MSc Climate Change
Overview
There is a pressing national and international need to understand the nature and consequences of climatic change and develop adaptation strategies. The UCL Climate Change MSc Programme provides rigorous scientific and vocational training for the next generation of climate change professionals. You will learn about the Earth System (atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, lithosphere) alongside the nature and causes of climate variability and change.
The Programme combines empirical climate and environmental science with state of the art modelling, specifically concerning understanding the impacts of climate change. It seeks to place climate change within the context of broader anthropogenic environmental change and social policy.
The course will give you the ideal foundation for PhD research or employment with a wide range of private industries, NGOs, government agencies and environmental consultancies.
Structure
The MSc Climate Change Programme is a one year full-time course. You will study four core modules in the first term (autumn), giving you a solid foundation in the fundamentals of climate science. In term two (spring), you will choose four advanced courses from a range of options. At the end of the course, you carry out a piece of original research leading to a dissertation of up to 12,000 words (worth 60 credits) with the support of an academic supervisor.
COMPULSORY MODULES (Term One)
| Module code | Module title | UCL Credit value |
|---|---|---|
| GEOG0044 | Mitigation and Adaptation to Environmental Change | 15 credits |
| GEOG0109 | Models in Environmental Science | 15 credits |
| GEOG0118 | Climate Dynamics | 15 credits |
| GEOG0120 | Past Climates | 15 credits |
COMPULSORY MODULES (TERM Two)
| Module code | Module title | UCL Credit value |
|---|---|---|
| GEOG105 | Research Project and Dissertation (Terms 2 and 3) | 60 credits |
OPTIONAL MODULES (Term Two)
The four optional modules are normally, but not exclusively, chosen from the following list. Due to sabbaticals and staff changes, not all modules run every year, with module availability subject to change. Please contact the course convenor if you have questions about a specific optional module.
| Module code | Module title | UCL Credit value |
|---|---|---|
| GEOG0035 | Environmental GIS | 15 credits |
| GEOG0067 | Surface Water Modelling | 15 credits |
| GEOG0083 | Politics of Climate Change | 15 credits |
| GEOG0101 | Ocean Circulation and Climate Change | 15 credits |
| GEOG0112 | Climate Change Impacts to Hydro-ecological Systems | 15 credits |
| GEOG0113 | Terrestrial Carbon: Modelling and Monitoring | 15 credits |
| GEOG0121 | Climate Modelling | 15 credits |
| GEOG0122 | Biological Indicators of Environmental Change | 15 credits |
| GEOG0123 | Climate Proxies | 15 credits |
| GEOG0152 | Introduction to Citizen Science and Scientific Crowdsourcing | 15 credits |
Students studying the MSc Climate Change Programme undertake a Dissertation (worth 60 credits) from May to September. We enjoy strong links with industry professionals, meaning the projects our students carry out are commonly in collaboration with organisations outside the University. Combined with the wide range of expertise available in the Department and across UCL, this leads to a significant variety of possible topics for investigation.
People
 Chris Brierley Chris convenes the MSc Climate Change Programme. His research revolves around the use of earth system models to answer questions about past and future climate change. His ongoing work for the Palaeoclimate Model Intercomparison (Climate of the Past, 2020) forms part of the past climate community's contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change's 6th Assessment Report. |
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 Jon French Jon directs the Coastal and Estuarine Research Unit. His research interests extend across coastal, estuarine and lacustrine environments and mainly concern the dynamics of coupled natural, socio-economic and engineered infrastructure systems and their resilience to geohazards and climate change. He has expertise in hydrodynamic and physical process modelling, data-driven 'machine learning' methods, and behavioural system modelling. |
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Chronis Tzedakis Chronis is a pioneer in the study of long terrestrial sequences. His work has included documenting the response of vegetation to orbital- and millennial-scale climate variability and the importance of glacial tree refugia as museums and cradles of biodiversity. His research has shed light on when interglacials occur and how long they last, contributing toward an extended Milankovitch theory of ice ages. |
 Helene Burningham The central aim of Helene's research is to explain coastal behaviour, system dynamics and mechanisms of forcing over decades and centuries. In particular, she is exploring the relative importance of intrinsic system control versus external climate forcing on the geomorphology and morphodynamics of coastal sedimentary systems.
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Sam's research interests are at the interface of business, science and the environment, with a particular focus on weather and climate. His recent research focuses on the development of 19th century weather-related insurance and histories of climate policies.
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Pushpa Arabindoo is a Co-Director of the UCL Urban Laboratory where she leads the priority theme of Wasteland. With an undergraduate degree in Architecture, an MSc in Urban Design and a PhD in Planning, her work assumes an interdisciplinary approach to urban studies, drawing on everything from engineering and natural sciences to humanities and the social sciences. Her research is set in the Indian city of Chennai where she has investigated a range of issues from middle-class activism to subaltern politics and ecological imaginaries around nature, water and waste. |
 David Thornalley David is Deputy Chair of the Physical Geography MSc programmes and Deputy Director of the London Natural Environment Research Council Doctoral Training Programme (NERC DTP). His research investigates the role of the ocean in the climate system, with his work revealing the exceptional nature of industrial era changes in Atlantic circulation and ecosystems. |
 Richard Taylor Richard's research seeks to inform sustainable, safe water supplies in low-income countries. From 2009 to 2018, he led an International Association of Hydrologists (IAH) Commission on Groundwater and Climate Change and is a contributing author to two chapters of the IPCC's 6th Assessment Report, Water Cycle Changes and Africa. |
 Philip Lewis The main focus of Philip's research is monitoring vegetation using Earth Observation methods. In his own work, and that of his research group, he has built a focus on developing and applying new methods in this area. His key emphasis is on moving the field from loose empirical correlations to making use of physically-based models. |
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Viv uses fossils preserved in lake sediments to infer recent and Holocene environmental changes in environments from Madagascar to Svalbard. She has investigated the effects of pollution in Scotland, carbon burial in Greenland and biodiversity changes in Russia. She is an expert in the identification of diatom algae and enjoys teaching how these fossils can be widely used to reconstruct past environments. |
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Jonathan is the Director of the Environmental Change Research Centre. His research is concerned with the reconstruction of late Pleistocene and Holocene climates using lake sediments, abrupt climate change, human–climate interactions and data-model comparisons. He has authored over 100 publications and supervised/co-supervised over 20 PhD students. |
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Professor of Physical Geography - Hydrology and Wetlands Julian's research includes the investigation of hydrological functioning and numerical modelling in wetland environments. This has predominantly, but not exclusively, involved freshwater ecosystems. His work has focused on the wider catchment hydrological context and the links between wetland hydrology and ecology. In addition, his research investigates the impacts and associated uncertainties of climate change and anthropogenic activities on wetlands, river basins and water resources. |
Fees and funding
Applications
You can apply for a place on this Programme via UCL Admissions.
Potential applicants are expected to have a First or Upper Second Class Honours degree in a relevant discipline (e.g. Environmental Science, Geography, Oceanography, Biology, Chemistry or Engineering) from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.
Applicants with relevant professional experience in aquatic science or environmental management will also be considered.
Formal qualifications in mathematics are not a prerequisite for entry to the programme but students are expected to have an aptitude for mathematical studies and, if necessary, to undertake revision prior to the start of the programme. Academic enquiries may be emailed to the Geography Department.
International applicants will need a Level 4 or equivalent recognised English language qualification. Visit the UCL Graduate pages for information on UCL’s English Language Requirements. To find out if your degree is recognised by UCL please contact UCL Admissions.
Careers
The careers our graduates go onto from this Programme are diverse and include environmental consultancy, catastrophe modelling, government planning and PhD research. Take a look at our Careers page to see where some of our students have gone on to work.