The MSc in Climate Change and Development (MSCCD) is a two-year postgraduate program offered at Pulchowk Campus through the Department of Applied Sciences and Chemical Engineering under the Institute of Engineering (IOE), Tribhuvan University.
Established in 2013 (2070 B.S.), the program examines climate change in relation to development, environmental systems, public policy, adaptation, mitigation, energy, ecological economics, and climate-related risks. Its academic structure combines taught courses, electives, research methodology, group project work, a case study or seminar, and a final thesis.
The course is designed around both the scientific dimensions of climate change and the development questions that arise from environmental change. Students study climate science alongside energy, sustainable development, policy, law, adaptation, mitigation, sectoral impacts, community responses, climate modelling, biodiversity, and low-carbon development.
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Course | MSc in Climate Change and Development |
| Abbreviation | MSCCD |
| Level | Master’s degree |
| Campus | Pulchowk Campus – Institute of Engineering |
| Department | Applied Sciences and Chemical Engineering |
| University | Tribhuvan University |
| Institute | Institute of Engineering (IOE) |
| Duration | 2 years |
| Academic structure | 4 semesters |
| Established | 2013 (2070 B.S.) |
| Major components | Core courses, electives, group project, case study/seminar, thesis |
| Admission framework | IOE postgraduate entrance and campus admission process |
Climate change is studied in this program as both an environmental and development issue.
The curriculum addresses physical climate processes while also examining how climate change interacts with energy, development planning, law, economics, agriculture, forestry, health, hydropower, transport, industry, cities, biodiversity, and disaster-related concerns.
This makes the course broader than a purely atmospheric or environmental science degree. The program places scientific understanding alongside development planning, policy discussion, adaptation strategies, mitigation approaches, and research.
Students also encounter climate issues at different scales. Academic work ranges from global climate processes and policy debates to community-based adaptation, urban climate management, glacier change, and sector-specific climate impacts.
At Pulchowk Campus – Institute of Engineering (IOE), the program is part of the Department of Applied Sciences and Chemical Engineering. Academic administration operates within the wider framework of the Institute of Engineering and Tribhuvan University.
The curriculum progresses from climate-science foundations into policy, adaptation, mitigation, specialized electives, project work, and thesis research.
Core academic areas include:
This combination gives students exposure to both technical and social dimensions of climate change.
The first semester establishes the program's scientific, environmental, development, and policy base.
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Climate Science | 4 |
| Energy and Environment | 4 |
| Impact of Climate Change on Sustainable Development | 4 |
| Climate Change Planning, Policy, and Law | 4 |
Climate Science provides the scientific foundation for later study. It supports an understanding of climate processes and the environmental changes that underpin the wider adaptation, mitigation, and development discussions addressed elsewhere in the program.
Energy and environment are closely connected within climate-change study. This course places energy questions within their environmental context and supports later work related to mitigation, development, carbon reduction, and low-carbon technologies.
This course examines the relationship between environmental change and development.
The wider program treats climate change as an issue with economic and social implications as well as physical environmental consequences. Sustainable development therefore becomes an important link between climate science, planning, policy, and practical responses.
Planning, policy, and law provide the institutional side of climate-change response.
Students encounter climate change not only as a technical problem but also as an issue requiring decisions, planning frameworks, governance, and policy responses.
The second semester introduces research methodology, adaptation and mitigation, and the first set of electives.
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Research Methodology | 4 |
| Climate Change Adaptation Mitigation: Theory and Practices | 4 |
| Elective I | 4 |
| Elective II | 4 |
Research Methodology prepares students for later project and thesis work.
Its placement in the second semester provides a methodological base before students enter the group-project stage and later undertake the final thesis.
Adaptation and mitigation are central themes of the degree.
The course addresses the two broad approaches through which climate-change responses are commonly structured: adapting to impacts and reducing or managing the factors contributing to climate change.
The program considers these responses within development, environmental, technical, and policy contexts rather than treating them as isolated concepts.
Elective I:
Elective II — any one:
These electives allow students to approach climate change either through technologies or through the effects of climate change on major social and economic sectors.
The sector-based options are especially interdisciplinary. Agriculture, forestry, health, hydropower, transport, and industry involve different kinds of climate exposure, and the curriculum allows students to examine those relationships within one postgraduate framework.
The third semester moves further into specialized study and applied academic work.
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Elective III | 4 |
| Elective IV | 4 |
| Group Project | 4 |
These subjects address different scales of climate response.
Community Based Adaptation focuses attention on adaptation within communities, while Urban Climate Change Management shifts the setting toward cities. Low Carbon and Climate Resilient Technology approaches the issue from a technological and resilience perspective.
This elective group gives students access to more specialized climate and environmental topics.
Glacier melting has particular relevance to mountain and cryosphere-related climate research. Biodiversity management addresses ecological dimensions, while climate-induced disaster study connects environmental change with risk and management. Climate modelling introduces a modelling-oriented approach to climate analysis.
The third semester includes a 4-credit group project.
Project work allows students to work collectively on climate-related issues after completing the foundational and research-methodology stages of the program.
The broader teaching approach also includes presentations, discussions, individual and group assignments, and work on climate issues at local, regional, and global scales.
The group project therefore fits naturally into a program where collaborative analysis and discussion form part of the learning process.
The final semester centers on research.
Its structure includes:
The thesis is the principal final academic component of the program.
By this stage, students have already studied climate science, sustainable development, policy, adaptation and mitigation, research methodology, specialized electives, and group-project work.
The thesis allows that earlier learning to be developed into more focused research on a climate-change or development-related subject.
Research areas associated with the program include:
These topics show the program's connection with mountain environments, urban climate conditions, emissions, changing hydrological patterns, disasters, and land degradation.
They also illustrate the breadth of the course: research can move from physical climate processes into environmental impacts and development responses.
The program uses several academic formats rather than depending entirely on conventional lectures.
Learning activities include:
This structure supports both classroom-based learning and research-oriented academic work.
Discussions and presentations are particularly relevant in a field where climate science intersects with policy, development, economics, technology, and sector-specific concerns.
Admission follows the Institute of Engineering postgraduate framework.
IOE conducts the postgraduate entrance examination, and candidates who satisfy the applicable requirements and pass the entrance process become eligible for admission through the corresponding campus procedure.
Because postgraduate eligibility varies by program and academic background, admission is governed through the requirements applicable to the MSc in Climate Change and Development under the TU/IOE system.
Pulchowk Campus handles the campus-level admission stage within that broader framework.
The course is particularly interdisciplinary.
It does not separate climate science from development policy or environmental management. Instead, students encounter these areas together across the curriculum.
The main academic connections include:
This structure makes the program suitable for students interested in studying climate change through more than one disciplinary lens.
Through coursework, presentations, assignments, project work, and thesis research, students may develop abilities related to:
The extent of skill development depends on academic engagement, elective choices, project work, and the thesis topic.
The program connects climate-change study with environmental, development, research, planning, and policy settings.
Its curriculum is relevant to areas involving:
These are fields connected with the subject matter of the degree rather than guaranteed employment outcomes.
Graduates interested in research may also build on the program's Research Methodology, Group Project, and Thesis components for further academic work.
The MSc in Climate Change and Development may suit students who want to study climate change as both a scientific and development issue.
It may be particularly relevant to those interested in combining environmental study with areas such as:
Students should be prepared for interdisciplinary study rather than expecting the degree to concentrate solely on climate physics or solely on development policy.
The course is MSc in Climate Change and Development, abbreviated as MSCCD.
The program runs for two years across four semesters.
It is offered through the Department of Applied Sciences and Chemical Engineering at Pulchowk Campus.
The program operates under the Institute of Engineering, Tribhuvan University.
The MSc in Climate Change and Development was established in 2013 (2070 B.S.).
Yes. Electives cover climate economics, adaptation and mitigation technologies, sectoral impacts, community adaptation, urban climate management, low-carbon technology, glacier melting, biodiversity, climate-induced disasters, and climate modelling.
Yes. The third semester includes a 4-credit group project.
Yes. The fourth semester includes a 16-credit thesis.
Research areas include glacier and snow change, high-altitude temperature rise, heat islands, carbon-emission reduction, forest fire, rainfall changes, floods, landslides, and desertification.
Admission follows the IOE postgraduate entrance and Pulchowk Campus admission framework under Tribhuvan University.
