Multi-Master's Degree in International Environmental Management

The central purpose of this program is to bring together highly qualified individuals from France, China, and the United States in a variety of master’s degree programs in a unique and rigorous curriculum that prepares students to manage complex international environmental challenges.

Advanced students in the online Master of Science in Applied Geosciences program can apply for admission to this multi-master’s degree program in international environmental management at the end of their first year in the program. Upon completion of their studies, students receive a Mastère Spécialisé degree in Environmental Management from Mines ParisTech (formerly École des Mines de Paris) in France and a Master of Engineering degree from Tsinghua University in China, in addition to the Master of Science in Applied Geosciences degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

Watch the video below as John Keene and Yvette Bordeaux from Penn, along with Cathy Descamps-Large and Daniel Florentin from Mines ParisTech, give an overview of the Multi-Master’s Degree program.

If you’re having trouble seeing this video, you can watch it on YouTube.

About the program

The Multi-Master’s Degree in International Environmental Management is designed to be completed in 2.5 years including one summer semester (six semesters total).

  • For the first two semesters, you take courses online at the University of Pennsylvania and complete a minimum of 8 course units (c.u.)*
  • You then travel to Beijing, China and are in-residence at the Franco-Chinese Center of Environment and Energy at Tsinghua University for one semester (September–December), where you complete all the requirements for either a master’s degree or a certificate in environmental engineering (depending on your academic background)
  • Then you travel to Mines ParisTech for one semester (January–April) to complete all the requirements for a Post-Master’s Degree in International Environmental Management (IEM)
  • Then you participate in a 4-6 month internship, completed by December of that year. You write a report on the results of this internship and this report serves as the Project Design capstone for the MSAG program and completes the requirements for the Mines ParisTech and Tsinghua degrees
  • 2 c.u. are transferred from Mines ParisTech to the MSAG program, and 2 c.u. are transferred from Tsinghua University to the MSAG program, completing the 12 c.u. requirement for the online MSAG program

Students who prefer a shorter time commitment may choose to complete the dual degree MSAG/IEM. For this option, students complete 10 c.u. in the online MSAG program before traveling to Mines ParisTech for one semester. The students complete a 4-6 month internship and write a report on the results of this internship. This report serves as the capstone for the MSAG program and completes the requirements for the Mines ParisTech IEM degree.

Suggested course sequence

This is an example schedule for full-time students; part-time students can work with an academic advisor for course sequencing. Please note that students may take courses in the summer between Penn and Mines ParisTech.

Sequence for three degrees (MSAG/IEM/MEE)

Semester

Program

Recommended Courses

MSAG

1 (Fall)

MSAG

  • GEOL 5280: Aqueous Geochemistry
  • GEOL 6200: Applied and Environmental Geophysics
  • GEOL 6510: Geocomputations
  • GEOL 6530: Hydrology

4 c.u.

2 (Spring)

MSAG

  • GEOL 6610: Environmental Groundwater Hydrology
  • GEOL 6680: Geomechanics: Fluids
  • GEOL 6800: Near-Surface Geologic Structure for Engineering and Environmental Projects
  • 1 elective

4 c.u.

3 (Fall)

Tsinghua

Full course load

2 c.u.

4 (Spring)

Mines ParisTech

Full course load

2 c.u.

5 (Summer)

 

Internship (4-6 months)

0 c.u.

6 (Fall)

MSAG

GEOL 9900: Master’s Thesis

0 c.u.

 

 

Total

12 c.u.

Sequence for two degrees (MSAG/IEM)

Semester

Program

Recommended Courses

MSAG

1 (Fall)

MSAG

  • GEOL 5280: Aqueous Geochemistry
  • GEOL 6510: Geocomputations
  • GEOL 6530: Hydrology

3 c.u.

2 (Spring)

MSAG

  • GEOL 6610: Environmental Groundwater Hydrology
  • GEOL 6680: Geomechanics: Fluids
  • GEOL 6800: Near-Surface Geologic Structure for Engineering and Environmental Projects
  • 1 elective

4 c.u.

3 (Fall)

MSAG

  • GEOL 6200: Applied and Environmental Geophysics
  • GEOL 6540: Geomechanics: Solids
  • GEOL 6740: Engineering Geology: Rock & Soil Evaluation

3 c.u.

4 (Spring)

Mines ParisTech

Full course load

2 c.u.

5 (Summer)

 

Internship (4-6 months)

0 c.u.

6 (Fall)

MSAG

GEOL 9900: Master's Thesis

0 c.u.

 

 

Total

12 c.u.

Project Design requirement

All three schools require a thesis/capstone, but the topic (your internship) is the same for all three programs. There are slightly different thesis formatting requirements for each program and Tsinghua requires a thesis defense.

Career opportunities

Alumni of this program are poised to work in environmental management at the international level.


*Academic credit is defined by the University of Pennsylvania as a course unit (c.u.). A course unit (c.u.) is a general measure of academic work over a period of time, typically a term (semester or summer). A c.u. (or a fraction of a c.u.) represents different types of academic work across different types of academic programs and is the basic unit of progress toward a degree. One c.u. is usually converted to a four-semester-hour course.

Online Master of Science in Applied Geosciences Virtual Café

Online Master of Science in Applied Geosciences Virtual Café

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