Masters degrees in Safety Engineering equip postgraduates with the skills to build structures safely and effectively, through the development of safe materials and engineering procedures.
Taught MSc degrees are typical for the field, though research oriented MRes and MPhil programmes may be available at some institutions. Entry requirements normally include an undergraduate degree in a relevant Engineering subject.
You can study this programme either full time on campus, part time, or online to fit flexibly around work commitments.
Whilst Safety and Reliability Engineering allows you to apply your skills and knowledge to a wider range of industries, this programme is specifically for the oil and gas industry. It provides you with the knowledge to review reliability of engineering facilities, materials and products and legislative framework at the same time. Safety has always been of paramount concern in the oil and gas industry with a lot of learning and knowledge acquired since the oil industry growth of the 1970s. This knowledge has been scrutinised by University of Aberdeen and the industry to provide professional expertise to manage safety and reliability. Future challenges are being met to some extent by the advent of affordable sensors which manage difficult to reach places, but nonetheless require the knowledge and capabilities of professionals working in this discipline to ensure they are fit for purpose.
The MSc Safety Engineering for Oil & Gas programme provides training in safety engineering, reliability engineering, and loss prevention in the offshore, nuclear, transport, aerospace and process industries and more. Fully accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE), the Institute of Highway Engineers (IHE) and the Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT).
Semester 1
Semester 2
Semester 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
There is also on online delivery
There is also an Online delivery of this programme
Find out about international fees:
Find out more about fees on the programme page
*Please be advised that some programmes also have additional costs.
Fees for Online delivery
*Please be advised that some programmes have different tuition fees from those listed above and that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the programme page and the latest postgraduate opportunities
Find out more about:
Find out more about living in Aberdeen and living costs
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
You can study Safety and Reliability Engineering for Oil and Gas flexibly from anywhere in the world as this delivery is online. You can fit this programme around your work and other commitments part time.
Whilst Safety and Reliability Engineering allows you to apply your skills and knowledge to a wider range of industries, this programme is specifically for the oil and gas industry. It provides you with the knowledge to review reliability of engineering facilities, materials and products and legislative framework at the same time. Safety has always been of paramount concern in the oil and gas industry with a lot of learning and knowledge acquired since the oil industry growth of the 1970s. This knowledge has been scrutinised by University of Aberdeen and the industry to provide professional expertise to manage safety and reliability. Future challenges are being met to some extent by the advent of affordable sensors which manage difficult to reach places, but nonetheless require the knowledge and capabilities of professionals working in this discipline to ensure they are fit for purpose.
The MSc Safety Engineering for Oil & Gas programme provides training in safety engineering, reliability engineering, and loss prevention in the offshore, nuclear, transport, aerospace and process industries and more. Fully accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE), the Institute of Highway Engineers (IHE) and the Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT).
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
Find out about international fees:
Find out more about fees on the programme page
*Please be advised that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the programme page and the latest postgraduate opportunities
Find out more about:
Find out more about living in Aberdeen and living costs
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
The Master of Safety Engineering will prepare you to improve and realise safety in many different areas. The programme trains you in prevention policy and safety management systems, the safety of products, processes, and installations, qualitative risk analysis techniques, and fire and explosion safety. You’ll obtain detailed knowledge of technical and managerial process safety concepts with regard to the whole life cycle of a production plant, and risk evaluations based on qualitative and quantitative methods.
The Master of Safety Engineering comprises a total of 60 credits. The programme consists of a group of common compulsory courses (23 credits) that are taken up by every student. This party contains courses with themes that are of interest to every safety professional, irrespective of the specialisation option. All courses in this part are taught in English. This relatively large core part ensures that every student is given the same broad basic education about the specialised field of safety.
After a general introduction to safety engineering, prevention policy and safety management systems are treated. Safety of products, processes and installations are discussed next and qualitative risk analysis techniques, fire and explosion safety complete this section.
Furthermore, students choose between one of two available options (22 credits each): Option Process Safety or Option Prevention. In turn, each option contains a number of compulsory courses (16 credits) and elective courses (6 credits).
The Option Prevention focuses on occupational safety and health-related issues. The compulsory courses in this option also discuss non-technical aspects concerning safety. This option is mainly of interest to candidates who want to obtain the Certificaat Preventieadviseur Niveau 1.
The Option Process Safety provides students with a detailed knowledge of technical and managerial process safety concepts with regard to the whole life cycle of a production plant from concept to design, construction and operation to decommissioning. Safety concepts of representative operational units are presented in a series of case studies. Examples of required safety oriented competences in industrial operations are also discussed. It is shown how risk evaluations and estimates based on qualitative and quantitative methods are performed.
Each student also needs to choose elective courses either from a short indicative list, or from any Master’s programme within the Group of Science, Engineering and Technology.
Finally, students have to complete a Master’s thesis of 15 credits, which represents an effort that is consistent with a programme of 60 credits in total.
The programme can be completed normally in one-year on a full-time basis. However, to facilitate the participation of working professionals, it can also be followed on a two year part-time basis.
After finishing this advanced Master's programme, the student should:
To carry out the programme's objectives, teaching activities consist of a combination of classroom lectures, practically oriented seminars and site visits. The instructors themselves come from the academic world both inside and outside K.U.Leuven, or have been recruited from reputable industrial companies because of their long-standing expertise and willingness to contribute to teaching and training.
In many countries, there is a permanent and growing need for scientists and engineers who are knowledgeable and trained at the academic level in the field of safety engineering and safety management. This is due to the increasing complexity of industrial production processes and the growing number of rules and regulations both in Europe and internationally.
Graduates of the Master of Science in Safety Engineering programme find employment in small national and large multinational industrial companies at home and abroad or are employed in private and/or governmental organisations. Such organisations need experts with the ability to conduct research, carry out analyses, and perform inspections, monitoring and certification in the broad field of safety.
Moreover, in some countries (including Belgium), companies beyond a certain size dealing with specific risks are required by law to hire or even employ a certified prevention advisor. This certification can be acquired through the Prevention option of the Master of Science in Safety Engineering (Certificaat Preventieadviseur Niveau 1).
It is also possible for graduates to begin a career as an independent consultant with expertise in safety and environmental areas.
The energy industry has historically provided immense rewards and immense challenges in terms of infrastructure development in very challenging environments. Over time there have been many learning points as a result of process which did not address the challenge sufficiently resulting in new standards of safety, assessing risk and managing the challenges presented in mineral extraction. The industry has come a long way since its inception in Aberdeen in the 1970s and globally and University of Aberdeen has acquired this knowledge and research to work with industry and train the next Safety and Reliability Engineers to continuously improve safety. This programme is highly regarded from a well known provider in the industry. You visit industry and receive technical lectures with practical sessions to provide further awareness of the responsibility involved in the energy industry.
The programme is ideal if you are from an engineering, physics or mathematics background but it is also relevant to you if you studied stress analysis and thermodynamics with experience from the industry. The added value of this programme is that you can apply the discipline to other industries such as nuclear, defence, transport, aerospace, manufacturing and process industries, making you more employable and allowing wider scope for career options at graduation.
Semester 1
Semester 2
Semester 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
or on campus delivery:
*• There is an online programme available from University of Aberdeen
Find out about fees:
*Please be advised that some programmes have different tuition fees from those listed above and that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the latest opportunities page
Find out more about:
Find out more about living in Aberdeen and living costs
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
Ever since the start of the oil and gas industry in the North Sea there safety has been a constant learning process within the industry to improve safety in all areas. It often informs other industries in terms of best practise knowledge which can provide useful learning to other industries.The knowledge gained in the North Sea has also been transferred to other sites globally to ensure risks are minimised when extracting energy. There are numerous risks associated with energy extraction such as the environment in which operators work in, failure in facilities and machinery, human factors which need process and safety factors designing in, and a very large ignition source. The energy industry can be one of the most hazardous industries to work in but due to the risks involved it can often provide a highly safe environment to work in due to the amount of measures in place to protect everything on site and that is where the discipline of Process Safety can ensure a very high level of safety in which to extract minerals.
If you want to become qualified in Process Safety Engineering and are from a Chemical Engineering background, or a Petroleum or Mechanical Engineering background but with good chemical/chemistry knowledge and you are interested in safety and process in this industry the programme will develop advanced skills in assessing risk, processes and analysis to continuously improve safety in the industry. The programme is offered in Aberdeen city in the heart of the oil and gas industry within Europe and often worldwide and it is informed by close links and support from the industry to ensure it is robust and relevant. Aberdeen has offered advanced knowledge and learning in this area since the inception of the oil and gas industry which cover the entire physical and business supply chain.
Semester 1
Semester 2
Semester 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
Find out about international fees:
Find out more about fees on the programme page
*Please be advised that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the programme page
Find out more about:
Find out more about living in Aberdeen and living costs
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
A crucial part of the oil and gas industry, energy and marine based industries, Subsea Engineering is an essential and highly trained area of work involving all discipline areas within Engineering. University of Aberdeen has gained an industry reputation in the energy industry which is located in the City due to extensive research and collaboration since the industry grew in the 1970s. This level of research and work within industry who also advise on many of the vocational/academic programmes at the University ensures a level of rigour which will carry you as a professional right throughout your career.
You combine technical knowledge with understanding of systems, types of risks, challenges in very hard to reach areas, integrity, inspection, maintenance, controls, flow assurance, reliability and mechanics of various structures and facilities. The industry continuously changes as more technology comes on board to support integrity and reliability issues, but the basics remain the same in requiring solid engineering skills, knowledge, analysis and problem solving ability.
Careers in this area can include: Analysis Engineer, Marine Contractor, Subsea Field Engineer, Subsea Installation Engineer, and similar positions in the energy industry. There are also other industries which involve Subsea Engineering and knowledge. You gain plenty of accreditations of professional standing as follows:
University of Aberdeen offers this programme on campus and online to allow some level of flexibility in studying from different locations. The University is highly regarded in the energy industry and offers programmes which are tailored to operations, facilities and professional management of the oil and gas industry. There are world renowned experts who teach on specific programmes at the University such as Energy Economics, MBA, Energy Law, Engineering, Geology and other subject areas such as strategic planning and risk management.
You can study both on campus or online.
Courses listed for the programme
Semester 1
Semester 2
Semester 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
*Please be advised that some programmes have different tuition fees from those listed above and that some programmes also have additional costs.
Find out more about fees
View all funding options on our funding database via the latest opportunities page
Find out more about:
Find out more about living in Aberdeen and Living costs
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
The programme is delivered on campus full time and online part time to give you flexible study options. If you want to join the growing companies operating in the subsea industry in Aberdeen or internationally or set up your own company this programme will provide you with a high level of technical training
The Master of Science in Subsea Engineering seeks to prepare highly-trained, highly-qualified, business-aware graduates that can make an immediate impact in their chosen career, and who can address the need for key skills in the subsea industry. Subsea Engineering at the University of Aberdeen has a unique relationship with the subsea industry both locally and internationally, and the programme receives contributions from local industrial organisations in terms of relevant and up-to-the minute contributions to teaching, and support in the specification of group and individual projects.
Aberdeen is the heart of the European oil and gas industry, an international hub for companies engaged in Subsea Engineering. A degree from the University of Aberdeen puts you in a unique position to develop business links alongside of learning and developing international skills within the flexible, modular programme.
Semester 1
Semester 2
Semester 3
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
There is also an online delivery of this programme
Find out about fees for campus delivery:
Find out about international fees:
Find out more about fees on the programme page
*Please be advised that some programmes also have additional costs.
Find out about online fees
*Please be advised that some programmes have different tuition fees from those listed above and that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the programme page and the latest postgraduate opportunities
Find out more about:
Find out more about living in Aberdeen and living costs
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
The programme is offered by the Fire Safety Engineering Research and Technology Centre (FireSERT), a centre which is internationally recognised for its leading edge research in the fields of fire dynamics, structural fire engineering, human behaviour in fire and fire modelling. The programme draws on the expertise and resources of the Centre in terms of teaching staff (with core teaching staff all actively involved in research) and experimental facilities. Students on the MSc programme have the opportunity to use Fire SERT's state-of-the-art facilities both within the taught programme and to progress experimental research projects which are often designed to complement current research projects being undertaken by staff. Students also have the opportunity to work closely with practitioners in the design module to develop a fire safety strategy for a real complex building.
The programme is a linked programme of awards leading to either a Post-Graduate Diploma (comprising eight taught modules) or MSc (eight taught modules plus Research Dissertation) in Fire Safety Engineering. In the PG Diploma programme (semesters 1 and 2) students will study compulsory modules in Heat Transfer and Thermofluids, Fire Dynamics, Structural Fire Engineering, Fire Engineering Laboratory, Active Fire Protection Systems, People and Fire and Fire Safety Engineering Design. Optional modules (to be taken in the 2nd semester) include Industrial Fire Safety and Computer Modelling in Fire Engineering.
Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE)
Accredited by the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) on behalf of the Engineering Council for the purposes of partially meeting the academic requirement for registration as a Chartered Engineer.
Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE)
Accredited by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) on behalf of the Engineering Council for the purposes of partially meeting the academic requirement for registration as a Chartered Engineer.
Accredited by the Energy Institute (EI) on behalf of the Engineering Council as meeting the requirements for Further Learning for registration as a Chartered Engineer. Candidates must hold a CEng accredited BEng/BSc (Hons) undergraduate first degree to comply with full CEng registration requirements.
There is strong demand for well educated fire safety engineers, and the majority of students will embark on a career within a fire safety engineering consultancy. Graduates from the Ulster course are also employed in other interesting and diverse careers in fields related to fire safety both in the UK and worldwide e.g. as regulators, fire safety officers in both the public and private sector, researchers in research and testing facilities, and fire brigade officers both in the UK and Europe. Opportunities also exist within the Fire Safety Engineering Research and Technology centre (FireSERT) for PhD studies in a wide range of fire science and engineering related topics.
The programme is a Recognised Educational Programme of the Institution of Fire Engineers. Students on this programme fulfill the academic requirements for Membership of IFE.
This programme is delivered online to allow you to study flexibly from remote locations and anywhere in the world with internet access. You can study this to fit around your lifestyle and study at University of Aberdeen in Aberdeen city, a university providing wide ranging programmes specifically for the oil and gas industry since the 1970s. You study with world renowned academics who have closely studied, consulted with and researched the oil and gas industry.
If you are interested in working in the oil and gas industry and you have a science or engineering background you might want to consider Oil and Gas Engineering at Master's degree level. This qualification takes you across the full life cycle of production and it contains quite a few employable elements and modules in themselves giving you a wide variety of skills and knowledge to take with you into employment. You will often work with other specialists on offshore drilling platforms and facilities recording information on drilling, researching the most productive areas, ensuring maintenance and health and safety and a constant flow from a well. You also oversee some of the decommissioning aspects to redundant equipment on site.
This is a highly skilled job with a lot of responsibility associated to it, and you receive excellent input from University of Aberdeen which has been teaching oil and gas related subjects since the inception of the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen since the 1970s. Aberdeen is known the world over for energy production out of Aberdeen city and academics have worked with industry to ensure that knowledge is relevant now and in the future. You study use of technology and management of energy innovation projects.
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
Find out about fees
Find out more about fees on the programme page
*Please be advised that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the programme page
Find out more about:
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
This is a flexible online programme which offers you a variety of study options to gain your MSc in Petroleum Engineering from as little as 36 months to a maximum of 72 months to complete with 10-12 hours of study per week on average. You can study this programme from anywhere in the world and it offers the same academic rigour you would expect if you were studying on campus at University of Aberdeen but you can fit it around a busy life, work, other responsibilities and much more.
If have an engineering, science or mathematics degree and you are considering work in the oil and gas industry worldwide Petroleum Engineering can provide you with a wide range of knowledge and skills within the upstream oil and gas extraction area. The programme mainly focuses on the skills you need to extract oil which can be the initial geoscience knowledge through to core analysis and reservoir engineering. Within reservoir and well engineering there are several areas of analysis, testing and development you then specialise in. This ensures you have a very robust approach to offshore production with the type of advanced skills to problem solve and troubleshoot different situations.
The programme also develops your skills in formation evaluation, simulation, and appraisal plus safe production and enhancing the recovery of hydrocarbon oil and gas. This programme is highly regarded in the industry internationally and it is recognised by all major players in the oil and gas industry. Careers can be anything from Drilling, Operations, Piping Specification, Production, Reservoir, Subsurface and Wellhead Engineer. The degree hold accreditation from the Energy Institute and Institute of Mechanical Engineers
Find out more detail by visiting the programme web page
Find out about international fees:
Find out more about fees on the programme page
*Please be advised that some programmes also have additional costs.
View all funding options on our funding database via the programme page and the latest postgraduate opportunities
You may be also interested in the campus delivery of this programme
Related Postgraduate Degrees
Other engineering disciplines you may be interested in:
Innovative design allows more interesting and functional architecture but challenges traditional concepts of fire safety. To respond to these demands takes specialist knowledge and advanced skills in engineering analysis.
This programme covers the fundamentals of fire science, including laboratory classes, fire safety engineering and relevant structural engineering topics, such as finite element methods.
You will gain knowledge of the critical issues in structural fire safety engineering, and an understanding of relevant fire and structural behaviours.
You will become familiar with performance-based approaches to design and have an awareness of the capabilities – and limitations – of relevant advanced modelling methods for structures and fire.
This programme is fully accredited by the Joint Board of Moderators (JBM)
Our Building Research Establishment (BRE) Centre for Fire Safety Engineering hosts bespoke equipment to support groundbreaking research and teaching, with combined thermal and mechanical loading and use of the latest image analysis techniques.
This programme is run over 12 months, with two semesters of taught courses followed by a research project leading to a masters thesis.
Semester 1 courses
Plus one of:
Semester 2 courses
Internationally, there is great demand for graduates in this field, with expertise in structural fire safety engineering particularly sought after as performance-based design expands. All of our previous graduates are in relevant employment, with the majority working in fire teams at engineering consultancies.
The International Master of Science in Fire Safety Engineering (IMFSE) is a two-year educational programme in the Erasmus+ framework.
This masters programme is jointly offered by the following three full partner universities:
Additionally, there are three associated partners where students can perform thesis research:
Classes in Edinburgh focus on fire dynamics, fire safety engineering and structural design for fire. Classes in Ghent have a more general fire safety engineering focus. Classes in Lund emphasise enclosure fire dynamics, risk analysis and human behaviour.
Our Building Research Establishment (BRE) Centre for Fire Safety Engineering hosts bespoke equipment to support groundbreaking research and teaching, with combined thermal and mechanical loading and use of the latest image analysis techniques.
IMFSE is very pleased to involved seven industrial partners as official sponsors. With their annual financial contributions, it has been made possible to create the IMFSE Sponsorship Consortium, which awards IMFSE students with full or partial scholarships. The current sponsors are:
The programme consists of four semesters each worth 30 ECTS credits. Changing study location after each semester lets you benefit from the expertise of each university.
Semester 1
Students choose to study at either Ghent or Edinburgh.
Ghent University:
And 9 ECTS credits from the following elective courses (subject to approval by the faculty):
The University of Edinburgh:
Semester 2
Lund University:
Semester 3
Students choose to study at either Ghent or Edinburgh.
Ghent University:
The University of Edinburgh:
Semester 4
The masters thesis can be completed at one of the three full partners universities, or at one of the three associated partners. The thesis work is supervised by at least one of the full partner universities.
We aim to train the next generation of leaders in this field; there is currently great demand for fire safety engineering graduates worldwide and graduates have gained relevant employment or enhanced career opportunities.
A fire safety engineer fulfils a broad range of duties, in various ways related to fire. This can range from designing fire protection for a space station, to protecting treasures such as the US Constitution, to safely securing the occupants of a high-rise building from fire hazards.
Fire safety engineers are in great demand by corporations, educational institutions, consulting firms, and government bodies around the world. You may find career opportunities in the following industries:
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