Key facts
Qualification
This course is closed for applications. Register your interest above for information on future intakes.
This module add-on is for alumni of the UCD Graduate Diploma in Design Thinking for Sustainability (60 ECTS) who wish to elevate their qualification to MSc level (90 ECTS). They can achieve this by completing a part-time module of 30 ECTS.
Upon successful completion of the 30 ECTS module, graduates will attain an MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability, a Level 9 (90 ECTS) UCD-accredited programme.
Delivery
In-person at UCD.
Monthly on Fridays, 9:30am to 16:30pm. See schedule of dates in ‘Course Structure‘ below.
Duration
Part-time over the Autumn (2024) and Spring (2025) Trimester
Start date: Monday 9 September (online only)
Entry Requirements
- Completion of the UCD Graduate Diploma in Design Thinking for Sustainability – submit your student number on a Word document when applying.
- Letter of motivation & CV
- Submit a Project Proposal Form
Fees and Funding
€3,250 (EU students) €6,500 (non-EU students)
Please note there is currently no funding available for the final MSc module for alumni. Please speak to a recruitment advisor by contacting innovation.academy@ucd.ie if you have any queries.
Information Events & Deadline to Apply
This course is closed for applications. Register your interest above for information on future intakes.
Overview
The UCD MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability is a unique masters programme that bridges sustainability knowledge and skills, ensuring students are ready to quickly transition to new roles and opportunities upon graduation.
Everything students have learned in the UCD Graduate Diploma in Design Thinking for Sustainability is put into practice with a final real-world project module – the Applied Sustainability Project. This part-time programme allows students the flexibility to work and complete the project simultaneously.
Students will work individually with a high level of autonomy and closely with the relevant organisation to apply the design thinking methodology to an organisation-wide sustainability need or opportunity.
This 30 ECTS MSc module add-on enables graduates to elevate their qualification by earning a UCD accredited MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability (90 ECTS).
Who is it for?
The MSc 30 ECTS module add-on is for alumni of the UCD Graduate Diploma in Design Thinking for Sustainability (60 ECTS) who wish to elevate their qualification to MSc level (90 ECTS). They can achieve this by completing a part-time module of 30 ECTS.
Upon successful completion of the 30 ECTS module, graduates will attain an MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability, a UCD-accredited programme at Level 9 (90 ECTS).
Course Structure
The MSc Applied Sustainability Project module (30 ECTS) will be delivered part-time over several Fridays during two UCD trimesters: Autumn 2024 and Spring 2025. Classes will be monthly in-person sessions at UCD from 9:30am – 16:30pm.
*Note: Monday, 9th September 2024, will be an online orientation day. This kick-off session for the programme is mandatory. Exact timings will be provided.
- IA40830: Applied Sustainability Project (30 ECTS) Autumn 2024 - Spring 2025. Fridays: 4 Oct, 1 Nov, 6 Dec, 17 Jan, 14 Feb, 28 March, 2 May
- Project Proposal Form Must be submitted and approved to gain entry to the MSc module
- Host Company Information: Applied Sustainability Project 1 Page Information Doc to share with a potential host company partner
IA40830 Applied Sustainability Project is a problem-based project focused on solving a real sustainability problem. The project is led on an individual level to develop a students’ mastery of the methodology – Design Thinking for Sustainability. The module asks students to apply the cumulative knowledge and skills learned to date to help a specific organisation (enterprise, non-profit, start-up) integrate sustainability into their strategy, operations, and / or governance, ensuring that sustainability will be grounded as a source of innovation for driving environmental, social and economic change.
Students will work individually, with a high level of autonomy, and closely with the relevant organisation, to apply the design thinking methodology to an organisation-wide sustainability need or opportunity.
There may be limited opportunities to work with a IA partner(s) on projects, enquiries can be made to MSc programme lead. Ultimately, onus is on students to organise identify a project topic and host organisation in consultation with the programme lead or delegated individuals.
The Project Proposal Form must be completed, submitted and approved as part of the Entry Requirements for the MSc.
Guidance for the projects will include a series of meetings organised by the module facilitator(s) to promote reflection and peer learning, and input from relevant experts within UCD Innovation Academy.
- Why choose us
- Learning outcomes
- How to apply
- Assessment, fees and funding
- Who leads this course?
- Career opportunities
UCD Innovation Academy sits at the cutting-edge of education in Ireland, and the world.
We’ve been challenging students to see the world differently since 2010, when we became one of the first universities to offer experiential learning experiences.
Our team has been innovating ever since, shaping and refining our courses with input from some of the world’s best. Thousands of students have passed through the Academy, and each one has played their part in making our courses better and better. We have countless examples of our alumni accelerating their careers and changing the world from within organisations or as entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs.
UCD Innovation Academy is a part of UCD, ranked among the top 1% of higher education institutions in the world. We’re Ireland’s global university with 9,500 international students and a rich ecosystem to support our international community. UCD is ranked Ireland’s best university for graduate employability. Professor Sir Mark Welland, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Cambridge acting as our External Examiner.
Students at UCD Innovation Academy have access to the latest technology to support their creativity. The IA MakerSpace provides a playground for innovation, testing, and prototyping to bring your ideas to life. UCD Greenacre is UCD’s new experiential sustainability hub, located on an acre of UCD’s woodland campus in Belfield. A first of its kind in Ireland, it offers immersive, hands-on sustainability experiences for students to explore, experiment and learn how to take meaningful actions for a sustainable planet.
UCD Innovation Academy leverages its convening power in our programmes, regularly bringing together diverse stakeholders from across enterprise, policy and the third sector, and offering our students a richer learning experience as a result.
University College Dublin has been named in the top 50 in the QS World University Rankings for Sustainability, achieving the highest result in Ireland and ranking 24th in Europe.
UCD has a long-standing commitment to sustainability, and played a direct role in the development of the SDGs through the advocacy of Professor Patrick Paul Walsh, UCD School of Politics and International Relations.
Here at the Innovation Academy we have everything you need for a learning experience you’ll never forget.
Students who have successfully completed the IA40830 Applied Sustainability Project will be able to:
1. Embrace an entrepreneurial mindset in recognising opportunities in order to scope out a specific problem-to-be-solved in a sustainability context.
2. Apply Design Thinking as an iterative process utilising both a sustainability and innovative mindset, demonstrating resilience in overcoming obstacles and barriers.
3. Leading a project as an individual, demonstrate an ability to identify and engage key partners and collaborators.
4. Design and test sustainability initiatives and solutions relevant and applicable to real-world organisations.
5. Advise diverse stakeholders on how to respond to and mitigate sustainability challenges, and identify and act on opportunities.
6. Communicate persuasively proposed solutions and plans using supporting evidence, insights and an awareness of assumptions, to influence different stakeholders and decision-makers.
7. Demonstrate the ability for self-guided learning and how to leverage adjacent qualifications, knowledge and experiences for the sustainability field.
This course is closed for applications. Register your interest above for information on future intakes.
Applicants are highly encouraged to contact a Recruitment Advisor before commencing an application. Email us at innovation.academy@ucd.ie or call us at 01 716 2065. We’d be happy to support you on your education journey.
How To Apply
Step 1
Apply for the MSc via UCD SISWeb. You will need to use your UCD Connect student account.
Step 2
Upload the required documents listed below.
A) Current CV and Letter of Motivation.
B) Your student number on a Word document – to demonstrate your completion of the UCD Graduate Diploma in Design Thinking for Sustainability
C) Submit a Project Proposal Form
Step 3
You will be invited for an interview (online) with the MSc Programme Director to discuss your proposal.
Step 4
Successful applicants will be offered and a place and will need to pay their deposit to secure the place. Please see ‘Assessment, Fees and Funding‘ for further breakdown.
Assessment
The MSc is a Pass / Fail programme.
Assessment of IA40830 Applied Sustainability Project the final module of the MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability comprises of three parts:
35% – An individual reflective essay submitted at the end of the module.
30% – Final pitch/presentation
Presentation of work undertaken, results and recommendations presented to a panel of relevant experts including representatives from the partner organisation, experts from within the wider UCD community and UCD Innovation Academy.
35% – Project Report
A report to be submitted at the end of the project outlining the response to a real world organisation’s sustainability challenge, need and / or opportunity. The format of this report is flexible given the varying approaches students may want or need to adopt, however the output will be commensurate with the scope and complexity required.
As the course involves continuous assessment, students must attend all class sessions.
Fees
This course is closed for applications. Register your interest above for information on future intakes.
€3,250 (EU students) €6,500 (non-EU students)
Payment Schedule:
- €500 Deposit to secure your place
- First instalment September 2024 Second instalment January 2025
- Third instalment May 2025
“The Irish economy will need to fill more than 20,000 jobs by 2030 just to support green economy sectors.”
IDA Ireland
“Key to guaranteeing a more sustainable and secure future is ensuring we have the right green skills to power the transition to net zero”
Minister for Transport, Climate, Environment and Communications Eamon Ryan, TD
“Learners must acquire the knowledge, skills, values and dispositions needed to promote sustainable development.”
Ireland’s ‘Second National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development – ESD to 2030:
Decision makers in government, enterprise and civil society now recognise that learners must have not just the knowledge to act on sustainability, but also the skills to act quickly. The MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability is a unique programme that bridges knowledge and skills, ensuring students begin to affect change within the programme and are ready to quickly transition to new roles and opportunities upon graduation.
The MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability offers students an opportunity to apply, test and master their learnings individually with a high degree of autonomy in a high stakes, real world context. Students must design innovative implementation plans and individually lead a complex and ambitious sustainability project, managing multiple stakeholders and competing needs to deliver an actionable solution.
As a result of the highly applied nature of this MSc in Design Thinking for Sustainability, students may leverage the project for future career opportunities.