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MSc Environmental Economics and Environmental Management

Explore sustainable solutions for environmental problems

Year of entry: 2025 (September)

Length

1 year full-time,
2 years part-time

Start date

September 2025 (semester dates)

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Develop the skills needed by today's environmental managers, policymakers, consultants and scientists to tackle environmental issues at local, regional and global levels.

Our Masters in Environmental Economics and Environmental Management prepares you for a wide range of careers across the public and private sectors. Equally, it provides a good basis for further study at PhD level.

You’ll gain knowledge of environmental and ecological economics and the interactions between economic, social and ecological systems. At the end of the course, you'll be equipped to incorporate environmental feedback into economic decision making in a way that satisfies both ecological managers and economists.

This course is suitable for students from a wide range of backgrounds, including economics, human geography, business, sociology, politics, environmental science and more. You'll be taught by a range of interdisciplinary staff with varied environmental research interests.

Course content

You’ll get to choose whether to specialise more in an economic or natural science direction, and can choose a dissertation project in either area (also with a placement option). Whichever pathway you choose, you’ll develop as an effective interdisciplinary thinker, able to bridge diverse disciplines to help tackle the climate and ecological emergencies: the defining issues of our times.

Modules

Core modules

Option modules

You will study two option modules. Examples can be found below. Some option module combinations may not be possible. The options available to you will be confirmed after you begin your course.

Our modules may change to reflect the latest academic thinking and expertise of our staff, and in line with Department/School academic planning.

The York approach

Every course at York is built on a distinctive set of learning outcomes. These will give you a clear understanding of what you will be able to accomplish at the end of the course and help you explain what you can offer employers. Our academics identify the knowledge, skills, and experiences you'll need upon graduation and then design the course to get you there.

Fees and funding

Annual tuition fees for 2025/26

Study modeUK (home)International and EU
Full-time (1 year) £11,200£25,900

Students on a Student Visa are not currently permitted to study part-time at York.

Fees information

UK (home) or international fees? The level of fee that you will be asked to pay depends on whether you're classed as a UK (home) or international student. Check your fee status.

Find out more information about tuition fees and how to pay them.

Funding information

Discover your funding options to help with tuition fees and living costs.

We'll confirm more funding opportunities for students joining us in 2025/26 throughout the year.

If you've successfully completed an undergraduate degree at York you could be eligible for a 10% Masters fee discount.

Funding opportunities

Chevening Scholarships

We are pleased to work with Chevening Scholars to offer funding for our Masters programmes. Chevening Scholarships provide one year of fully-funded postgraduate study in the UK for international (including EU) students. The scholarships are open to early and mid-career professionals who have the potential to become future leaders.

Living costs

You can use our living costs guide to help plan your budget. It covers additional costs that are not included in your tuition fee such as expenses for accommodation and study materials.

Teaching and assessment

You’ll work with world‐leading academics who’ll challenge you to think independently and excel in all that you do. Our approach to teaching will provide you with the knowledge, opportunities, and support you need to grow and succeed in a global workplace.

Teaching format

This Masters combines formal lectures, practicals, seminars and field trips.

  • Guest lecturers from external organisations, including other universities and environmental organisations, provide a view of the current state of environmental economics and environmental management.
  • You'll use the University's Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) to supplement lectures and practicals with additional material.
  • Some modules offer optional drop-in help sessions.

Our teaching and research span the natural social and economic sciences in an integrated way. Postgraduate teaching is informed by our research which includes work in areas as diverse as coral reefs, tropical rain forests, atmospheric science, pollution, biodiversity conservation and wildlife management, and the culture and values that drive environmental behaviour, politics and economics. As part of our teaching process we have also embedded a range of employability principles, as well as real world solutions and real-world oriented approaches, to help prepare our students for a range of careers after finishing their degree.

Facilities

 

Our state-of-the-art building contains purpose-built labs, lecture theatre and seminar rooms.

Teaching location

You will be based in the Department of Environment and Geography on Campus West.

Most of your contact hours will be in the Department, with some additional teaching on Campus West.

About our campus

Our beautiful green campus offers a student-friendly setting in which to live and study, within easy reach of the action in the city centre. It's easy to get around campus - everything is within walking or pedalling distance, or you can always use the fast and frequent bus service.

Assessment and feedback

Types of assessment in this course include:

  • examinations
  • essays of around 3,000 words
  • models, maps and accompanying reports
  • presentations
  • 8,000-word dissertation

Formative assessment as you study modules will allow you to receive feedback on your progress and understanding.

Careers and skills

You'll develop the skills and knowledge you will need to follow an environmental career in both the public and private sectors. The Masters in Environmental Economics and Environmental Management also provides an ideal basis to progress to further study at PhD.

Career opportunities

  • Economic advisor
  • Energy analyst
  • Environmental economist
  • Research assistant
  • Technical consultant
  • Asset strategy planner

Transferable skills

You'll develop a range of transferable skills during the course, including:

  • Geographic and information systems skills
  • Environmental impact assessment
  • Qualitative and quantitative methods
  • Design of protected areas
  • Practical experience designing and conducting field-based surveys
  • Econometric analysis of natural resource management
  • Valuation of ecosystem services

Entry requirements

Typical offer
Undergraduate degree 2:2 or equivalent. We will also consider your application if you have relevant work experience. Ideally you will have studied both some ecology and some economics as part of your degree but applications from students from either discipline are welcome. If you did not have a significant quantitative component to your degree you may also be considered with a requirement to attend a Summer School in Microeconomics and Quantitative Methods.
International pre-masters programme Pre-masters from our International Pathway College
Other international qualifications Equivalent qualifications from your country

English language

If English isn't your first language you may need to provide evidence of your English language ability. We accept the following qualifications:

Minimum requirement
IELTS (Academic and Indicator) 6.5, minimum 6.0 in each component
Cambridge CEFR B2 First: 176, with 169 in each component
Oxford ELLT 7, minimum of 6 in each component
Oxford Test of English Advanced 136, minimum 126 in each component
Duolingo 120, minimum 105 in all other components
LanguageCert SELT B2 with 33/50 in each component
LanguageCert Academic 70 with a minimum of 65 in each component
Kaplan Test of English Language 478-509, with 444-477 in all other components
Skills for English B2: Merit overall, with Pass with Merit in each component
PTE Academic 61, minimum 55 in each component
TOEFL 87, minimum 21 in each component
Trinity ISE III Merit in all components

For more information see our postgraduate English language requirements.

If you haven't met our English language requirements

You may be eligible for one of our pre-sessional English language courses. These courses will provide you with the level of English needed to meet the conditions of your offer.

The length of course you need to take depends on your current English language test scores and how much you need to improve to reach our English language requirements.

After you've accepted your offer to study at York, we'll confirm which pre-sessional course you should apply to via You@York.

Applying

You can apply and send all your documentation online. You don’t need to complete your application all at once: you can start it, save it and finish it later.

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Next steps

Contact us

Get in touch if you have any questions

Professor Julia Touza

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Department of Environment and Geography

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