Environmental Health MSc
2 Years Full-Time (with advanced practice) | September Start

This course is focused upon the five core CIEH subject areas: food safety, housing, health and safety, environmental protection and public health.

In Food Safety students will develop skills to recognise hazards (physical, chemical and microbiological) associated with food safety and integrity and how they must be assessed and managed throughout all stages of the food chain.  Housing and Health considers how poor living conditions are a major cause of accidents and ill health and how actions to improve poor housing can protect health, safety and well being, particularly for the most vulnerable in society.  The Health and Safety module considers the hazards associated with the complex interaction between people, the work environment, the equipment they use and the activities undertaken and why risk assessment and effective management is necessary.  Environmental Protection reflects on actions necessary for the long term protection of our environment, through provision of clear air, potable water, sustainable waste management and why controlling pollutants and nuisance is critical to maintaining health and well being.  All modules are underpinned by a proactive approach to Public Health which is essential to resolve current and emerging risk presented by biological, chemical, radiological, physiological and psycho-social threats to the public.

Delivering an excellent postgraduate experience you will be offered the opportunity to question and reflect on how the world around us can impact on public health, whilst developing the skills and knowledge necessary to understand these risks and how to intervene and manage them effectively.

Teaching is delivered through a mix of lectures, seminars and workshops. You will also participate in debates, discussion and critiques of academic papers, field trips, case study scenarios and general discussions of academic and ethical issues.

Assessments for this course are undertaken in the form of essays, reports, audits, presentations and assessed discussions completed as an individual and part of a group.

The Advanced Practice semester will be assessed via a report and presentation about your internship, study abroad or research group activities.

This course is delivered by our highly experienced teaching team. Three of the core four teaching staff are Environmental Health Practitioners who bring many combined years of experience gained working across local government, public health, health promotion, private consultancy, advocacy and specialist divisions of the Health Protection Agency (chemical hazard management and health emergency planning) to equip you with specialist knowledge and skills that are at the forefront of the subject.

Our staff are research-active and hold advanced degrees in complimentary subjects (e.g. environmental engineering and sustainable development and public health) and memberships to professional organisations (including the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, Chartered Institution of Wastes Management, Emergency Planning Society, etc.) to ensure they are aware of the latest trends, research and developments within this field.

Throughout the duration of your course you will benefit from site visits, presentations from guest lecturers and practical tasks to support you in transferring the theory you have learned into practice. 

When studying the MSc Environmental Health course you will have access to our state-of-the-art learning facilities.

You will take part in practical experiments in our research laboratories, in addition to utilising our industry standard portable monitoring and analytical instrumentation to obtain real-world data for air quality, contaminated land and noise.

Specialist software, such as ADMS for air quality modelling, will allow you to analyse and model your findings. All of these experiences contribute to your understanding of how technology is used in the study and practice of environmental health.

With your course’s supporting documentation being available on our e-Learning Portal, Blackboard, and directed reading listed on the e-Reading Lists, both accessible at all times, this means you can support your own learning and self-development of the subject.

Our teaching team are research-active, specialising in fields such as health and safety management, compliance management, public health, food and safety standards, risk management, peroxides in aqueous solution, air quality, airborne particulates, environmental management in major incidents, and land contamination.

Research-rich learning is embedded throughout all aspects of this course, drawing on national and international findings to deepen your understanding of environmental health.

Your research experience is further enhanced with a dissertation where you are assigned to one of the core teaching team to undertake substantial research into a specific academic or work-based topic. You are encouraged to publish your findings in an appropriate journal.

In the latest UK-wide research assessment exercise (REF2014), 55% of the Geography Department’s research was ranked as world-leading or internationally excellent, making us a top-30 Geography Research Department based on research power.

The MSc Environmental Health degree is highly valued by employers thanks to our accreditation with the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH).

Graduates entering the job market benefit from the strength and breadth of the specialised knowledge gained alongside seeing its practical application.  This, combined with transferable skills embedded throughout the course, including written and verbal communication, team working, critical thought, and problem solving, prepare you for future graduate level employment across the public and private sectors. 

Students are encouraged and supported through our links with local employers to undertake placement opportunities or work based projects to gain practical experience in the field of Environmental Health.  Successful completion of the course gives those graduates seeking to qualify as an Environmental Health Practitioner the opportunity to then go on to join the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health’s, Chartered Practitioner Programme. 

The Advanced Practice semester will help you develop a track record of achievement that will help you stand out from other job applicants.

A two-year master’s course, like this one, will carry particular weight with employers. They’ll understand that you’ll have a deeper understanding of topics as well as more hands-on practical experience.

Employment opportunities

Graduates will leave prepared for employment in roles such as Environmental Health Officers, risk managers, public health specialists/advocates, and health and safety managers.

As a CIEH accredited Environmental Health Practitioner you can find a career in the public, private or voluntary sectors. As a consultant in the private sector you could be working for holiday chains, supermarkets, food manufacturers. In the voluntary sector you could work in housing associations or for charities working to bring sanitation and water to developing countries. The public sector offers roles as a advisor/regulator or as public health advocates in local government, or in central government agencies, for example Public Health England, the Environment Agency or Food Standards Agency.

You will also graduate equipped with the necessary training to support further research around the broad subject of environmental health and could progress to a PhD should you wish to in the future.