Curriculum for the Master of Science (MSc) Programme in Sustainable Energy Engineering 2020

1: Preface

Pursuant to consolidation Act 778 of August 7, 2019 on Universities (the University Act), the following is established. The programme also follows the Joint Programme Regulations  and the Examination Policies and Procedures for Aalborg University.

2: Basis in Ministerial orders

The Master’s programme is organised in accordance with the Ministry of Higher Education and Science’s Order no. 20 of January 9, 2020 on Bachelor’s and Master’s Programmes at Universities (the Ministerial Order of the Study Programmes) and Ministerial Order no. 22 of January 9, 2020 on University Examinations (the Examination Order). Further reference is made to Ministerial Order no. 153 of February 26, 2020 (the Admission Order) and Ministerial Order no. 114 of February 3, 2015 (the Grading Scale Order).

3: Campus

The programme is offered in Esbjerg.

4: Faculty affiliation

The Master’s programme falls under The Faculty of Engineering and Science, Aalborg University.

5: Study board affiliation

The Master’s programme falls under Study Board of Build, Energy, Electronics and Mechanics in Esbjerg

6: Affiliation to corps of external examiners

The Master's programme is affiliated to the nationwide engineering examiners corps: Ingeniøruddannelsernes landsdækkende censorkorps.

7: Admission requirements

Applicants with a legal claim to admission (retskrav):

• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Energy Engineering, Aalborg University, campus Esbjerg

Applicants without legal claim to admission: 

Students with the following Bachelor’s Degrees might be admitted to the Master of Science (MSc) in Engineering (Sustainable Energy Engineering) with the specialisation in Offshore Energy Systems:

• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Energy Engineering, Aalborg University, campus Aalborg (with the specialisation in Mechatronics)
• Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Sustainable Energy Engineering, Aalborg University (with the specialisation in Mechatronics)
• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Applied Industrial Electronics, Aalborg University, campus Esbjerg
• Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Mechatronics, University of Southern Denmark (SDU), campus Sønderborg

Students with the following Bachelor’s Degrees might be admitted to the Master of Science (MSc) in Engineering (Sustainable Energy Engineering) with the specialisation in Process Engineering and Combustion Technology:

• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Energy Engineering, Aalborg University, campus Aalborg (with the specialisation in Thermal Energy)
• Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Sustainable Energy Engineering, Aalborg University (with the specialisation in Thermal Energy)
• Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Mechanical Engineering, Aarhus University, campus Aarhus

All applicants without a legal claim must prove that their English language qualifications is equivalent to level B (Danish level) in English.

8: The programme title in Danish and English

The Master’s programme entitles the graduate to the Danish designation Civilingeniør, cand.polyt. i bæredygtig energiteknik med en specialisering i Proces- og Forbrændingsteknik or Civilingeniør, cand.polyt. i bæredygtig energiteknik med en specialisering i Offshore Energisystemer. The English designation is: Master of Science (MSc) in Engineering (Sustainable Energy Engineering) with a specialisation in Process Engineerng and Combustion Technology or Master of Science (MSc) in Engineering (Sustainable Energy Engineering) with a specialisation in Offshore Enerhy Systems.

9: Programme specifications in ECTS credits

The Master of Science programme is a 2-year, research-based, full-time study programme taught in English. The programme is set to 120 ECTS credits.

10: Rules concerning credit transfer (merit), including the possibility for choice of modules that are part of another programme at a university in Denmark or abroad

The Study Board can approve that passed programme elements from other educational programmes at the same level replaces programme elements within this programme (credit transfer).

Furthermore, the Study Board can, upon application, approve that parts of this programme is completed at another university or a further education institution in Denmark or abroad (pre-approval of credit transfer).

The Study Board’s decisions regarding credit transfer are based on an academic assessment.

11: Exemptions

The Study Board’s possibilities to grant exemption, including exemption to further examination attempts and special examination conditions, are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studieservice.aau.dk/regler-vejledninger

12: Rules for examinations

The rules for examinations are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studieservice.aau.dk/regler-vejledninger

13: Rules concerning written work, including the Master’s Thesis

In the assessment of all written work, regardless of the language it is written in, weight is also given to the student's formulation and spelling ability, in addition to the academic content. Orthographic and grammatical correctness as well as stylistic proficiency are taken as a basis for the evaluation of language performance. Language performance must always be included as an independent dimension of the total evaluation. However, no examination can be assessed as ‘Pass’ on the basis of good language performance alone; similarly, an examination normally cannot be assessed as ‘Fail’ on the basis of poor language performance alone.

The Study Board can grant exemption from this in special cases (e.g., dyslexia or a native language other than Danish).

The Master’s Thesis must include an English summary. If the project is written in English, the summary can be in Danish. The summary is included in the evaluation of the project as a whole.

14: Requirements regarding the reading of texts in a foreign language

It is assumed that the student can read academic texts in modern English and use reference works, etc., in other European languages.

15: Competence profile on the diploma

The following competence profile will appear on the diploma:

A Candidatus graduate has the following competency profile:

A Candidatus graduate has competencies that have been acquired via a course of study that has taken place in a research environment.

A Candidatus graduate is qualified for employment on the labour market based on his or her academic discipline as well as for further research (PhD programmes). A Candidatus graduate has, compared to a Bachelor, developed his or her academic knowledge and independence so as to be able to apply scientific theory and method on an independent basis within both an academic and a professional context.

16: Competence profile of the programme

The graduate of the Master of Science programme has the following qualifications:

Knowledge 

• Knowledge about the state of the art of research within their field of specialisation
• Knowledge on a scientific basis to reflect over subject areas related to sustainable energy engineering and identify scientific problems of different types within that area
• Knowledge about and insight into publication ethics in research
• Knowledge about the ethics related to the social, economic and environmental impact of research
• Knowledge and comprehension within innovation and entrepreneurship in relation to project work and courses
• Advanced skills in probability theory and statistics, control theory and simulation technique

In addition, students have the following knowledge:

• The specialisation in Process Engineering and Combustion Technology:
  • Advanced knowledge and comprehension within process and combustion systems including conversion, consumption and transport of energy and advanced thermal and fluid systems
  • Understanding of the design, modelling, simulation and optimisation of process and combustion systems used in various energy conversion applications
  • Understanding of the detailed operation, functionality and interactions between the various components of key thermal energy conversion technologies
  • Detailed insight in system integration with respect to both system efficiency and control aspects of energy systems
     
• The specialisation in Offshore Energy Systems:
  • Advanced knowledge and comprehension within offshore systems
  • Understanding of the design, analyses, modelling, simulation and diagnosis of offshore energy systems used in various energy production applications
  • Comprehension of the detailed operation, functionality and interaction between the various components used in offshore systems, including knowledge about fluid mechanics and flow systems, water wave dynamics, electrical machines and mechanics
  • Detailed insight in system integration with respect to both system efficiency and control engineering aspects of offshore energy systems

Skills

• Be proficient in the scientific methods, tools and general skills related to employment within the subjects of sustainable energy engineering
• Be able to obtain advanced skills in simulation techniques and mathematical methods
• Be able to evaluate and select among the scientific theories, methods, tools and general skills of the subject area(s) and, on a scientific basis, develop new analyses and solutions
• Be able to communicate research-based knowledge and discuss professional and scientific problems with both peers and non-specialists
• Be able to obtain skills which are related to his/her field within sustainable energy engineering
• Be able to use advanced laboratory test set-ups and data collection, storing and processing methods
• Have experience with the application of e-learning methods

In addition, the different specialisations have the following skills:

• The specialisation in Process Engineering and Combustion Technology:
  • The ability to develop, construct and understand the operation of thermal energy conversion systems in the laboratory and in real applications
• The specialisation in Offshore Energy Systems:
  • The ability to construct and understand the operation of offshore systems in the laboratory and in real applications

Competences

• Be able to demonstrate an understanding of research work and be able to become a part of the research environment and perform oral and written scientific communication
• Be able to manage work and development in situations that are complex, unpredictable and require new solutions within the area of energy engineering
• Have project manager and project management experience
• Be able to independently initiate and implement discipline-specific and interdisciplinary cooperation and assume professional responsibility, also with external partners
• Be able to work with different kinds of projects like discipline oriented, cross-disciplinary projects, multi projects (where several groups within the department are working together on a larger project, solving different parts of the project) and MEGA projects (where groups from several departments are involved in a large project contributing each within their specific area for a total solution).
• Be able to independently take responsibility for own professional development and specialisation and be able to collaborate in groups according to the PBL Model

Upon completion of the MSc programme, the student has achieved advanced professional competences in production, distribution and the usage of electrical, thermal and/or mechanical energy together with design and control, modelling and simulation of energy or mechatronic systems. The competences should advance the student’s ability to perform in functions within planning, development, consulting and research in Danish as well as international industries or public institutions. Examples could be research and development departments or managing positions in energy supply companies, wind, machine, or process industry together with electro-technical and consultancy companies, etc.

17: Structure and Contents of the programme

The programme is structured in modules and organised as a problem based study. A module is a programme element or a group of programme elements, which aim(s) to give students a set of professional skills within a fixed time frame specified in ECTS credits, and concluded with one or more examinations within the specific exam periods. Examination formats are defined in the modules of the present curriculum.

The programme is based on a combination of academic, problem oriented and interdisciplinary approaches and organised on the following types of instruction that combine skills and reflection:

• lectures
• project work
• workshop
• exercises (individually and in groups)
• e-learning in different ways such as flipped class-room, blended learning, game or quiz, etc.
• teacher feedback
• reflection
• portfolio work study circle
• self-study

1st to 4th semesters of the programmes are taught in English and projects are to be written in English.

The structure of the Master of Science study programme is shown in the following figure

Background (Objective of 1st semester)

The objective of the 1st semester at the Master of Science study programme in Sustainable Energy Engineering is to prepare the students to follow one of the two specialisations offered:

• Process Engineering and Combustion Technology
• Offshore Energy Systems

For students with a bachelor’s degree from another university an introductory 1st semester is mandatory (called INTRO semester), in which a basic course is taught to familiarize the students with Problem Based Learning, besides the engineering courses belonging to the specialisation. Furthermore, an extra course in Control Theory and Matlab is held for the INTRO semester students.

Content (Project work on 1st semester)

For students with a Bachelor’s Degree from Aalborg University
The students are required to acquire knowledge about scientific English, and the project work will be documented by a scientific paper, a summary report, a poster and a presentation at a conference, all in English.

For Students with a Bachelor’s Degree from another university (INTRO semester)
Here the focus is on the problem based, project organised learning method used at Aalborg University. The students will write a project report documenting their project work. The students must attend “Project Based Learning and Project Management” to gain knowledge about the problem based teaching method used at Aalborg University.

18: Overview of the programme

All modules are assessed through individual grading according to the 7-point grading scale or Passed/Not passed. All modules are assessed by the supervisor/lecturer together with an external examiner  (external assessment) or with an additional examiner (internal assessment).

INTRO modules: For international students only.

3rd semester: The student may follow a relevant study as a guest student (30 ECTS) at another university in Denmark or abroad, see details in Moodle. However the student’s special preferences for the semester must be approved by the Study Board in advance.

Instead of doing the project work and the elective courses, the student can do a project-oriented study in an external organisation as an individual or as a part of a group. See details in Moodle. However the student’s special preferences for the semester must be approved by the Study Board in advance.

Elective courses on 3rd semester MSc

In addition to the project work, the students should choose 10 ECTS courses on the 3rd semester MSc. The Study Board of Energy offers a portfolio of various, elective courses covering the technical aspects for the thermal and offshore specialisations with reference to well-defined research programmes which reflect the current research focus of the Department of Energy Technology. Each year the Study Board of Energy selects a number of the courses below to be announced as the year’s elective courses (6 to 10). Based on the number of students assigned to each of these courses, 2 to 6 courses will be taught covering broadly all specialisations. 

The elective courses approved by the Study Board of Energy are given in the following overview.

Courses from other specialisations at Aalborg University or from other universities might be relevant too. Nevertheless, the courses must be approved by the Study Board of Energy in advance.

"System Identification and Diagnosis" is taught to the 1st semester MSc students at the Offshore Energy Systems specialisation and therefore 3rd semester MSc students of the Offshore Energy Systems specialisation cannot elect the module as an elective module.

19: Additional information

All students, who have not participated in Aalborg University’s PBL introductory course during their Bachelor’s degree, must attend the introductory course “Problem-based Learning and Project Management”. The introductory course must be approved before the student can participate in the project exam. For further information, please see the module description.

The current version of the study curriculum is published on the Aalborg University website for study curricula and the Study Board's website.

Additional information about semester descriptions is available in Moodle. Moodle provides study-related information, i.e. course descriptions, course literature, timetables and information about activities and events.

20: Commencement and transitional rules

The curriculum is approved by the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Science and enters into force as of September 2020 for all new, enrolled students.

The Study Board does not offer teaching after the previous curriculum from 2017 after the summer examination 2021.

The Study Board will offer examinations after the previous curriculum, if there are students who have used examination attempts in a module without passing. The number of examination attempts follows the rules in the Examination Order.

21: Amendments to the curriculum and regulations

November 20 2020: the Pro-dean of Education has approved changes to the examination form of the module "Biomass Conversion and Biofuels". The exemption is valid from September 2021.