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Science for Sustainable Development, Master's Programme

120 credits

The future needs sustainable solutions to today’s societal challenges. In this programme, you explore how to create holistic solutions to complex problems by crossing disciplinary boundaries. Climate change, natural resource exploitation, increasing energy demand and inequality are among the global issues you will study.

Science for Sustainable Development, Master's programme - First and main admission round

Autumn 2025 / Full-time / Linköping

Science for Sustainable Development, Master's programme - First and main admission round

Autumn 2026 / Full-time / Linköping

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Application period 16 Oct - 15 Jan

Science for Sustainable Development, Master's programme - Second admission round (open only for Swedish/EU students)

Autumn 2026 / Full-time / Linköping

Science for Sustainable Development is a research-based master’s programme where you combine environmental policy, governance, strategy, and applied sustainability science. You learn to critically analyse environmental and social challenges and to design actionable, knowledge-based solutions that contribute to a more sustainable future.

Environmental strategy, resilience and sustainability in focus

Throughout the programme, you explore the complexity of building sustainable societies in alignment with the principles of sustainable development and Agenda 2030. You engage with environmental strategies and resilience and sustainability as key perspectives for understanding how societies can adapt and transform in the face of environmental change. You address global environmental challenges and societal transformations, apply scientific knowledge across academic disciplines, and develop interdisciplinary competence.

Develop skills for a career in sustainable development

Your studies enable you to interpret, design, communicate, and implement solutions to sustainability and environmental challenges – skills that will be indispensable for your future career as a sustainable development expert.

Hands-on learning and research integration

The core courses give you a broad perspective on sustainability and societal challenges while allowing you to deepen your theoretical knowledge and practical skills in specific scientific fields. Through field trips, laboratory and GIS exercises, and spatial analysis in the Norrköping Decision Arena, you connect theory and practice in sustainability.

You also take part in role-play activities, study visits to authorities and companies in the environmentally progressive Östergötland region and have the opportunity to complete an internship at a business, organisation or research institute in Sweden or abroad. Together with teaching staff, you develop skills in multidisciplinary research and gain experience in research-based methods.

Linköping University (LiU) offers a unique interdisciplinary perspective on sustainability that bridges academic disciplines and integrates advanced research in environmental sciences. You receive individual supervision from active researchers when designing, planning and completing your master’s thesis project.

Syllabus and course details

The programme runs over two years and encompasses 120 credits, including a thesis.

Semester 1

The focus of this semester is on environmental challenges and how sustainability science can address them. The changing earth system and environmental policy and governance are central themes.

Semester 2

This semester focuses on novel theories and analytical approaches to climate change, sustainability transformation and sustainable resource management. The course designing environmental studies in sustainable development lays the foundation for the students’ theses as well as their future professional work.

Semester 3

This semester is devoted to specialisation courses, where we offer a range of options to deepen the students’ knowledge and skills in, for example, visualising sustainability challenges and urban sustainability. We also have courses where students work closely with senior teaching staff to train specific research skills. 

Students can also perform an internship in Sweden or abroad where they carry out a specific task which links to the activities of the chosen organisation and the students’ future professional interests. Besides these courses there are also possibilities for students to study at other universities in Sweden or abroad.

Semester 4

In the final semester students write their master’s thesis. They carry out their thesis work, including research methods and analysis, in consultation with a thesis supervisor and the programme coordinator.

Further information

A detailed syllabus, curriculum and information on courses, including literature, can be found in our Study Information database via the link below. For entry requirements and tuition fees, please click the ”Admission requirements” tab at the top of the page.
Syllabus and curriculum

Videos

Link to recorded webinar about the master's programme Science for Sustainable Development

Webinar

This webinar covers the programme structure, the master’s thesis, examination forms, job opportunities, related research, and what it’s like to live in Sweden.

Link to a film about the master's programme Science for Sustainable Development

About the programme

MSc Science for Sustainable development - Laboratory work, GIS exercises, spatial analysis, interview workshops and political negotiation role-plays are just some of the ways through which you will learn how to tackle real world problems.

Link to recorded interview with Mary, student at the Master's Programme Science for Sustainable Development

Meet Mary

Meet our international student Mary and hear what she has to say about the programme and life in Sweden.

Career opportunities

Sustainability challenges require diverse expertise and the ability to work across disciplines – skills you develop at LiU. The programme provides a strong basis for a career in sustainable development and environmental sciences.

Graduates from Science for Sustainable Development work in research institutes, universities, environmental organisations, NGOs, consultancies, river basin commissions, power companies, intergovernmental agencies and PhD programmes around the world. Few universities offer the same breadth of interdisciplinary perspectives in environmental sciences as Linköping University, with teachers representing the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and engineering.

Alumni insights

Lewis Mc Namee, alumn from the master's programme Science for Sustainable Devlopment

Lewis chose LiU to focus on sustainability

The creativity and self-motivated drive I learned in my master's studies really helped me. It has pushed me to continually improve my skillsets and learn new things, as well as to be confident in making my own opinion known, backed up by evidence.
Portrait of a dark-haired young woman in a light blue sweater against a grey wall

In search of tomorrow's leaders who can change the world

Through her master's studies, Anna gained a broader perspective on sustainable development. This, together with the international aspect of the programme makes her feel well equipped to take on future challenges.

Learning environment

Our programme contains the following characteristics:

  • Unique environment: We are one of few universities to offer a broad interdisciplinary perspective of environmental sciences, from humanities to social- and natural sciences. Courses are designed in close dialogue with potential employers as well as students to ensure that the contents address current environmental problems and future challenges.

  • Strong research links: The connection between the programme and research is strong, as all teachers engage in environmental and sustainability research. This ensures teaching of the latest theoretical and methodological knowledge and research findings.

  • High-quality teaching: The teachers continuously work on improving the quality of their courses according to student feedback and discussions with student representatives in the programme Council.

  • High teacher-student ratio: This high ratio ensures rapid and personal feedback from teachers, close interaction between teachers and students and student-active learning.
Video
  • Strong professional links: Through casework and learning activities, students engage with individuals in nearby environmental authorities and research institutes and concretely work with real-world problems and societally relevant issues.

  • Problem-based activities: Students acquire a broad set of competencies throughout the programme. They also have opportunity to specialise in social sciences, natural sciences or humanities. A vast majority of our students have an environment-relevant job or continue within academia within one year of graduation.

  • Student-centred/active learning: Student-centred learning activities include exercises in the Norrköping Decision Arena that makes use of visualisation as a strong tool for interaction and decision-making, role-play where students represent organisations with different perspectives and interests in actual issues, and various types of communication techniques.

News

Students from the master's programme Science for Sustainable Development on an excursion in the woods

Excursions - a meaningful way to connect theory and practice

In a world facing increasing environmental challenges, sustainable resource management is a key factor. The master's programme Science for Sustainable Development provides students with both theoretical studies and hands-on experience.
Autumn at the Campus Valla and bikes.

She took on the challenge of creating climate-neutral campuses

How can university campuses become climate-neutral? Students came together to address this question in the first ECIU Strategic Challenge. One of them was Juliane Maria Kraskes from the master’s programme Science for Sustainable Development.
Picture of student

Filip – Making a difference in climate change

Amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are rising, and with them the global temperature. LiU master's student Filip Seifarth is hoping to do something about climate change.
Emily Rodriguez at Tekniska Verken in Linköping.

She works to reduce carbon dioxide emissions

Emily Rodriguez came to Linköping from the US in 2011. She earned a master’s in environmental science and left to work in Rome, New York and Brussels before returning to LiU. She’s back here now, working on her doctoral thesis.

Research

The Master’s degree Science for Sustainable Development provides candidates with the opportunity to broaden their academic and research experience through research collaborations at Linköping University.

The Department of Thematic Studies - Environmental Change is also known as conducts research, doctoral studies and undergraduate education on current environmental challenges and the changing nature of the environmental condition. Research and education focuses on the impact that society and the individual have on nature.

Tema M builds on the strong tradition of interdisciplinary environmental studies that have permeated the division of Water and Environmental Studies (Tema V) since 1980 and the Centre for Climate Science and Policy Research (CSPR) since 2004. Tema M further develop and profile these studies in relation to contemporary environmental science and environmental policy development. Current research is conducted within and between these interdisciplinary long-term focus areas.

Centre for Climate Science and Policy Research (CSPR) has rapidly established itself as a prominent reference point for studies related to climate science and policy research. The research is interdisciplinary and puts problems related to climate change in context with other measures for sustainable development, such as limiting environmental impact and responsible management of natural resources.
Flooding.

Climate Change

Climate change, one of today’s most difficult challenges. The research follows two main tracks. Climate policy in a broader sense and the other one climate-biogeochemistry, particularly with regard to the emission of greenhouse gases.
wind turbine

Environmental Challenge Energy Supply

Secure access to renewable energy is a prerequisite for sustainable social development. Current energy production and consumption have strong links with many of the tough environmental and social problems of our time.
pile of books

Environmental Challenge Knowledge for Sustainable Development

We study how knowledge of today's environmental and developmental challenges comes about and is represented and legitimised in different contexts such as education, research practices, media and policy processes
Plastic bottles

Environmental Challenge - Resource Use

Management of natural resources is about water management, land use and nutrient flows, as well as sustainable energy production. In case studies we develop and improve analytical tools and frameworks for improved resource management.
Small bottles in a lab environment

Substance Flows and Pollution

Many of the chemicals that we use every day are toxic to humans. The concern for these chemicals’ increasing environmental impact requires strengthened monitoring. To estimate emissions and greenhouse gas balance is another part of this challenge.

Application & admission

Application document checklist

  1. Diploma(s) of your degree(s) from an internationally recognized university, or a Final year certificate.
  2. Transcripts of completed courses and grades for each semester included in your degree. If you have had courses credited/transferred from previous studies, you must also submit official transcripts for those courses.
  3. Proof that you meet the specific entry requirements, for example relevant pages of course syllabuses (course descriptions), if the required courses/subjects are not clearly stated on your transcript.
  4. Proof of English language proficiency.
  5. A copy of your passport.


Much of what you need to submit – and how – is based on where you completed your studies. Find out how to do things right on University Admission: Country instructions!

University Admissions: Provide application documents

Letters of intent or recommendation are not required.

Related information

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How to apply for master's degree studies at LiU

A step-by-step guide to everything you need to know about applying for LiU's international master's degree programmes using the application system in Sweden.
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Master's level requirements

In order to be considered for admission for a master's degree programme at Linköping University you must meet certain general and specific entry requirements.
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Supporting documentation

Along with submitting an online application, you must submit a number of supporting documents that show that you meet the general and specific entry requirements.

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