc in Environmental Health Sciences has been designed to allow graduates from a range of science and engineering disciplines to develop and extend knowledge in risk-based assessment and management of environmental influences on human health.
Environmental health is the assessment and management of environmental influences on human health. This includes the study of:
- environmental protection including control of air, water and land pollution
- food safety and hygiene including production, distribution and fitness for human consumption
- occupational health and safety including investigation and control of work-related accidents and ill health
- the built environment including homes, workplaces and public spaces
Environmental health work is important and highly worthwhile and many of our students are motivated by a desire to directly improve living and working conditions for a wide range of people.
You'll develop expertise in current methods for examining factors that affect human health, assessing and managing the risks involved, and meeting the challenges resulting from changes in the interaction between people and the environment.
The wide scope of environmental health sciences and the corresponding breadth of the degree reflect rapid technological progress. Environmental impact assessment, sustainable development, air, water and noise pollution are increasingly important and there is a pressing need for graduates with skills in these disciplines.
This course also provides an emphasis on teaching subjects that are relevant to contemporary problems faced by communities, government, industry and commercial organisations.
For example, professionals from outside Strathclyde work together with academic staff and students in the teaching of case studies of outbreaks of water-borne and food-borne diseases and also in urban and industrial air quality management.
See the website https://www.strath.ac.uk/courses/postgraduatetaught/environmentalhealthsciences/
Teaching is based on a core of conventional lectures and tutorials, complemented by group projects, laboratory classes, student-led seminars and fieldwork. The programme can be studied over one year full-time, two years part-time or up to five years through Open Access.
On the full-time programme, you’ll follow a core curriculum of eight classes and four optional class. Each class is taught for two to three hours per week over eight to 12 weeks.
Following successful completion of the taught component, you’ll undertake a dissertation from June to August.
Our laboratory facilities are well-equipped for a wide range of chemical and biological measurements. High-technological instrumentation and space are available to investigate:
- marine and freshwater quality
- air quality
- solid and hazardous wastes
- environmental microbiology
The course is delivered by staff from the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering. The academic team includes:
- Dr Iain Beverland, programme manager of the MSc in Environmental Health Sciences. He has research & teaching interests in the areas of air pollution control, environmental epidemiology, exposure assessment, & public/environmental health. Current research includes study of the effects of exposure to air pollution on human health, with a focus on traffic-related air pollution in urban areas.
- Dr Tara K Beattie has expertise in the field of public health and the management of water and solid waste. Her research interests include free-living protozoa and their potential to cause human disease.
- Dr Raymond Wong has research and teaching interests in the areas of food laws (EU and UK), policies and compliance; food poisoning, contamination and prevention; and food safety management systems.
- Dr Christine Switzer specialises in contaminant fate, transport and remediation with emphases on non-aqueous phase liquids and aggressive remediation technologies.
Staff within the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering have engaged with developing Environmental Health training in Africa for almost 20 years.
This course is also offered via Distance Learning mode, which allow you to complete an MSc via online study at home, at a time that suits you. This means you can study while balancing your existing work and family commitments. This option is suitable for students located anywhere in the world. The MSc via Distance Learning is via part-time study over 3 years.
Home students can also choose to study through the Professional Development route. You register for one module at a time and have the option to build up credits eventually leading to a Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma or MSc. You can take up to five years to achieve the qualification. This option is popular with students in employment, who may wish to undertake modules for Continuing Professional Development purposes. Students who do not meet the normal MSc entry requirements for this programme are welcome to apply through this route instead.
Graduates in environmental health sciences are well prepared for a wide range of professions that require intellectual flexibility and analytical skill.
Many of our graduates have highly successful careers in environmental regulation, government departments, environmental consultancy, health and safety management, food industry, public water utilities, and waste management.
There is increasing recognition by employers in the private sector that graduates in environmental health have skills and backgrounds that are well suited to management roles in a range of related business activities, including the specialist field of corporate social responsibility.
Employers of Strathclyde Environmental Health graduates include:
AECOM; ACS Physical Risk Control Ltd; British Army; British Petroleum; Glasgow Caledonian University; GlaxoSmithKline plc; Health Protection Scotland; IBI Group Inc; International Atomic Energy Agency; Institute of Occupational Medicine; Malaysian Government; Maltese Government; Swaziland Department of Health; Logica plc; Malawi Government; National Health Service in Scotland; Ricardo AEA Ltd; Royal Bank of Scotland; Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland; Royal Navy; RPS Group Plc; Scottish Environmental Protection Agency; Scottish Government; UK Meteorological Office; University of Edinburgh; University of Glasgow; University of Strathclyde; World Health Organisation.
The MSc Environmental Health Sciences programme is not a pre-training programme for students wishing to become a local government Environmental Health Officer in Scotland through the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS) scheme of professional training.
Find information on Scholarships here http://www.strath.ac.uk/search/scholarships/index.jsp
This course will provide you with an in-depth knowledge of how to deliver effective modern water supply, sanitation and other public health interventions in urban and rural areas in low-income and transitional economies.
Aimed at consultants, and working professionals in national and local government, non-government organisations, international development organisations and public health agencies, it has a strong focus on developing practical and policy skills and addresses the critical future challenges of climate change, population growth and urbanisation. You’ll develop your understanding of technical interventions in water supply, sanitation and solid waste management.
Run in conjunction with the Nuffield Centre for International Health and Development, one of the UK’s preeminent public health research centres, and informed by research undertaken by our Institute for Public Health and Environmental Engineering, this programme will give you the knowledge and skills to identify and deliver investments that will have major benefits for health and development.
Institute for Public Health and Environmental Engineering
Our Institute for Public Health and Environmental Engineering is renowned worldwide for its pioneering work in developing countries. The institute undertakes research in all aspects of the built environment in which the presence of pathogens influences design, including water treatment, solid waste and airborne transmission of disease.
Staff teaching on this course have close working links with a number of key institutions in the field of international development, including UNICEF, the World Bank, the World Health Organization, the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council, WaterAid, World Vision, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the African Development Bank.
You’ll also benefit from using our specialist facilities, such as our public health labs with separate areas for solid waste, water and wastewater, and a class II microbiology lab and clean room. We have all the specialist software you’ll need for your programme, and you’ll have access to a dedicated study suite for Masters students.
This degree is accredited by the Joint Board of Moderators as meeting the requirements for Further Learning for a Chartered Engineer (CEng) for candidates who have already acquired a partial CEng accredited undergraduate first degree.
This course is also accredited by EUR-ACE, the European quality label for engineering degree programmes at Bachelor and Master level.
A series of compulsory modules will develop your knowledge and skills in a range of areas. You’ll gain an understanding of the wider issues surrounding public health around the world and how they impact on policy and practice, as well as current debates around the complex topics of health, equity and development understand how health policy is shaped and planned.
At the same time, you’ll be introduced to the principles and practice of public health engineering to bridge the gap between theory, policy and practice and explore key technologies in water supply, sanitation, wastewater and solid waste management. You’ll also consider engineering responses to complex emergencies, especially regarding the provision of water supply, sanitary services and shelter.
You’ll build your knowledge of technical issues in water resource and sold waste management, as well as natural wastewater treatment, and undertake an independent research project. Working with your supervisor, you’ll complete this research or design-based project during the summer months at the end of the programme to demonstrate the knowledge and skills you’ve gained.
Want to find out more about your modules?
Take a look at the 2016 Water, Sanitation and Health Engineering module descriptions for more detail on what you will study.
Compulsory modules
Our groundbreaking research feeds directly into teaching, and you’ll have regular contact with staff who are at the forefront of their disciplines. You’ll have regular contact with them through lectures, seminars, tutorials, small group work and project meetings.
Independent study is also important to the programme, as you develop your problem-solving and research skills as well as your subject knowledge.
You’ll be assessed using a range of techniques including case studies, technical reports, presentations, in-class tests, assignments and exams. Optional modules may also use alternative assessment methods.
This programme will equip you with a unique blend of civil engineering and public health policy skills.
As a result, you’ll be ideally placed to take up a senior position in public health ministries and public health departments in countries of the global south, or to work with international development agencies and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Graduates have gone on to work for organisations such as WaterAid Liberia/Sierra Leone, Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
You’ll have access to the wide range of engineering and computing careers resources held by our Employability team in our dedicated Employability Suite. You’ll have the chance to attend industry presentations book appointments with qualified careers consultants and take part in employability workshops. Our annual Engineering and Computing Careers Fairs provide further opportunities to explore your career options with some of the UK’s leading employers.
The University's Careers Centre also provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
A new degree launched by the University of Canberra, the Master of Ecological Public Health offers a unique approach to public health training in Australia and reflects the need for an interdisciplinary workforce with a broad range of both primary and specialised skills that extend beyond the traditional biomedical boundaries.
You can tailor your degree to meet your career preferences, whether it be in public or environmental health, urban planning, community development or health promotion and your professional research project, will allow you to fine-tune your skills in the development of health promotion and sustainable environments.
In this course, you will undertake a specialised research project as part of the Faculty of Health’s commitment to supporting work integrated learning, which will enhance your employability and ensure you’re armed with the right mix of skills and knowledge to take a super-confident leap into your future career.
Opportunities exist for Master of Ecological Public Health graduates in a range of sectors, including:
Food production has tripled in the last forty years, but one billion people still go hungry every year. On average 30% of all food produced is wasted in the pathway from ‘field to fork’. With the global human population set to rise from seven to over nine billion by 2050, we urgently need sustainable solutions that will allow us to increase the global food supply while preserving the integrity of agricultural and non-agricultural ecosystems.
Our trees and forests face new plant health threats which in turn threaten areas of great natural beauty and diversity, and affect both rural and urban landscapes. Our unique MSc Sustainable Plant Health will give you the opportunity to develop your understanding of the vital role of plant health, applying your skills by conducting laboratory and field studies.
This programme is primarily aimed at graduates wishing to pursue a career in plant protection in agriculture, horticulture, forestry or urban settings, and also careers in policy development and implementation, plant health inspection, academic and industrial research, consultancy and conservation management, and private industry.
Applicants who applied after 12 December 2016 receiving an offer of admission, either unconditional or conditional, may be required to pay a tuition fee deposit. Please see the fees and costs section for more information.
This 12 month programme involves two semesters of classes followed by an individual research project. Students will take 80 credits of compulsory courses, with the opportunity to choose two optional courses. Field trips will also form a crucial part of this course.
Compulsory courses typically will be*:
Option courses may include* (select two):
*Please note: courses are offered subject to timetabling and availability and are subject to change each year.
On completion of this course our graduates will have gained:
Plant health scientists are employed in a range of vocations: environmental consultancy, research, overseas development, agriculture, horticulture, forestry, urban planning, policy development, plant inspection and management. Long term career prospects are strong as agricultural scientists will continue to be needed to balance increased output with protection and preservation of ecosystems.
Our graduates will gain particularly valuable skills due to our programme's unique approach looking at impacts across ecosystems. They also benefit from the applied nature of the course allowing them to use their practical skills in a range of field trip environments with expert supervision.
