The programme

Semester 1 at Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) - 30 ECTS

Mandatory Courses

Environmental Modelling - 6 ECTS
Environmental and Natural Resource Economics  - 6 ECTS
Impact Assessment  - 6 ECTS
Air Quality Management and Climate Change  - 6 ECTS

Elective courses *students may choose one of the following

Remote Sensing - 6 ECTS
Sampling Techniques and Methodologies in Extreme Environments - 6 ECTS
Integrated Watershed Management - 6 ECTS
 

Semester 2 at Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) - 30 ECTS

Mandatory courses

Surface and Groundwater Hydrological Modelling - 6 ECTS
Sustainability in Civil Engineering - 6 ECTS
Climate Change and Water Resources Planning and Management - 6 ECTS
Water Quality and Wastewater Treatment - 6 ECTS
Solid Waste Management and Soil Pollution - 3 ECTS


Elective courses *students may choose one of the following

Hydraulic Infrastructures - 3 ECTS
Sustainable ports and marine transportation - 3 ECTS
Climate change and coastal resilience - 3 ECTS
Solar Photovoltaic Energy and Water Management - 3 ECTS


Semester 3 at University of Trento (UniTrento) - 30 ECTS

Mandatory courses

Engineering for International Sustainable Development: Methods - 6 ECTS
Nature-based Solutions for Urban Sustainability - 6 ECTS
Water and Sediment Management for Sustainable Development - 6 ECTS
Sustainable Sanitation and Waste Management - 6 ECTS

Elective course* - students may choose one of the following

Renewable Energies - 6 ECTS
Applied Ecology - 6 ECTS
Artificial Intelligence for Environmental Applications - 6 ECTS


Semester 4 - Master Thesis (at a Partner/Associated Partners' location or another established location)

Engineering for International Sustainable Development: Project work - 6 ECTS
Master Dissertation - 24 ECTS

OVERALL: 120 ECTS

The Joint Study Plan is available in the PDF file below

The academic calendar for a.y. 2026-2027 is available in the PDF file below

EESIC offers a unique interdisciplinary curriculum that combines civil and environmental engineering with sustainability science and international cooperation:

• Advanced technical knowledge to tackle complex global challenges
• Agile problem-solving skills for real-world applications
• A deep understanding of social contexts essential for working in an international context and selecting the most appropriate technologies

EESIC will create a new profile of graduates combining a strong engineering background:

• to mitigate natural disaster risks, particularly hydrological and hydrogeological hazards linked to climate change and land use change;
• to design sustainable and equitable water supply, drainage, and flood protection infrastructures also with nature-based solutions;
• to reduce pollution and provide sanitation systems tailored to regional needs;
• to ensure sustainable access to natural resources, preserve biodiversity, minimize environmental impacts, and enhance ecosystem services

with professional skills and global competencies, including open mindset, initiative-taking perspective, problem-solving attitude, intercultural understanding, critical thinking, problem framing, adaptability.

EESIC will increase the awareness of engineers about the importance of environmental sustainability, providing them with the necessary knowledge and competences to:

• quantify and detect key drivers in complex systems;
• formulate alternative, environmentally friendly solutions that also ensure social inclusion and economic competitiveness.

EESIC will increase the ability to critically understand the socio-economic and cultural factors that mostly affect engineering design within environmental projects, by enhancing their ability to work with others from different contexts and by adopting viewpoints based on a novel understanding of local, real-world contexts.

Anthropogenic interventions can produce opportunities and threats on the fragile equilibrium between the natural and the built environment. EESIC aims at training future environmental engineers not only providing cutting-edge technical knowledge, but also nurturing their capability of dealing with complex and controversial situations, educating them to recognize the crucial role of the cultural milieu for the success of an intervention.

This is key for international cooperation for development, where knowledge of the local context controls the success or failure of technical projects, and also in any other engineering context in which conflicting interests, cultural acceptance, and other local factors play a crucial role. Training engineers to work in complex contexts, where the solution of the problem is not unique and not purely technical, is a challenge that higher education institutions must face.

EESIC Students who successfully fulfil each Partner’s requirement for graduation are awarded the following degrees:

• Mestrado em Engenharia do Ambiente, awarded by IST-UL.
• MSc in Engineering for Environmental Sustainability and International Cooperation, awarded by UPV.
• Laurea Magistrale in Ingegneria per l’Ambiente e il Territorio (LM-35 Environmental Engineering, according to the Italian Ministry of Higher Education and Research classification), awarded by UniTrento.

A Joint Diploma Supplement will be issued. In addition, an EESIC Joint Certificate will be provided to attest the participation to the EESIC Erasmus Mundus Joint Master.

Graduates of the EESIC programme possess a unique profile that combines advanced technical engineering skills with global socio-economic competencies, making them highly sought-after in the rapidly growing global green transition sector. Prepared to tackle complex environmental and climate-driven challenges with a pragmatic approach, EESIC alumni are qualified to take on technical, management, and decision-making roles across a wide range of international contexts:

• Engineering & Consulting Companies: designing sustainable water supply, drainage, and flood protection infrastructures, as well as implementing nature-based solutions, waste management, and pollution mitigation projects.
• International Organisations & NGOs: directing international cooperation for development projects, promoting climate adaptation strategies, and delivering tailored environmental and sanitation solutions in vulnerable or fast-developing regions.
• Governmental & Environmental Agencies: developing environmental policies, managing natural resources and biodiversity preservation, assessing environmental impacts, and enhancing community resilience against natural hazards.
• Academia & Applied Research: pursuing PhD programmes and advancing research on sustainability science, hydrogeological risk mitigation, and innovative environmental technologies.

With a strong problem-solving mindset, intercultural understanding, and critical thinking, EESIC graduates act as key change-agents capable of driving environmentally friendly, socially inclusive, and economically competitive solutions worldwide.

The Student Agreement is the single most critical document governing student's participation in the EESIC programme. It serves as a formal, legally binding contract between you and the EESIC Consortium (comprising the University of Trento, Instituto Superior Técnico, and Universitat Politècnica de València).

This document comprehensive regulates all aspects of your academic journey, including:

• mandatory mobility rules and academic schedule across the partner universities
• academic requirements, attendance obligations, and performance conditions
• fee structures, tuition regulations, and scholarship payment schedules/terms (where applicable)
• student rights, code of conduct, and overall administrative procedures

The Student Agreement for 2026-2028 edition is available in the PDF files below:
1. Admission as scholarship-holder
2. Admission as non-scholarship holder with reduced fees
3. Admission as non-scholarship holder with full fees

The Student Handbook serves as initial reference guide for the EESIC EMJM, as it outlines the core structure, academic standards, and support networks of our joint programme (Part A), as well as practical, localized guides for each partner institution (Part B).

The document is available in the PDF file below.