Applications are open for entry in October 2021 to the University of Warwick Tunnelling and Underground Space MSc programme. The industry-led Masters Degree programme provides a direct route into careers in underground planning, design, construction and operation for graduates with backgrounds in civil engineering, engineering geology and mining engineering. Modules are delivered in one-week blocks to allow full-time study over 12 months, or part-time over two to three years.
The highly successful higher education course, introduced 10 years ago and open to applicants from the world over, was paused in 2020 due to the global pandemic. The course was co-created and supported by the BTS British Tunnelling Society, which is represented on the course Steering Committee, and is endorsed by the ITA, International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association. A bursary of up to £20,000 is available from the BTS to applicants who register by April 2021. The bursaries are subject to eligibility criteria and there are other funding opportunities to support applicants. For those unable to commit to the full MSc curriculum and for those who wish to focus on specific subjects of interest, the programme offers Postgraduate Diploma and Certificate accreditations.
The module content of the programme reflects the full life cycle of an underground project from ground investigation to design and construction method selection, procurement and construction management. Understanding risks to projects from ground variability and third-party constraints is a key theme. As numerical analysis becomes ubiquitous in design, it delivers state-of-the-art teaching in finite element methods and how to achieve from them reliable results.
Numerous eminent speakers from industry deliver lectures, ensuring the programme keeps pace with current best-practice across all disciplines. New topics for 2021 will include tunnel operations, digital engineering and sustainability. The plan also, Covid-19 permitting, is for more site visits and laboratory demonstrations of the latest products and technology for tunnelling.
During 2021, the programme will be offering three- and five-day online CPD Continuing Professional Development courses on Safety in Tunnelling, Tunnel Design, Construction Methods and Numerical Modelling.
Details of the courses, profiles of former students, and admissions procedures are on the course website. For enquiries and to know how to become involved in a teaching, learning or research capacity, email Course Director Dr Alan Bloodworth. And join the Tunnelling and Underground Space at the University of Warwick LinkedIn group.