Master of Science in Chemistry (Analytical and Environmental Chemistry)
We owe a great part of our quality of life to the development of sciences, and chemistry in particular. Its influence spans numerous different branches, such as medicine, biology, agriculture, etc. The impact of chemistry is also omnipresent in the industrial world. Almost every branch of industry is confronted with chemistry at some level: in the production process, in quality control, in product improvement, waste processing …
Our students choose one of three main subjects: Analytical and Environmental Chemistry, (Bio)Organic and Polymer Chemistry, Materials and Nanochemistry.
What
Analytical and Environmental Chemistry focuses on chemical analysis. You learn to identify elements, molecules and chemical/physical structures in complex materials and objects, from paintings and archaeological artefacts to meteorites and environmental samples. We offer this main subject in collaboration with Vrije Universiteit Brussel. The emphasis is specifically on geo- and cosmochemistry, and environmental analysis. An important aspect is the identification and acceptance of environmental and climate challenges. Our programme prepares you for a career as a chemist in the increasingly diverse analysis labs, whose social and industrial strategic importance never stops growing in today’s high-tech society.
For whom
The admission requirements vary. Depending on your prior education, you are either able to enrol directly, or there are additional requirements.
Structure
Half of the curriculum consists of project-based education. Already in the first-year curriculum, you will take a start with your Master’s dissertation. You end the Master’s programme with a full-term work placement, which you can complete at a company or a foreign research laboratory.
In addition to the (domain) Master’s programme described above, you can also choose a Master’s Programme in Teaching (in Dutch: Educatieve Master). The Educatieve Master, however, is a Dutch-taught programme. Find out more at www.ugent.be/educatievemaster (in Dutch).Labour Market
It is a fact that chemistry plays an important role in various branches of industry, which in turn, are crucial to the economy and employment. Take, for instance, the chemical industry, the pharmaceutical industry, or agriculture.
Our broad academic programme ensures that our graduates find employment opportunities in different branches of industry.
Their career opportunities are as ample as they are diverse. Chemistry graduates can for instance be involved in academic research, product development, quality control … or they can take on managerial positions in companies as well as in government agencies. In addition, they are also well-equipped for a career in the public sector, including education. The most important assets of university graduates in Chemistry are their research-mindedness, their problem-solving skills and their polyvalence.
Quality Assurance
At Ghent University, we strive to educate people who dare to think about the challenges of tomorrow. For that purpose, we provide education that is embedded in six strategic objectives: Think Broadly, Keep Researching, Cultivate Talent, Contribute, Extend Horizons, Opt for Quality.
Ghent University continuously focuses on quality assurance and quality culture. The Ghent University's quality assurance system offers information on each study programme’s unique selling points, and on its strengths and weaknesses with regard to quality assurance.
More information:
Unique Selling Points
- Broad talent development: we offer our students a solid science education based on a wide range of knowledge, skills and attitudes, including experimentation, modelling and simulation, entrepreneurship, sustainability, critical and creative thought, and co-operation.
- State-of-the-art research: our study programme has a long-standing tradition of state-of-the-art international research, in which we involve our students from the very beginning. The strong interrelation between research and education becomes apparent, e.g., in the work placement opportunities, as well as in the Bachelor’s and Master’s dissertation.
- Active co-operation: our students appreciate the innovative and project-based approach or our lecturers, all of whom have internationally recognised research expertise. They are particularly appreciative of the low-threshold contacts between students, lecturers, and PhD students.
- Student-centred approach: student appreciation for our thoroughly revised Bachelor’s and Master’s curriculum is high. The new curricula are versatile, future-oriented and they allow for a significant degree of curricular freedom based on the students’ personal interests, talents and ambitions. The Master’s curriculum is fully English-taught. By means of three main subjects, the curriculum leaves room for professional as well as further in-depth training.
- Future-oriented approach: in terms of future employment, students see an important added value in the English-taught Master’s programme. Our graduates find work quickly in various (international) sectors and profiles in research (PhD), industry or education.
Strengths
- Vision and programme: our study programme has a strong future-oriented vision on chemistry, which takes into account the wide range of career opportunities in the field. We have translated that vision into a curriculum in which chemistry is covered in all its aspects, focusing on broad and in-depth knowledge, and on scientific skills and attitudes
- Participation: systematic quality improvement based on (student) feedback is part of our DNA. Our students, for instance, are actively involved in the day-to-day management of the programme, and our curricular revision is the result of thorough consultations with all our (external) stakeholders.
- Assessment: we use various active assessment methods, which evolve throughout the curriculum as the students grow more independent. The Bachelor’s and Master’s dissertation are high-profile final papers.
- Openness: we place great store by the low-threshold and dynamic culture that exists among lecturers, students and the professional field, and their involvement in our education policy. All of our lecturers are passionate professionals.
- Promoting chemistry: we actively reach out to secondary schools and have various initiatives for bringing secondary school pupils into contact with the beauty of chemistry. In addition, we actively promote chemistry in wider society and international contexts.
Challenges
- We want to strengthen our individuality further vis-à-vis (international) students, graduates and the professional field by means of our advisory group, staff mobility and network events.
- We want to contribute actively to the reorganization and renewal of a state-of-the-art infrastructure for our practicals.
- The Master’s curriculum has been thoroughly revised, including the introduction of three main subjects, and an industrial or academic international work placement. This new curriculum is continuously assessed and updated, with a focus on the use of digital teaching methods.
This study programme is accredited by the Accreditation Organization of the Netherlands and Flanders (Dutch: NVAO). Accreditation was extended following the positive outcome of the institutional review in 2022. Programme quality was validated by a quality review, i.e. a screening of the Education Monitor by the Education Quality Board. The Quality Assurance Resolution (in Dutch) can be found here.
This information was last updated on 01/02/2023.
In case of questions or suggestions with regard to the publicly available information, please contact the study programme.