Key information
- Level
- Postgraduate Taught
- Delivery type
- Full Time
- Degree qualification
- MSc
- Mode of delivery
- On-Campus
- Duration
- 1 year
- Location
- Edinburgh
- Start date
- September, January
MSc Subsurface Energy Systems equips you with the knowledge and skills to manage geoenergy resources in a holistic, safe, and cost-effective manner. It will appeal to science and engineering graduates or those of you from a different numerate academic background who are interested in the management of subsurface reservoirs used to switch from a fossil fuel-driven economy to a decarbonised one.
You’ll address key concepts in subsurface energy and CO2 storage, geothermal energy or transitional gas while integrating geoscience, engineering, and political and societal aspects into your learning. You’ll consider geoenergy resources, the application of technologies to geoenergy management, and ethics relevant to professional engineering practice. You’ll integrate theory and practice, and learn relevant statistical, scientific, and economical skills.
This career-focused master’s programme will develop your technical, scientific, and managerial abilities, relevant for a career in academia, industry, government and non-governmental organisations.
Your student experience
Your learning will be informed by experts in geoenergy engineering and applied geoscience from our Institute of GeoEnergy Engineering at the Edinburgh campus, part of Heriot-Watt’s School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society. The School is one of the United Kingdom’s leading institutions for multidisciplinary research and teaching in areas critical to economic development and societal equity.
You’ll also benefit from teaching and research at the Lyell Centre, a leading centre in earth, marine and ecosystem sciences, and a collaboration between the British Geological Survey and Heriot-Watt University.
Finally, you will experience guest lecturers from industry who share best-practices and real-world case studies.
The research relevance of this postgraduate programme ensures your studies remain innovative and industry focused.
Go Global
With Go Global, Heriot-Watt's global student programme, you can carry your studies to new places and experience new cultures, expanding your horizons on the way. You'll discover what it means to be a true global citizen and emerge prepared for wherever your career journey will take you.
Inter-Campus Transfer
Course content
September Intake - Edinburgh
Mandatory September
- Geothermal Energy
- Transitional Gas
- Reservoir Characterisation
- Subsurface Gas Storage
Mandatory January
- Fluid Mechanics, Reactive Transport and Heat Flow
- Geomechanics
- Reservoir Geophysics and Monitoring
- Environmental Risk, Policy and Economics of Geoenergy Applications
Mandatory May
- Individual Project
- Integrated Group Project
January Intake - Edinburgh
Mandatory January
- Geomechanics
- Environmental Risk, Policy and Economics of Geoenergy Applications
- Reservoir Geophysics and Monitoring
- Fluid Mechanics, Reactive Transport and Heat Flow
Mandatory September
- Geothermal Energy
- Transitional Gas
- Reservoir Characterisation
- Subsurface Gas Storage
Mandatory Second January
- Individual Project
- Integrated Group Project
Programme Video
Subsurface Energy Systems
Fees and funding
| Status | Full Time |
|---|---|
| UK | £13,000 |
| International | £29,960 |
- Status: Your residency status is usually defined as the country where you have been ordinarily resident for the three years before the start of your course.
- International: 'International' includes applicants from European Union countries who do not hold Pre-Settled or Settled status in UK. (This does not include students from the Republic of Ireland - see above).
Additional information
Note: the fees indicated above will apply if you begin your studies in September. If you choose to join us in January instead, the fees below will apply.
January 2025 intake tuition fees
| Status | Full Time |
|---|---|
| UK | £15,112 |
| International | £29,960 |
- Status: Your residency status is usually defined as the country where you have been ordinarily resident for the three years before the start of your course.
- International: 'International' includes applicants from European Union countries who do not hold Pre-Settled or Settled status in UK. (This does not include students from the Republic of Ireland).
Scholarships and bursaries
Postgraduate scholarships and bursaries
We aim to encourage well-qualified, ambitious students to study with us and we offer a wide variety of scholarships and bursaries to achieve this. Over £6 million worth of opportunities are available in fee and stipend scholarships, and more than 400 students benefit from this support.
Entry requirements
We have standard entry requirements for all of our courses that you will have to meet.
Masters (MSc) level entry applicants must have one of the following:
- Minimum of 2:2 honours degree or equivalent academic qualification in a related subject area
- For postgraduate conversion courses, non-related degrees will be considered
- Corporate (or chartered) membership of relevant professional institutions will also be considered
Candidates who do not meet the above entry requirements or have no formal academic qualifications will be considered individually based on their CV and possibly interview. Admission via this route will be at the discretion of the Director of Recruitment.
Recognition of Prior Learning
We are committed to providing study opportunities to applicants who have a wide range of prior experiences through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). For more information on RPL, please contact the Admissions Team (studywithus@hw.ac.uk) ahead of application. We can only consider requests for RPL at the time of application to a course of study.
Why Heriot-Watt
We're the top university in Scotland for graduate outcomes which means that more of our graduates are employed or in postgraduate education than any other institution in the country and we ranked 5th in the UK.
We're also rated number one in the UK for CEO or MD roles, meaning more of our graduates go on to become CEOs or MDs than any other university in the whole of the UK. On top of that, we have beautiful campuses, across the globe, so you'll get a truly international education. Our Edinburgh Campus is home to Oriam, Scotland's National Sports Performance Centre combined with plenty of wellbeing resources, prioritising fitness and mental health for all students. Our Global Research Institutes look at solving real world issues such as climate change and saving our oceans as well as working on the next medical technological breakthrough and the future of AI and robots.
Employability
Our MSc will prepare you for a wide range of career opportunities in many different sectors including: Traditional oil and gas sector, Emerging geothermal industry, Wider energy sector, Government agencies and regulating bodies, Non-government organisations (NGOs), General technical consultancies, and Academia.
Student life
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