MSc Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure
The master's programme in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure equips students with interdisciplinary tools to solve future environmental challenges and prepares them for careers as environmental engineers. You will gain knowledge of the properties and functions of water and ecosystems, learn how to assess the local and global environmental impact of human activities and apply advanced methods and modelling tools to define and solve environmental problems.
Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure at KTH
In a world facing urgent challenges such as climate change, water scarcity, and rapid urbanisation, the master’s programme in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure equips students with the interdisciplinary skills to build sustainable solutions. The programme does not follow fixed tracks, offering you significant freedom to choose courses that suit your interests, provided you meet each course's specific prerequisites. To help guide your choices, you can select one of seven competence profiles, each containing a sequence of courses designed to build a coherent knowledge base aligned with your career goals. The competence profiles are:
- Water Technology: water systems, hydropower, the effects of climate change
- Environmental Geology and Hydrogeology: contaminated sites, environmental geology, and geotechnical aspects
- Water and Wastewater Technology: managing drinking water and wastewater
- Environmental Information Analysis and Management: environmental monitoring and measurement techniques
- Sustainable Infrastructure: managing infrastructure and resources sustainably
- Environmental Systems Analysis: environmental systems and life cycle analysis
- Sustainable Societies: social and economic factors influencing sustainability
Explore the competence profiles in the course list
The courses offered within the programme combine theoretical and practical approaches, both in the field and in the laboratory, using tools such as GIS, various computer models, and decision-support tools. For instance, students might conduct fieldwork using geophysical survey techniques to determine underground rock-mass properties, use GIS to visualise various environmental datasets, or use numerical models to evaluate water management under climate change scenarios. Students gain practical skills with tools such as ArcGIS Pro, SWMM for geophysical and hydrological modelling, and SimaPro for life-cycle assessment.
The programme ends with a degree project that allows you to thoroughly investigate a problem under the supervision of experienced practitioners and researchers. The topic for the degree project should be within the programme's scope and relate to knowledge acquired through the courses. The degree project is carried out in Sweden or abroad and can be oriented towards research, technological development at a company or organisation, or a combination of both.
This is a two-year programme (120 ECTS credits) given in English. Graduates are awarded the degree of Master of Science. The programme is given mainly at KTH Campus in Stockholm by the School of Architecture and Built Environment (at KTH).
Programme structure and progression
The programme combines flexibility with the opportunity to build a coherent specialisation within the field. During the first year, you typically develop knowledge in environmental systems, water, soil, infrastructure and sustainability-related methods and tools. In the second year, the studies become increasingly specialised through advanced courses, competence profiles and the degree project.
You can combine courses across technical, environmental, and societal perspectives while gradually developing expertise aligned with your individual interests and career goals.
Courses in the programme
The courses in the programme cover topics such as water technology, environmental geotechnology, water and wastewater engineering, environmental management and information, sustainable infrastructure, environmental systems analysis and sustainable societies.
Courses in the master's programme in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure
Future and career
Our society faces significant challenges in managing a changing climate, ensuring high water quality, developing systems for recycling materials and nutrients, and developing renewable, environmentally sustainable energy solutions. Therefore, the demand for environmental engineering expertise is nearly unlimited, and the job market is diverse. Graduates are increasingly sought after in fields such as climate adaptation planning, blue-green infrastructure, circular economy systems, nature-based solutions, and ESG consulting. Graduates will be able to work in both the private and public sectors, including environmental consultancies, with contractors, water and wastewater companies, or government agencies, both in Sweden and abroad. Examples of employers for programme graduates include SWECO, Stockholm Vatten, WSP, Swedish EPA, Tyréns, Geosigma, COWI, Vattenfall, SIDA, and several international organisations. Some graduates from the programme also go on to doctoral studies at KTH or other universities worldwide.
Sustainable development
Graduates from KTH have the knowledge and tools for moving society in a more sustainable direction, as sustainable development is an integral part of all programmes. The three key sustainable development goals addressed by the master's programme in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure are:
The programme is transdisciplinary and includes courses that build on natural sciences and technology, as well as on social sciences and planning. Therefore, it covers several of the Sustainable Development Goals to varying degrees. The extent of this depends on the courses you choose. Courses in the Water and Wastewater Engineering profile will address goal 6 primarily from a technical perspective. Combined with courses from the Sustainable Infrastructure profile, you will also acquire the skills to address the goal from a social and planning perspective. Several opportunities to make such combinations are available based on your preferences and allow you to address the SDGs Clean Water and Sanitation, Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (with an emphasis on Infrastructure), and Sustainable Cities and Communities. Depending on your course choices, you can acquire the skills to work as an environmental coordinator, urban water planner, geotechnical engineer, or researcher, and contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Faculty and research
The master's programme is situated at SEED (Sustainable Development, Environmental Science and Engineering) at the School of Architecture and the Built Environment at KTH. The department performs research in several areas connected to sustainability, for example, Environmental Engineering, Environmental Modelling, Sustainability Assessment and Management, Water and Waste Management and Industrial Ecology.
Some examples of relevant research from researchers involved in the programme are:
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Testbed Storsudret, where sustainable water management systems are developed and tested in a rural and agricultural environment on the island of Gotland. The research focuses on methods for groundwater recharge, water storage and long-term water supply solutions.
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Hammarby Sjöstadsverk, Sweden’s leading R&D facility in water purification technology, where researchers collaborate with industry and public-sector partners to develop and test new water treatment technologies.
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Research on affordable methods for removing arsenic and fluoride from drinking water sources in Tanzania, including the development of low-cost treatment systems and pilot-scale water purification solution
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ISSUE (Integrating Sustainability Strategies in Urban Environments), a research project focused on developing strategies for sustainable urban development through collaboration between researchers, public-sector organisations and other societal actors.
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Mistra Sustainable Consumption, a large interdisciplinary research programme exploring how more sustainable lifestyles and consumption patterns can become mainstream through collaboration between academia, industry, policymakers and civil society.
