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Humanitarian Engineering (MSc/PGDip/PGCert/PGA) (2022 Entry)

About this taught graduate course

Course overview

Humanitarian Engineering is the use of science and engineering to invent, create, design, develop, or improve technologies that promote the wellbeing of communities facing grand humanitarian challenges.

Humanitarian Engineering spans a broad range of disciplines and is ideal for students who are looking to explore all the professional and disciplinary facets of humanitarian challenges.

The Postgraduate Award, Certificate and Diploma are specially designed to support professional development for those already working in the field or interested in humanitarian engineering. Making time for work, family, and friends is important, so take advantage of our flexibility.

Each module runs over one week, meaning study can fit in around other commitments and is tailored to your personal interests or development requirements. You can select from as few as 2 modules, up to 8 modules, depending on the award you complete.

Postgraduate Award (30 credits)

Select any combination of core (excluding Research Project) and optional modules for 30 credits (2 modules).

Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert) (60 credits)

Take any combination of core modules (excluding Research Project) for 60 credits (4 modules) or any combination including a maximum of 30 credits of optional modules.

Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) (120 credits)

Complete all core modules (excluding Research Project) for 90 credits, and any combination of optional modules for 30 credits (2 modules).

Skills from this degree

  • Equipped to think and work in a problem- and solution-oriented way across the professional and disciplinary facets of humanitarian challenges
  • Have a broad perspective and the ability to communicate with parties of different backgrounds
  • Enhance critical thinking, reasoning and analytical abilities which are sought after by multilateral development institutions (e.g. World Bank, IMF, United Nations), NGOs and the private sector (e.g. professional services, manufacturing, and investment banking) or academia

General entry requirements

Minimum requirements

2:i undergraduate degree (or equivalent), ideally in Engineering, Science, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Humanities, Business or Medical Sciences, although we will consider graduates of all disciplines.


English language requirements

You can find out more about our English language requirements. This course requires the following:

  • Band A
  • IELTS Band of 6.5 or more overall, with a minimum writing score of 6.5 and no other subsection below 6.0.

International qualifications

We welcome applications from students with other internationally recognised qualifications.

For more information, please visit the international entry requirements page.


Additional requirements

There are no additional entry requirements for this course.

Core modules

Humanitarian Engineering: Ethics, Theory and Practices

This module is an introduction to humanitarian engineering viewed from ethical, cultural, and practical perspectives. It is designed to enable you to reflect upon the history and meaning of Humanitarianism and Humanitarian Engineering.

An Introduction to Global Health

The module aims to give you a comprehensive knowledge and critique of key global health issues. You will be introduced to the global burden of disease and the social determinants of health.

Water and Environmental Management

The main aim of this module is to present a global topic such as water in its so you can discover, research and experiment the great potentialities of an interdisciplinary approach to the matter.

One Humanity; Shared Responsibility

The international community is expecting that we come together and tackle global challenges from poverty to gender quality and climate change, and to create a better world for future generations. Now it is time to turn promises into action for this generation, and uphold people’s safety, dignity and the right to thrive.

The Agenda for Humanity outlines five core responsibilities in which we must take collective action. One of the core responsibilities is 'Leave no one behind'. It is our responsibility and commitment to transform the lives of those most at risk of being left behind. This means reaching everyone and empowering all women, men, girls and boys to be agents of positive transformation. It means reducing displacement, supporting refugees and migrants, ending gaps in education and fighting to eradicate sexual and gender-based violence and increasing disaster management.

Urban Resilience, Disasters and Data

This intensive module is aimed at introducing the topics of disaster risks and urban resilience with emphasis on the use of innovative digital technologies to gather and analyse urban data for improving disaster resilience. It approaches, theoretically and practically, the main issues involved in disaster resilience and the way in which social media, mobile technologies and the web 2.0 are related to our collective experience of disasters and crisis events.

By means of a practical project and potential fieldwork conducted in the city of Coventry, you will learn how to collect urban data using open-source mobile data collection software (OpenDataKit), process and analyse this data with Geographic Information Systems (QGIS) and produce interactive digital maps to visualise urban aspects related to disaster resilience.

Renewable Energy

This module aims to impart an advanced understanding of the principles of modern renewable energy technologies, including biofuels from a variety of sources, wind power, solar energy, geothermal, ocean and hydro power and ethical and practical considerations. The particular focus will be given to the limitations and restrictions in developing countries.

You will gain a diverse theoretical understanding of the future and current renewable technologies for power production, evaluate the fundamental principles underlying the energy production/conversion and interrogate the social and environmental impacts of renewable energy technologies.

Project

You will study projects individually or as a group depending on your choice, guidance provided by the module leader and discussions with potential project supervisor. The group projects aim to give you experience of working within a team, and parallels the way teams formed with people with different background to tackle challenging projects similar to project teams formed in real life situations. Individual projects will be more focussed on in-depth studies in line with your interests and in line with the supervisor’s expertise. Projects are proposed by academics, industry partners or students.


Optional modules

(One chosen from List A and one chosen from List B)

List A:

  • Humanitarian Law (optional core)
  • Sustainable Cities and Infrastructures for Emergencies
  • Sustainable Operations and Humanitarian Supply Chains
  • Mindful Project Management
  • Industrial Ecology and Sustainable Engineering

List B:

  • Design Thinking for Social Impact
  • Challenges to Global Food Security

Read more about the core and optional modules offered on the Humanitarian Engineering website.

Teaching

Each module will run intensively over 5 days (normally in 1 week or spread over 2 weeks) and will be taught by a variety of methods: seminar, lecture, field research, flipped classroom.


Class sizes

Core modules are up to 30 students; optional modules vary between 5-15 students and seminars typically average around 15-20 students.


Typical contact hours

Contact hours vary from 24 to 30 hours per module, per week.


Assessment

The core modules are assessed in a variety of ways including essay, poster, presentation, artefact, student-devised assessment, video, report, blog.


Reading lists

Most departments have reading lists available through Warwick Library. If you would like to view reading lists for the current cohort of students you can visit our Warwick Library web page.


Your timetable

Your personalised timetable will be complete when you are registered for all modules, compulsory and optional, and you have been allocated to your lectures, seminars and other small group classes. Your compulsory modules will be registered for you and you will be able to choose your optional modules when you join us.

Your career

A degree in Humanitarian Engineering will leave you well-placed to work with governments (e.g. ministries of finance, rural development, and education), multilateral development institutions (e.g. World Bank and United Nations), NGOs and the private sector (e.g. professional services and investment banking). You may also decide to pursue PhD studies.

Our department has a dedicated professionally qualified Senior Careers Consultant offering impartial advice and guidance together with workshops and events throughout the year. Previous examples of workshops and events include:

  • Warwick careers fairs throughout the year
  • Working for More than Profit sector event and careers fair
  • Careers in the Creative Industries sector event
  • Centrally run careers workshops including CVs, applications, interviews and assessment centres

You can also contact the Humanitarian Engineering Department to arrange a visit or email hum dot eng at warwick dot ac dot uk to arrange a meeting in person or via video conferencing.

Humanitarian Engineering

Think Differently. Do Differently.

An exciting new course designed for students of all disciplinary and professional backgrounds.

Bringing together the expertise and insight of multiple disciplines to discover new and innovative solutions to the world's most pressing problems.

Learn more about us by visiting our website.


Our Postgraduate courses

Tuition fees

Tuition fees are payable for each year of your course at the start of the academic year, or at the start of your course, if later. Academic fees cover the cost of tuition, examinations and registration and some student amenities.

Taught course fees  Research course fees


Fee Status Guidance

The University carries out an initial fee status assessment based on information provided in the application and according to the guidance published by UKCISA. Students are classified as either Home or Overseas Fee status and this can determine the tuition fee and eligibility of certain scholarships and financial support.

If you receive an offer, your fee status will be stated with the tuition fee information, however we are awaiting guidance from the UK government regarding fee status for EU, other EEA and Swiss nationals and their family members living in the UK for academic year 2021/22 onwards. We are not able to confirm the fee status for these students until the relevant eligibility criteria have been confirmed. Once we have received further information from the UK government, we will provide you with an update on your fee status and let you know if any additional information is required. If you believe your fee status has been incorrectly classified you can complete a fee status assessment questionnaire (follow the instructions in your offer) and provide the required documentation for this to be reassessed.

The UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) provides guidance to UK universities on fees status criteria, you can find the latest guidance on the impact of Brexit on fees and student support on the UKCISA website.


Additional course costs

Please contact your academic department for information about department specific costs, which should be considered in conjunction with the more general costs below, such as:

  • Core text books
  • Printer credits
  • Dissertation binding
  • Robe hire for your degree ceremony

Scholarships and bursaries

Scholarships and financial support

Find out about the different funding routes available, including; postgraduate loans, scholarships, fee awards and academic department bursaries.

Living costs

Find out more about the cost of living as a postgraduate student at the University of Warwick.

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Taught course applications

Here is our checklist on how to apply for taught postgraduate courses at Warwick.

Research course applications

Here is our checklist on how to apply for research postgraduate degrees at the University of Warwick.

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