Climate Futures: Science, Society and Politics MSc

Course overview

Climate change has become one of the most defining crises of our time, affecting every corner of the world. From extreme weather to food and water insecurity, the future of our planet relies on qualified specialists to deliver solutions to help combat these problems.

Our Climate Futures Masters will provide you with a holistic understanding of the climate crisis, delivering the scientific, social and political approaches you’ll need to respond creatively and effectively to the unprecedented, complex and dynamic challenges of a changing climate.

The transdisciplinary design of this course means you’ll be engaging with multiple perspectives from world-leading climate experts across the University— giving you a comprehensive and extensive skill set that’ll enable you to challenge failed strategies and provide innovative solutions going forward. You’ll be taught by academics and researchers who are dedicated to providing and questioning climate problems and solutions and are directly engaged in a wide variety of groundbreaking research surrounding the climate crisis, meaning you’ll be at the helm of conceptual debates and innovations as they happen.

Here at Leeds, we also offer a uniquely active, immersive learning experience with the chance to put theory into practice and get involved in exciting, climate-based projects across the campus, city and beyond.

This means that, once you graduate, you’ll be equipped with the in-depth knowledge, skills and practical experience that’ll empower you to contribute towards meaningful climate action and pursue a challenging yet rewarding career that contributes to more sustainable and just climate futures.

Applying

Entry requirements

A bachelor degree with a 2:1 (hons) in any subject.

International

We accept a range of international equivalent qualifications. For more information, please contact the Admissions Team.

English language requirements

IELTS 6.5 overall, with no less than 6.0 in any component. For other English qualifications, read English language equivalent qualifications.

Improve your English

International students who do not meet the English language requirements for this programme may be able to study our postgraduate pre-sessional English course, to help improve your English language level.

This pre-sessional course is designed with a progression route to your degree programme and you’ll learn academic English in the context of your subject area. To find out more, read Language for Science (6 weeks) and Language for Science: General Science (10 weeks).

We also offer online pre-sessionals alongside our on-campus pre-sessionals. Find out more about our six week online pre-sessional and our 10 week online pre-sessional.

You can also study pre-sessionals for longer periods – read about our postgraduate pre-sessional English courses.

Career opportunities

The climate crisis has become one of the greatest challenges of our time. It’s a multidimensional problem that needs to be treated as such to reach holistic solutions for the future.

Because this MSc takes a transdisciplinary approach, you’ll have the broad knowledge base surrounding the three critical areas needed to tackle climate change: climate science, social studies and political systems/theories. You’ll also be equipped with lifelong skills for collaborative problem solving and teamwork. The sheer scope of skills and understanding you’ll learn could give you the edge when you graduate and open a lot of doors in terms of career opportunities in industry.

From research to media communications, governmental institutions to NGOs, your specialist yet transferable skill set means you won’t be limited to just one career path choice – with the potential to make a real difference to the future of the world.

University of Leeds students are among the top 5 most targeted by top employers according to The Graduate Market 2024, High Fliers Research, meaning our graduates are highly sought after by some of the most reputable companies in the field.

Here's some examples of the job roles that could be available to you when you graduate:

• Climate Science Advisors
• Policy Officers
• Civil Service Social Researchers and Analysts
• Stakeholder and Community Engagement Officers
• Corporate Social Responsibility Officers
• Communications Officers/Managers
• Environmental Campaigners
• Educators and teachers
• Partnership Managers
• Supply Chain Managers
• Risk Managers
• Project and Programme Managers