About the degree programme

Our Advanced Chemical Engineering programme will enable you to address the frontiers of important global challenges.

You will learn about diverse and cutting-edge developments, from carbon capture to sustainable water resources and alternative energy technologies to advanced pharmaceutical processes.

We place a particular emphasis on multi-scale approaches and integrated solutions to chemical engineering problems, from the nano-scale to the process-scale.

You will deepen your knowledge through opportunities to:

  • learn from leading experts across the breadth of our Chemical Engineering discipline
  • explore industrial processes, with an emphasis on design and energy efficiency
  • acquire technical and human skills
  • implement solutions to actual chemical engineering problems
  • hone your communication skills to present your original achievements
     

Programme rankings

  • The School of Engineering is consistently ranked in the UK's top 10 universities for engineering (Times Higher Education rankings by subject 2025 and QS World University rankings by subject 2025)
  • The School of Engineering’s joint submission with Heriot-Watt University in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF) was ranked 1st in Scotland and 3rd in the UK by Times Higher Education, based on the quality and breadth of our combined research
  • The University of Edinburgh is ranked 7th in the world and 2nd in the UK for sustainability, recognising our leadership in creating a more sustainable world (2025 QS World University Rankings)

Tuition fees

Tuition fees by award and duration

Tuition fees for full-time and part-time options are listed for one academic year.

Full-time

Graduate discount

If you are a University of Edinburgh graduate, you will be eligible for a 10% discount on your tuition fees for this programme. You may also be eligible if you were a visiting undergraduate student.

Find out how to receive your graduate discount

Deposit

If you receive an offer of admission you will need to pay a deposit to secure your place:

  • £1,500 (this contributes towards your tuition fees)

How and when to pay the deposit

Costs

Additional programme costs

You may wish to consider purchasing your own laptop, however you can also make use of our laptop and internet loan services for free while studying with us.

IT Requirements and Support

Accommodation and living costs

You need to cover your accommodation and living costs for the duration of your programme.

We estimate that you might spend £1,167 to £2,330 per month if you are a single student.

Living costs include:

  • food
  • utility bills
  • travel, clothes, books and stationery
  • recreational costs (for example, TV subscriptions and social events)

Living costs

Accommodation costs depend on where you live while studying and the type of accommodation you choose.

University postgraduate accommodation options and costs

Funding opportunities

These entry requirements are for the 2026-27 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2027-28 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2026.

Qualifications

A UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in chemical engineering or a closely related field such as process, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, food, materials engineering, industrial chemistry, or chemical technology. We may also consider your application if you have a degree in an adjacent field.

International qualifications

To find international equivalent qualifications, select where you studied from the country or region list.

English language requirements

You must prove that your English language abilities are at a high enough level to study this degree programme.

This is the case for all applicants, including UK nationals.

You can meet our English language requirements with one of the following:

  • an English language test
  • a degree that was taught and assessed in English
  • certain professional qualifications

English language tests we accept

We accept any of the following English language tests, at the specified grade or higher:

  • IELTS Academic: total 6.5 with at least 6.0 in each component. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
  • TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 92 with at least 20 in each component We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
  • C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 176 with at least 169 in each component.
  • Trinity ISE: ISE II with distinctions in all four components.
  • Oxford ELLT: total 7 with at least 6 in each component.
  • Oxford Test of English Advanced: total 145 with at least 135 in each component.
How old your English language tests can be
Tests no more than two years old

The following English language tests must be no more than two years old on the 1st of the month in which your programme starts, regardless of your nationality:

  • IELTS Academic
  • TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition)
  • Trinity ISE
  • Oxford ELLT
  • Oxford Test of English Advanced
Tests no more than three and a half years old

All other English language tests must be no more than three and a half years old on the 1st of the month in which your programme starts, regardless of your nationality.   

Degrees taught and assessed in English

We accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English-speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration.

UKVI list of majority English speaking countries

We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English-speaking countries (non-MESC).

Approved universities in non-MESC

How old your degree can be

If you are not a national of a majority English-speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old on the 1st of the month in which your programme starts.

This time limit does not apply to your degree if you are a national of a majority English-speaking country.

Find out more about our English language requirements

Find out about other English language qualifications we accept, including professional qualifications.

English language requirements

What you will study

The programme runs over 12 months. You will take two semesters of taught courses, followed by work on a research project during the summer months, leading to the submission of your masters dissertation.

The courses correspond to 120 credits of taught material, plus 60 credits for the dissertation. 

Research project and dissertation

After the completion of your taught courses, you will focus exclusively on a research project and dissertation over the summer, under the supervision of an academic member of staff. All our dissertation projects have industrial and research relevance to reflect the latest trends and challenges in industry and research.

We offer a wide range of topics including:

  • novel processes and materials for carbon capture and storage against climate change
  • innovative solutions for energy storage and fuels
  • efficient process systems for pharmaceuticals, food and drink manufacturing
  • modern concepts and prototypes in healthcare, biomedicine and biotechnology

Find courses for this programme

Find out what courses you can study on this programme and how each of them are taught and assessed.

The courses on offer may change from year to year, but the course information will give you an idea of what to expect on this programme.

Full-time

We link to the latest information available. This may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.

Teaching and assessment

Teaching

You will learn through a combination of:

  • taught modules
  • coursework
  • design projects
  • guest lectures
  • workshops
  • your MSc research dissertation
  • a number of career-supporting activities

Learning outcomes

We want you to become critical thinkers, adaptive learners and professional and ethical engineers. We will support you to:

  • develop critical skills for comparative literature evaluation on a topic of interest
  • acquire a working knowledge of modern modelling/simulation approaches at a molecular level
  • gain a working knowledge of advanced experimental techniques within the context of MSc research projects (e.g. particle image velocimetry, IR spectroscopy, infra-red thermography)
  • transform chemical engineering problems into suitable mathematical representations
  • understand numerical methods and tools for solving problems, and their limitations
  • become proficient in using advanced design approaches for diverse processes (e.g. energy, separation)
  • transfer and implement engineering principles to other fields (e.g. biology, medicine)
  • use a wide range of modern numerical and chemical engineering software
  • foster autonomous work and decisions, self-motivated training and critical evaluation skills
  • cultivate professional communication, human skills and peer review and interaction

Support for your studies

You will have access to a range of support services if you need them throughout your degree.

We will assign you to a student adviser, and this should be the first person to contact if you need help. They can guide you to other University service teams depending on what support you need.  

How we support you

Our academic staff

As an MSc student at the School of Engineering, you will be immersed in a research-intensive, multidisciplinary environment, with many opportunities to interact with academics, researchers and PhD students from a range of programmes and institutes across our vibrant community.

Find out more about our research:

Research at the School of Engineering

Accreditation

The programme is accredited by the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE). This recognition from an independent professional body gives students and employers confidence in the quality of our programme.

Accreditation for CEng (Further Learning) means that our graduates who are seeking to become Chartered Engineers can count the MSc in Advanced Chemical Engineering as one year of further learning when applying for the Chartered Engineer status.

Accreditation by IChemE is awarded through a renewal-based and periodic accreditation review process which is currently underway for academic year 2026/2027 onwards. 

Career opportunities

Our graduates enjoy diverse career opportunities in areas such as:

  • pharmaceuticals
  • healthcare and biotech
  • food and drink
  • oil and gas, energy
  • specialty chemicals
  • consumer products
  • banking and finance
  • management consulting

Further study

After completing this programme, you may wish to consider applying for a PhD or other research programme.

Applying for research degrees

Moving on to a PhD (advice from the University's Careers Service)

Careers Service

Our Careers Service can help you to fully develop your potential and achieve your future goals. 

The Careers Service supports you not only while you are studying at the University, but also for up to two years after you finish your studies. 

With the Careers Service, you can: 

  • access digital resources to help you understand your skills and strengths
  • try different types of experiences and reflect on how and what you develop
  • get help finding work, including part-time jobs, vacation work, internships and graduate jobs
  • attend careers events and practice interviews
  • get information and advice to help you make informed decisions 

How to apply

You apply online for this programme. After you read the application guidance, select your preferred programme, then choose 'Start your application' to begin.

If you are considering applying to more than one programme, you should be aware that we cannot consider more than 3 applications from the same applicant.

When to apply

Programme start date Application deadline
14 September 2026 30 August 2026

We encourage you to apply at least one month prior to entry so that we have enough time to process your application. If you are also applying for funding or will require a visa then we strongly recommend you apply as early as possible.

When to submit your supporting documents

You must submit all supporting documents by the application deadline, or we will be unable to consider your application. Regardless of when you apply, you have 28 days from submitting your application to supply any supporting documents through the Application Hub, after which we will automatically reject your application.

Application fee

There is no fee to apply to this programme.

What you need to apply

As part of your online application, you will need to provide: 

You will also need to submit some or all of the following supporting documents:

When you start your application, you will be able to see the full list of documents you need to provide.

References

You must submit one reference with your application.

Apply

Select the award, duration and delivery mode you want to study. Then select the start date you want to apply for.

After you apply

Once you have applied for this programme, you will be able to track the progress of your application and accept or decline any offers.

Checking the status of your application

We will notify you by email once we have made a decision. Due to the large number of applications we receive, it might take a while until you hear from us.

Receiving our decision

What to do if you receive an offer:

Academic Technology Approval Scheme

If you need to apply for a student visa, you may need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme clearance certificate in order to study this programme.

Academic Technology Approval Scheme

Accommodation

We guarantee an offer of University accommodation for all new, single postgraduate taught students from outside the UK and new, single postgraduate research (typically PhD) students who:

  • apply for accommodation by 31 July in the year when you start your programme
  • accept an unconditional firm offer to study at the University by 31 July
  • study at the University for the whole of the academic year starting in September

University accommodation website

Accommodation guarantee criteria

We also offer accommodation options for couples and families.

Accommodation for couples and families

If you prefer to live elsewhere, we can offer you advice on finding accommodation in Edinburgh.

Accommodation information from the Edinburgh University Students' Association Advice Place

Societies and clubs

Our societies and sports clubs will help you develop your interests, meet like-minded people, find a new hobby or simply socialise.

Societies

Sport Clubs

The city of Edinburgh

Scotland's inspiring capital will form the background to your studies — a city with an irresistible blend of history, natural beauty and modern city life. 

Find out more about living in Edinburgh

Health and wellbeing support

You will have access to free health and wellbeing services throughout your time at university if you need them.

The support services we offer include: 

  • a student counselling service
  • a health centre (doctor's surgery)
  • support if you're living in University accommodation
  • dedicated help and support if you have a disability or need adjustments

Health and wellbeing support services 

Disability and Learning Support