Curriculum

The Master’s in Humanitarian Engineering consists of two years, in which you will collect a total of 120 EC. In each quartile of the first year, you will follow a set of courses (compulsory and elective) and a related, challenge-based learning project. The second year consists of elective space and ends with your final master’s thesis.

European Credit Transfer System

Student workload at Dutch universities is expressed in EC, also named ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System), which is widely used throughout the European Union. In the Netherlands, each credit represents 28 hours of work.

Structure

Year 1 Humanitarian Engineering
Compulsory courses	25 EC	Introduction to Humanitarian Engineering (Q1) Ethics & Science in Humanitarian Engineering (Q1) Humanitarian Aid Engineering (Q2) Resilience Engineering (Q3) Responsible and Sustainable Entrepreneurship (Q4)
Projects	20 EC	Each quartile, you will work on a challenge-based learning project that is closely linked to the course that you follow. This way, you can draw on the knowledge gained in that course. Project: Introduction to Humanitarian Engineering (Q1) Project: Humanitarian Aid Engineering (Q2) Project: Resilience Engineering (Q3) Project: Responsible and Sustainable Entrepreneurship (Q4)
Elective courses	15 EC	Some examples of electives you can choose from: Introduction to Disaster Risk and Data Drinking Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) for Improved Health Anticipating and Responding to Disasters Engineering Project Management Sustainability and Justice Design and Behaviour Change
Total EC first year	60 EC

Year 2 Humanitarian Engineering
Elective space What you will do in the first part of your second year, is up to you! There are three options to fill up your elective space.	15 EC	Option 1: Internship Gain practical experience in an internship of approximately 10 weeks.
		Option 2: Elective courses Choose three courses that match your interests and ambitions. There’s a wide range of pre-approved electives that you can choose from, also from other master’s at UT.
		Option 3: Elective course + Master-Insert Choose one elective course and enrol in the Transdisciplinary Master-Insert at UT, where you will work on complex societal challenges with students from other master’s at UT.
Master's thesis	45 EC	You will spend the last semester of your Master’s on graduating by writing your master’s thesis. The compulsory Research Proposal course (5 EC) helps you prepare for your master’s thesis project.
Total EC second year	60 EC

Internship

During your Master’s in Humanitarian Engineering, you have the option to go on an internship for approximately 10 weeks. It is a great way to gain practical experience and get acquainted with field work. There are many options open to you when it comes to choosing your internship.

Examples of internships you could take on:

Designing the concept of a heat battery to supply required and more sustainable energy for off-grid schools in Madagascar at JiroVe, a start-up by a UT graduate.
Improving a physical learning space design fulfilling the educational needs of risk youth at the Tumaini Innovation Center in Kenya.
Designing and developing a plastic-to-bricks system in Ghana in collaboration with the Engineers without Borders Netherlands.

Master’s thesis

The last semester is mainly dedicated to your master’s thesis. The choice of your graduation subject is largely up to you. You can also choose to conduct your thesis externally, at an NGO for example, related to a project on location. The compulsory Research Proposal course helps you prepare for your master’s thesis project.

Your master’s thesis could involve undertaking projects such as:

Mapping criteria for flood resilient housing and measuring of flood resilience for different types of housing designs in Nepal;
Developing a teleoperating robot for landmine neutralisation (provided by LMAC);
Optimize the design and functionality of Infectious Disease Treatment Modules by improving the interior layout and transparent screen technology (provided by the World Health Organisation).