Master of Science in Environmental Sanitation

General information

Growing awareness of the human impact on the environment has convinced most governments of the need to prevent air, water and soil pollution. Increasingly, sanitation of contaminated sites is becoming a priority target. Consequently, there is a strong and ever increasing demand for specialists trained in pollution prevention and remediation.

The Centre for Environmental Sanitation (CES) of Ghent University (UGent) has a long-standing reputation in the field of environmental education. Since 1971, this Centre has been offering a Dutch-language programme in Environmental Sanitation and Management, from which, to date, over 800 students have graduated. The CES also offers a two-year study programme in English, which leads to the diploma 'Master of Sience in Environmental Sanitation'.

In case you intend to apply for a VLIR-UOS scholarship, the first step of your application is to complete this pre-screening form on the VLIR-UOS website. Upon completion, please follow the further instructions given by VLIR-UOS.

Objectives

The general objective of the study programme is the education of environmental specialists with ample knowledge of (1) the concepts and issues associated with environmental pollution, (2) the detection and quantification of environmental contamination, (3) the possible impact of environmental pollutants on the ecosystems and biota, together with the current techniques for risk assessment, and (4) the available technologies for the prevention and remediation of environmental pollution and the way they are designed and applied in practice.

The study programme is structured around the following topics:

The courses of the first year cover a variety of disciplines related to environmental sciences and technologies. These include biology, microbiology, ecology, toxicology, environmental chemistry, environmental technology and engineering.  As graduates end up in various domains in their professional lives, they get the opportunity to specialize in a particular field during the second year, depending on the choice of the major (soil, water, air) and the dissertation subject, which needs to be linked to the major selected

International Dimension

The Master Programme in ’Environmental Sanitation’ has been set up with the explicit aim to offer advanced training to an international audience, and is therefore entirely taught in English. Although the study programme can be attended by all students interested in environmental problems in an international context, the programme has always focussed on the specific situations, cases and issues in developing countries. The aim has always been to train environmental specialists from different nationalities, and thus to contribute to an improvement of the quality of life in their countries. This international dimension is also an important asset, as the frequent contacts and common activities enhance the students’ social skills.

The large majority of students are non-European. They mainly originate from Asia, Africa and, to a lesser extent, from Latin America. Because of its good international reputation, also students from OECD countries, Central and Eastern Europe occasionally register for the programme.

It is worth mentioning that some of the lecturers also have teaching assignments in developing countries.

Admission Criteria

Language Requirements

The applicant must be proficient in the language of the course or training programme, i.e. English. Command of the English language is a very important criterion for admission. With the exception of those who have a diploma (Secondary Education, Academic Bachelor Degree, Master Degree) issued by an institution officially recognized by the Flemish Government, applicants must be able to prove their proficiency in English. There are 5 possibilities to supply this proof:

Nota Bene:

Entry Conditions

Applicants must have a Bachelor's degree in exact or applied sciences of minimum 3 years with good overall scores (at least a second class or equivalent, preferably higher) from a university or recognized equivalent.

Specific Academic Admission Criteria for the Environmental Sanitation programme

Each application will be evaluated by a board of admission of the specific programme and has to be approved by the Faculty Council and by the Rector’s office.

Adequate knowledge of mathematics, physics and chemistry at university level is an absolute requirement and will be deduced from the curriculum of the completed university studies which has to be included in the application. Previous knowledge of biology, microbiology and/or soil science is an advantage but not a requisite.