Conditions of enrolment

Online enrolment at the Admissions Service;

For information on course contents, please contact the Master's Coordinator:

Prof. Pietro de Anna

For information regarding admissions and administrative questions, please contact:

Christine Eden

You can register until April 30^th for starting our Master in the autumn 

Our Master's programme always starts in autumn. It is not possible to start in the spring.
For candidates needing a visa to study in Switzerland, the deadline is February 28^th

Students wishing to be automatically admitted to the study program preparing for the Master's degree in Environmental Science have to satisfy the conditions of admission of the University of Lausanne and be in possession of:

• a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in the study areas of Environmental science or Earth science (swissuniversities) of a Swiss university
   
• a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in another study area, issued by a Swiss or foreign University and judged to be equivalent by the Admissions service

If the Bachelor of Science (BSc) was not obtained as mentioned above, the scientific Committee may propose the admission of the candidate without a study complement or subject to a study complement which should not exceed 60 ECTS credits  (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System).

• If the study complement does not exceed 15 ECTS, candidates are admitted subject to the condition that the study complement is validated during the first year of the Master program
   
• If the study complement exceeds 15 ECTS, candidates are admitted subject to the condition that the study complement is validated before starting the Master program (this implies a delay of one academic year)
   
• If the study complement exceeds 60 ECTS, the candidate is refused.

The faculty regulations and study plans further specify these details and they are the legally binding texts.

Background necessary to follow the Master in Environmental Sciences

If you have a Bachelor degree (120 ECTS) in Geosciences, or in an equivalent domain, you should have the necessary background. Otherwise, consider that to take the classes listed in the MSc study plan, a student should have general knowledge on (see the syllabus below for more details):

1. Mathematics
2. Probability and statistics
3. Physics
4. Chemistry
5. Hydrology & geomorphology

Some technical skills are also essential for this Master.

1. Computer programming. Content of “Modélisation numérique”: MATLAB /PYTHON, but proficiency in any scientific/engineering programming language is enough to succeed (look also https://wp.unil.ch/risk/online-resources/). Syllabus of «Modélisation numérique »
2. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and cartography (practical experience)

Orientation A - Aquatic science

Suggested reading reading to prepare you for the Master:

• "Wetzel's Limnology, Lake and River Ecosystems" by Ian Jones, John Smol

Orientation B - Natural hazards and risk

Suggested reading reading to prepare you for the Master:

• "Near-Surface Applied Geophysics" by Everett.
• "Hillslope Materials and Processes" by Selby.
• "Risk: An Introduction: The Concepts of Risk, Danger and Chance" by Ale.
• "Environmental Hazards: Assessing Risk and Reducing Disaster" by Smith.

Orientation C - Earth surface processes in mountain environments

Suggested reading reading to prepare you for the Master:

• "Geomorphology: The Mechanics and Chemistry of Landscapes" by Anderson R. and Anderson S.  – 2010 Cambridge University Press

Syllabus_Bachelor  (86 Ko)