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There are many thousands of chemicals affecting the environment in a modern society. Therefore, it is important to acquire new knowledge and develop new technologies which can reduce their environmental impact. The environmental chemist knows what happens, when we influence natural systems or exploit the Earth's natural resources, for example in agriculture, industrial production or waste disposal.

Academic focus

As a student of environmental chemistry, some of the fields you will study are: 

• Bioactive compounds and their movement and fate in the environment
  
• The effects of environmentally harmful compounds on the health of plants, animals and humans
  
• How nature's complex cycles operate
  
• How is the future environmental impact of production determined 
  
• The environmental aspects of bio- and nanotechnology
  
• The atmosphere and global climate

Study programme

The MSc programme in Environmental Chemistry is a 2-year programme equivalent to 120 ECTS credits. The programme is taught in English.

The degree is offered in collaboration between two Danish universities, specialists in their various parts of the programme: the Faculty of Natural Science and the Faculty of Life Sciences at the University of Copenhagen (KU), and the Technical University of Denmark (DTU).

Structure of the programme

Dark grey fields are compulsory courses. White fields are elective courses.

One block is 9 weeks and counts as 15 ECTS credits.

Compulsory courses

On the four compulsory courses, you learn about the environmental chemistry of compounds in water, air and the ground, and you learn how to study the biological effects of the compounds on eco-systems: 

• Environmental Soil Chemistry deals with the soil as a biological and chemical filter for pollutants, soil and groundwater quality, the bioavailability of toxins, leaching from soil and modelling. 
  
• Atmospheric Environmental Chemistry deals with chemical and physical processes in the atmosphere, air pollution and climate change. 
  
• Aquatic Environmental Chemistry deals with chemical and biological processes in water, focusing on the turnover and dispersal of pollutants, the cleaning of waste water, and environmental models. 
  
• Environmental Risk Assessment of Chemicals focuses on the procedures used for risk assessment of chemicals, including ecotoxicological test methods.

Elective courses and international experiences

Elective courses give you the chance to create your professional profile by studying a particular area in depth, or you can use the universities' many courses to tailor your personal study programme.
As a student in the Environmental Chemistry Programme at the Department of Chemistry (Faculty of Natural Science) you can get funding to take relevant courses at other Universities in the Nordic Countries within the Nordic Masters Degree Programme in Atmosphere-Biosphere Studies, see also http://www.nordic-abs.org/.

Thesis

The thesis provides the opportunity for an in-depth experimental and/or theoretical study within environmental chemistry. You will work with a real-life environmental chemistry problem towards a solution on the basis of a problem analysis and experimental work in the field and/or laboratory. The topics can range from analytical methods through pollutant turnover and biological effects, to the use of model calculations and environmental management. Themes could for example be atmospheric chemistry, degradation of biofuels in the atmosphere and in-situ methods for ensuring the chemical quality of our environment.
The thesis is done at one of the four universities or in cooperation with an external institution, e.g. one of the sector research institutions within the area of the environment.

Career opportunities

An MSc degree in Environmental Chemistry opens the doors to many different jobs within research, consultancy or teaching focusing on environmental management, nature restoration, health and environmental chemical analyses. There are also good opportunities for working in government agencies or ministries.

Admission requirements

If you hold a bachelor's degree in Environmental Chemistry from the University of Copenhagen, you have the right to be admitted to the Master's programme in Environmental Chemistry. If you hold a bachelor's degree comparable with the above mentioned, either from a Danish or a foreign university, you can apply for admittance.

If you are a Danish citizen, please see the website Optagelse for information about how to apply.

If you are not a Danish citizen, please read about how to apply at www.science.ku.dk/english.

Need to know more?

Please contact the student counselling service or, if you are an international student, the international counsellor at The Faculty of Science.