MSc Global Energy and Climate Policy
London, United Kingdom
DURATION
1 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
GBP 26,660 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* for overseas student fees | home student fees: GBP 18,030 per year
Introduction
The MSc Global Energy and Climate Policy degree programme addresses important issues of our time.
The use of energy – electricity generation, transportation, heating/cooling and industrial consumption – is the most important driver of climate change by far. Effectively addressing this urgent global challenge therefore requires transformational changes in the ways we produce, consume and govern energy. More than two decades of political contestation have shown that a supportive policy environment – meaningful and consistent domestic laws and regulation underpinned by ambitious international treaties – is the only way to affect these changes, develop alternatives to emissions-intensive fossil fuels and transition economies around the world onto a secure, low-carbon and climate-friendly footing.
The MSc Global Energy and Climate Policy addresses precisely these issues, treating climate and energy policy as inextricably linked. Cases drawn from both the Global North and South will form the basis of your studies as you examine how policy is made, advocated and implemented – or sometimes prevented – around the world. You will acquire theoretical knowledge of climate and energy policies as well as practical skills in risk analysis, policy analysis and strategic advocacy. The MSc is rounded out by negotiation and media training and a week-long study tour to key institutions in the energy and climate policy space in Brussels and Paris, such as the European Commission, various energy lobby groups, and the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The MSc programme draws on the teaching and research strengths of the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy (CISD) and of the SOAS departments of International Politics, Law, Economics and area studies (especially of Asia, Africa and the Middle East) as well as a wide range of languages. In particular, students will be able to benefit from the expertise located at the Centre for Environment, Development and Policy (CeDEP), the Law School's Law, Environment and Development Centre (LEDC), the Centre on the Politics of Energy Security (CEPES), the Centre for Water and Development, and the SOAS Food Studies Centre.
Students on the MSc GECP may have the opportunity to participate in CISD's Study Tour of energy and climate-related organisations in Paris and Brussels, although this is in addition to the programme of study and cannot be guaranteed.
The MSc is designed for those engaged with or planning a career in professional contexts relating to energy and/or climate policy.
Why study MSc Global Energy and Climate Policy at SOAS?
By studying MSc Global Energy and Climate Policy at SOAS you will:
- Gain an in-depth understanding of the nature and development of global energy and climate policy, drawing on a variety of contributing disciplines
- Be eligible to apply for internships, such as the two paid internships at Amnesty International and Chatham House available to SOAS Politics students this year
- Gain an excellent knowledge of regulatory challenges and their impact on public and private stakeholders in both the Global South and North
- Be able to critically contribute to contemporary policy debates about reforms of international energy and climate governance architectures and their interaction with national and sub-national policy and regulatory frameworks
- Develop practical skills including policy analysis and policy advocacy, risk analysis, strategic communication and media
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Ideal Students
Who Should Apply?
We welcome applications from a wide variety of fields and backgrounds. It is not necessary to have a degree in a discipline directly related to global energy and climate policy.
Each application is assessed on its individual merits and entry requirements may be modified in light of relevant professional experience and where the applicant can demonstrate a sustained practical interest in the international field.
Admissions
Curriculum
Students take taught modules to the value of 120 credits, PLUS a dissertation worth 60 credits.
Credits must be taken in the following combination:
- Dissertation (15PFFC999) (60 credits)
- Global Energy and Climate Policy (15PFFC017) (30 credits)
- A minimum of 45 credits from list B
- A maximum of 45 credits from list C (maximum of 15 credits from PG Open options)
Core
- Dissertation in Global Studies
Compulsory
- Global Energy & Climate Policy
Guided Options List C (Choose up to 45 credits):
- Energy Transition, Nature, and Development in a Time of Climate Change
- Environment, Governance, and Development
- History and Future of the United Nations
- Law and Natural Resources
- Law, Environment, and Social Justice
- Methodology in the Social Sciences
- Guided Options List B (Choose 45 credits):
- Anthropology and Climate Change
- Green Finance
- Risk and Policy Analysis
- Global Advocacy
- Global Public Policy
Program Outcome
Programme objectives
- Excellent understanding of the nature and development of global energy and climate policy, drawing on a variety of contributing disciplines.
- Excellent knowledge of regulatory challenges and their impact on public and private stakeholders in both the Global South and North.
- Ability to critically contribute to contemporary policy debates about reforms of international energy and climate governance architectures and their interaction with national and sub-national policy and regulatory frameworks.
- Development of practical skills including policy analysis and policy advocacy, risk analysis, strategic communication and media.
We welcome applications from a wide variety of fields and backgrounds. It is not necessary to have a degree in a discipline directly related to global energy and climate policy.
Each application is assessed on its individual merits and entry requirements may be modified in light of relevant professional experience and where the applicant can demonstrate a sustained practical interest in the international field.
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
Students from SOAS’s Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy (CISD) develop an in-depth understanding of international affairs, contemporary diplomatic practice and policy-makers. Graduates leave with a portfolio of transferable skills such as critical analysis, problem-solving, negotiation and communication, all of which are valued by employers across a number of sectors.
Recent graduates have been hired by:
- Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
- Ernst & Young
- European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights
- Government of India
- International Rescue Committee
- Medical Aid for Palestinians
- NHS
- The Commonwealth
- UK National Commission for UNESCO
- UNHCR
- United Nations
- World Food Programme
Program Leaders
Program delivery
Global Energy and Climate Policy students take taught modules to the value of 120 credits plus a 60-credit dissertation.
The programme may be taken in one year (full-time) or in two or three years part-time with the schedule designed to allow participation by those in full-time employment. Participants may choose a combination of courses to meet their professional needs and personal interests. The programme is convened on a multi-disciplinary basis, and teaching is through lectures, tutorials and workshops conducted by SOAS faculty and visiting specialists.
The Centre endeavours to make as many of the courses for Global Energy and Climate Policy (GECP) accessible to part-time students. The majority of CISD lectures are at 6 pm where possible, however, lecture times will be rotated on a yearly basis for some courses (between evening and daytime slots) so that part-time students will have access to as many courses as possible over the duration of their degree. Associated tutorials are repeated in hourly slots with the latest taking place at 8 pm. Students sign up for tutorial groups at the start of the term and stay in the same group throughout the academic year. There is a minimum of two and a half hours of formal teaching a week (lecture and tutorial) for each GECP course taken. Practical exercises may take place at weekends.
Program Admission Requirements
Show your commitment and readiness for Grad school by taking the GRE - the most broadly accepted exam for graduate programs internationally.