Sustainable Energy Technology

A fundamental transition from fossil to renewable energy sources is one of the major challenges of our times. There is a demand to develop renewable and sustainable energy technology, and the energy sector needs expertise to create new solutions. An engineering master’s degree in sustainable energy technology will give you many career opportunities where you can contribute to the green transition. Knowledge of sustainability and interaction between technology, society, climate, and environment is central to the course. After initially gaining an appreciation of a range of energy resources, along with their abundancy, you will gain an understanding of and the ability to assess associated harnessing technologies, materials and conversion processes, and the consequences of choices. During your studies, you will work on issues such as: How can I analyse, evaluate, and optimise a component, a process, or an entire application in terms of sustainability, efficiency, and economic viability? What methods and tools exist, both theoretical and experimental, and what would be the best choice for my project? What are and how do the most relevant technologies for converting and storing energy work? What consequences for the environment and climate, operation, costs, or efficiency are linked to design, construction, and choice of material? What are low- and zero-carbon energy carriers and how can these be produced? How can shipping become more environmentally and climate friendly? What is ocean energy and what considerations must I take in connection with marine installations? Sustainability is a thread that runs through all modules from the first day until the study ends with the master's thesis; which can either be written for a company, or you can contribute to energy-related research at HVL. What can you work on? A master's degree in sustainable energy technology qualifies for the Norwegian title of sivilingeniør and may satisfy the requirements of professional bodies in your home country*. After graduation, you can work with technical and technological challenges in both private businesses and public agencies. For example, you can work as a consulting and project engineer in a specialist field such as hydrogen production and use, or you can work as a specialist on a specific topic such as the production and characterisation of new solar cell materials. *You should check with your professional engineering body as to their individual requirements as these vary from country to country. How is the teaching? The teaching varies between lectures, laboratory work or with software, supervision, group work and project assignments; in addition to self-study. Great emphasis has been placed on forms of learning that stimulate student active learning and engagement at a high pedagogical level, for example through problem-based learning. Group work in several of the subjects also contributes to the social environment among the students. As a master's student, you can make use of a wide range of facilities and laboratories: Hydrodynamics laboratory. Solar energy laboratory. MarinLab (a 50 m long wave and towing tank). Chemistry and materials science laboratories. Laboratory with thermal engines. Computer labs with simulation software such as Ansys Fluent, Abaqus, Aspen HYSYS, and DNV Sesam. Access to 3D-scanner and 3D-printers for construction and model building. Workshop for materials testing and treatment. How much does it cost to study? As a student, you must pay a semester fee of NOK 750 each semester. Read more on our pages about semester registration. This fee does not cover costs for, for example, curriculum literature and other equipment you need; so there will be additional costs.