Sustainable Development Forbairt Inbhuanaithe

Sustainable Development is at the heart of environmental, social and economic policies being developed and enacted by business, state and NGOs. This course, which includes the option to undertake a work placement, provides a broad knowledge and understanding of sustainable development including the issues, techniques and management relevant to the living and working environment.

Aims

• The course aims to provide graduates with the skills and ability to interpret principles of sustainable development and translate these into policy responses.
  
  
• Each course entrant brings an expertise based on prior learning and or work experience. The MSc Sustainable Development is structured to build on and deepen your knowledge and allow you apply the principles and practices of sustainable development in your own field of expertise or employment.
• The course also offers you the chance to deepen your knowledge in chosen areas of energy, environment, community development or planning.

The course normally requires an Honours Bachelor Degree in any relevant discipline at 2.2 grade or higher, or equivalent. 

Applications will be assessed based on your academic grades and may also take into account your work/life experience. Eligible candidates may be interviewed where work / career experience is being considered in lieu of academic qualifications.

If English is not your first language you will need to provide evidence of your English language proficiency as detailed on our website. Applicants for this course should have a minimum IELTS (Academic Version) English Proficiency of 6.5 overall (or equivalent) with nothing less than 6 in each component.

MSc in Sustainable Development graduates have gained employment in a wide range of posts in Irish and International enterprises, the public sector, and in the community and voluntary sector. Often students seek or get employment with the skills they developed in their primary degree but with the added advantage of having an in depth understanding of the process and application of sustainable development to environmental, economic or social sectors. With work placement and a suitable research dissertation you could develop the skills needed to help focus your career in a sector that is of particular interest to you. Past students have gone on to find employment in a diverse range of organisations and positions, including: 

• Boltz Sustainability Founder Dublin
• Green Schools, Green Travel Education Officer
• Sustainability Consultant, Paris Community Liaison Officer, EirGrid
• Greenlight Training, Sustainability Manager
• Green Campus Education Officer Meinhardt Group,
• Environmental Engineer PWC, Sustainability Manager
• Greenstreets, Environmental Sustainability Manager
• Danske Bank, Consultant
• Programme Manager at An Taisce
• Project Manager, DCU Ryan Academy for Entrepreneurship
• Marketing Officer at Codema - Dublin's Energy Agency
• Corporate Responsibility Consultant, Business in the Community
• Sustainable Urban Mobility Specialist at UN Habitat
• EU Energy Policy Advisor at Greenpeace, Bruss els
• Client Manager at The Carbon Trust

The MSc in Sustainable Development full-time programme runs over 15 months at the TU Dublin city campus.

Lectures take place on Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays in semesters 1 and 2. Mondays and Tuesdays are reserved to facilitate work placement (where students elect to undertake this); self-directed learning associated with the course modules, and dissertation research.

To complete the programme students are required to take six mandatory 5-credit modules and two mandatory 10-credit modules.   Students must also choose three elective modules (most of which are delivered in semester 2).

Students have to complete a mandatory 25-credit dissertation, as part of their masters studies.  This is submitted in October following semester 2 (to facilitate data collection and research over the summer period). 

Irish and citizens of the EU have the option to do the programme on a part-time basis over 2 years. Part-time students are required to complete a minimum of 25 mandatory credits (which must include at least one 10-credit module), plus a minimum of 5 elective credits in stage one.  The research and dissertation modules can only be commenced in stage two.

The course is structured to provide a first semester of foundation, understanding and applied modules, which give all candidates the most current thinking about the core topics of sustainable development in the areas of Environment, Society and Economy. Students select a research topic for their dissertation in semester 1 and do a module on research techniques.

An elective European study tour (Sustainability and Public Policy in a European Context) takes place during semester 2.  This provides opportunities to visit and experience examples of best practice within Europe. The itinerary for the tour is prepared by the students, and a limited amount of funding may be available to meet travel costs.

Work Placement is an optional part of the course. Assuming a student opts to do a work placement, the student is required to source their own placements.

The second semester includes a range of elective modules that will help students to develop expertise in particular aspects of sustainable development. Students are required to select 3 modules, worth 5-credits each, from the suite of modules available to the programme.

The following modules run in the first semester unless indicated otherwise: 

• Climate Change and Policy Analysis (10-credits)
• Ecology and Sustainable Development
• Economy and Sustainable Development
• Environmental Law and Institutions II
• Social Economy Enterprise Development (10-credits; semester 1 & 2)
• Society and Sustainable Development
• Spatial Planning and Sustainable Communities (elective)
• Sustainability in Business
• Research Techniques (semester 1 & 2)
• Dissertation (semester 1 & 2)

Semester 1

• Climate Change – policy analysis [Mandatory]
• Dissertation [Mandatory]
• Ecology [Mandatory]
• Economy and Sustainable Development [Mandatory]
• Envt. Law & Institutions II [Mandatory]
• Progress & Placement [Mandatory]
• Research Techniques [Mandatory]
• Society and Sustainable Development [Mandatory]
• Spatial Planning and Sustainable Communities [Mandatory]
• Sustainability in Business [Mandatory]
• Sustainable Development and Public Policy in a European Context [Mandatory]

• Social Economy Enterprise Development [Elective]

Semester 2

• Sustainable Development and Public Policy in a European Context [Mandatory]
• Dissertation [Mandatory]
• Progress & Placement [Mandatory]
• Behavioural Change and Active Travel [Elective]
• Biodiversity and Nature Conservation [Elective]
• The Nature of Nature [Elective]
• Project Management [Elective]
• Environmental Design & Management [Elective]
• Local Governance, Development. & Innovation [Elective]
• Placemaking [Elective]
• Housing Policy & Practice [Elective]
• Introduction to Sustainable Transport & Mobility [Elective]
• Collaborative Planning [Elective]
• Awareness and promotion of sustainability [Elective]
• Social Economy Enterprise Development [Elective]

• 15 months: 3rd week in September to mid-October of following academic term
• Structure: Lecture programme 30% of total annual hours allocation
• Work Experience: 20% of total annual hours allocation
• Study hours: 50% of total annual hours allocation

Click on the link below to view an indicative timetable for this course. Timetables are subject to change and up to date timetables will be provided to students on commencement.

View Sample Timetable

Applications for this course are now open.

• September 2026 Intake: Apply Now – EU Applicants (Autumn 2026)

Please note applications are closed for Non-EU applicants.

For further information on the application process, please visit How To Apply.