MSES - Curriculum
Northwestern University's fast and focused Master of Science in Energy and Sustainability (MSES) immerses students in an innovative, collaborative, and interdisciplinary community, preparing its graduates to deliver true impact.
Full-time students begin coursework in the fall quarter together with their cohort. Each student will choose a specialization in either energy and sustainable finance, energy technology, or sustainability. A twelve-credit program load, which includes a consulting capstone project, allows students to earn the MSES degree in 10 months.
Students take four credits each quarter. Classes are held on the Evanston campus, Monday through Friday, throughout the day. In-class time will usually amount to 12 hours per week. Typically, MSES students will not have any class on Fridays.Over the course of the program, all MSES students must take the required core curriculum plus 3.0 credits of electives within their chosen specialization. Program field visits to energy and sustainability facilities take place year-round.
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MSES Program Structure
An example of a weekly schedule for a typical MSES student is available here
MSES Courses
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Over the course of the program, all MSES students must take the required core curriculum plus 3.0 credits of electives within their chosen specialization. Some electives may appear within multiple specializations.
Fall Quarter
- ISEN 401 History and Politics of Resource Innovation (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Development of primary energy sources throughout US history and consider the impact of current political and economic decisions around energy on the development of domestic infrastructure and institutions in the near future. - ISEN 402 Fundamentals of Natural Resources Distribution (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Covers the engineering fundamentals of natural resource distribution systems, spanning both energy (electricity, hydrocarbon fuels) and water. - ISEN 403 Energy, Water and Transportation System Economics (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Underlying economic theory driving core resource markets - including electricity, gas, water, and transportation. Includes a discussion of issues that are unique to energy generation and environmental impact, as well as a deep dive by resource type. - (Plus 1.0 credit of electives within chosen specialization)
Winter Quarter
- ISEN 404 Resource Markets Design, Regulation, and Reform (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Evolution of the natural resource markets in the United States through the lens of the regulatory and quasi-governing agencies that have shaped their structure. Focuses on electric power markets, but will compare these market structures with those that govern water and other relevant systems. Students will also study current state and federal policy innovation creating or slowing current market reform. - ISEN 405 Corporate Sustainability and Value Creation (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Emerging market for leveraging sustainability to drive value (reduced risk / increased innovation) in the corporate environment, including a primer on leading standards and sustainability reporting. - ISEN 411 ESG, Reporting and Tools for Energy & Sustainability (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Broad overview of the widely used quantitative tools in energy and sustainability. Course will delve into issues surrounding greenhouse gas quantification and the ways that governments and organizations build sustainability plans. Students will learn about core quantitative methods for measuring emissions while also touching on protocol and policy frameworks that enable the application and verification of these measurements. The course will ensure that students can both read and be involved in writing a measurable, robust sustainability plan. - (Plus 1.0 credit of electives within chosen specialization)
Spring Quarter
- ISEN 406 Energy Efficiency and Sustainability Opportunities: Engineering, Design, and Adoption (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course aims to provide an understanding of the key concepts in energy efficiency (EE) and sustainability adoption. It will provide a basis for understanding energy bills, outline the role of codes and standards in building efficiency and provide information about the measures employed to increase energy efficiency. Topics covered will include auditing, design, technological advancements and adoption. The course will provide an overview of energy efficiency policies, while examining economic considerations such as incentives, consumer behavior and costs surrounding energy conservation measures. - ISEN 412 Understanding Global Energy and Sustainability Markets (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
Provides an overview of global energy markets and will highlight differences vs. the US from an economic and a regulatory standpoint. Explores a breadth of issues ranging from the impact of international accords to the methods of market-based regulation of non-renewable fuels. - ISEN 413 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Energy & Sustainability (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course is designed to help students build awareness of the current state of DE&I in energy & sustainability markets, offer guidelines for self-awareness, and expand skills needed to navigate challenges and opportunities specific to these markets (including practical strategies to accelerate DE&I in organizations and drive results). - ISEN 414 Innovation in Energy and Sustainability Markets (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
Special seminar provides a fresh perspective on the biggest innovations today and on the near horizon in energy and sustainability markets. - ISEN 498 Energy and Sustainability Project Practicum (1.0 credit) - Syllabus
10-week, team-based consulting project for a corporate, non-profit or government partner of Northwestern University. Student teams will be advised by the instructor but will work directly with the client organization. There will be limited traditional reading / lecture content and the topics covered will include project management and team collaboration. - (Plus 1.0 credit of electives within chosen specialization)
Over the course of the program, all MSES students must take the required core curriculum plus 3.0 credits of electives within their chosen specialization. Some electives may appear within multiple specializations.
MSES Electives:
- ISEN 421 Scaling Sustainable Technology (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Introduces concrete strategies that can be employed in taking new sustainable offerings to scale in the development life cycle. Focus is on expanding test products into larger volume market deployment strategies, modes of financing, testing, and future-proofing. - ISEN 422 Electrify Everything: Beneficial Electrification, Electric Vehicles, and Beyond (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Introduces the concept of beneficial electrification as a tool to dramatically increase grid flexibility, reduce total household and business energy costs, and reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Explores emerging state of electricity consumption and review how it relates to changing transportation markets. - ISEN 430 System Engineering Principles of Sustainable Technologies: Grid Planning and Operation (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course serves as a graduate entry-level introduction to the broad subject of grid planning and operations. The course will concentrate on introducing the purpose of the grid, its critical operations and optimization now and in the future. Topics covered will include grid management fundamentals, short-term system dispatch, long-term asset investments and the changing nature of electricity transmission and distribution. The course will evaluate the impact of changes such as renewables integration, PHEV penetration, demand side management, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions on grid planning and operations. - ISEN 431 Advanced Topics in Electric Technologies: Storage and Microgrids (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course will cover the primary aspects of energy storage systems and microgrids. It will provide students with a high-level understanding of electrical storage technologies and microgrids and their key market applications. - ISEN 432 Carbon Removal, Capture, and Use (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course will discuss the exigency of deploying CCS and CDR approaches at scale, including potential benefits and risks of these options. It also will discuss regulatory and governance considerations at both the national and international level, as well as strategies to incentivize largescale adoption of these approaches.
- ISEN 463 Circular Economy (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Use systems thinking to understand the technological, economic and policy implications of circular economies. Focus on real-world applications, testing the feasibility of circular systems and analyzing their design.
Other Approved Electives:
** Students may take no more than 1.0 credit worth of these approved electives **
- CHEM 435/445 Advanced Inorganic / Advanced Physical Chemistry: Chemistry of Alternative Energy (1.0 credit)
The course will cover fundamental aspects of light-to-electrical energy conversion, light-to-chemical energy conversion, molecular hydrogen as a potentially renewable fuel source, carbon dioxide capture and transformation, and related concepts, chiefly from a chemistry and materials perspective. - EECS 395/495 Connected and Autonomous Vehicles: Challenges and Design (1.0 credit)
Course description is forthcoming. - EECS 395/495 Modelling and Synthesis of Cyber-Physical Systems (1.0 credit)
Cyber-physical systems, such as autonomous vehicles, robots, and smart buildings, are poised to bring immense economic and societal benefits. This course will introduce trends and challenges of modern cyber-physical systems, and review state-of- the-art design paradigms and tools in both academia and industry. - ISEN 420/ENTREP 474 NUvention: Energy (1.0 credit)
Graduate students from schools across campus come together in interdisciplinary teams to develop a product or service and a business in the burgeoning sustainable energy industry. By simulating the product/service and business development process, NUvention Energy helps students develop creative, interpersonal, business, and technical skills. Teams are mentored by an ISEN board of energy industry professionals and cleantech entrepreneurs. NUvention: Energy is collaboratively offered by ISEN and the Farley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation; Farley runs the NUvention program portfolio (which includes other offerings in medical, nano, web, social impact, etc). - MAT_SCI 381 Energy Materials (1.0 credit)
This course is a materials science approach to the challenge of energy-efficient technology. It introduces first the concept of materials energy content (production, processing, use and recycling), with students developing individually and in group case studies in this area. It then describes how advanced materials make possible efficient energy harvesting (e.g., solar cells, nuclear materials, hard materials for oil/gas recovery, composites for wind energy, thermoelectrics), energy transformation (e.g., fuel cells, light emitting diodes, engines and turbines) and energy storage (e.g., hydrogen storage, phase change materials). Finally, materials enabling energy-efficient transportation and housing will be discussed. - MAT_SCI 382 Electrochemical Energy Materials and Devices (1.0 credit)
Thermodynamics and kinetics of electrochemical processes. Materials for fuel cells, batteries, and electrochemical capacitors, including electrolytes and electrodes. Electrical and mass transport. Effect of microstructure. Electrochemical characterization. Device configurations. - EECS 395/495 Introduction to Smart Grid Systems (1.0 credit)
The new generation electricity power network, a.k.a., smart grid, is a complex socio-technical system involving nonlinear physical constraints, large scale computations and intricate economic/environmental impacts. This course gives an interdisciplinary perspective of the grid: the fundamental physics of the grid; the related modeling and computation challenges; basic game theoretic tools and analysis of the dynamic market interactions.
Over the course of the program, all MSES students must take the required core curriculum plus 3.0 credits of electives within their chosen specialization. Some electives may appear within multiple specializations.
MSES Electives:
- ISEN 421 Scaling Sustainable Technology (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Introduces concrete strategies that can be employed in taking new sustainable offerings to scale in the development life cycle. Focus is on expanding test products into larger volume market deployment strategies, modes of financing, testing, and future-proofing. - ISEN 453 The Economics of Environmental Justice (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course is designed for a broad base of students working in energy and sustainability to ensure a common understanding of environmental justice and its role in today’s markets. This course is highly appropriate for students who may not make environmental justice the central focus of their career but will undoubtedly need to understand the definition of, rationale for and economic value of environmental justice. - ISEN 454 Financing the Energy Transition (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
The course is designed principally to address the interests of students who expect to embark on a career either as an investor (VC, PE) or as a leader (business, government or non-profit) with finance or fundraising responsibilities. Considering the time constraints associated with a half-unit course, the curriculum is confined to key fundamentals of financial markets as they pertain specifically to energy & sustainability. The course will touch upon a range of concepts, tools and content including finance, accounting, and investing fundamentals. The instructor will attempt to identify “best practices” in today’s high growth energy marketplace. Students completing the course will have a solid understanding of the questions and issues that typically face businesses seeking capitalization in the energy sector.
- ISEN 461 Sustainable Branding (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course covers many of the fundamental topics in branding, particularly sustainable branding. Beginning with an exploration of brand strategy and motivations, the course progresses to an understanding of key themes such as brand design and brand architecture. It also discusses assorted topics such as brand auditing, transparency in sustainable practices and the key role of social media in branding today. All topics covered apply a unique sustainability-centered focus, with careful differentiation between B2C and B2B brands in the market. This course employs case studies as the primary mode of assessment in order to demonstrate the application of course learnings in the real world. - ISEN 462 Sustainable Supply Chain Management (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Basic principles of supply chain management, evolving trends in sustainable supply chain, and the practical realities of driving sustainable practices into the supply chain operations. - ISEN 463 Circular Economy (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Use systems thinking to understand the technological, economic and policy implications of circular economies. Focus on real-world applications, testing the feasibility of circular systems and analyzing their design. - ISEN 470 Sustainability in Water and Wastewater (0.5 credit) - Syllabus
Provides an introduction to the economics, technology and regulation that drive water and wastewater markets. Survey of the major issues that exist and a discussion of opportunities to drive to more sustainable water systems. - ISEN 471 Sustainable Food (0.5 credit) - Syllabus
Main sustainability topics related to the production, transportation, processing and consumption of food. Focus on tangible methods to promote sustainability in the food industry such as regenerative agriculture techniques, reducing GHG emissions throughout the supply chain and reduced food waste. - ISEN 472 Climate Activism and Its Business Impacts (0.5 credit) - Syllabus
Offers an overview of climate activism and its business impacts over time. Analyzes the way in which consumer behavior and corporate policy are affected by activism. - ISEN 473 The Future of Food and Agriculture (0.5 credit) - Syllabus
Investigates the future of food systems including changes in production, transportation, processing and consumption of food. It will focus on upcoming challenges and opportunities in the world of food and agriculture and the role of economics, policy, technology and climate impact.
Other Approved Electives:
** Students may take no more than 1.0 credit worth of these approved electives **
- CIV_ENV 346 Ecohydrology (1.0 credit)
Interactions between water and ecosystems in freshwater, terrestrial, and urban . Feedbacks between ecological and hydrological processes. Engineering of ecosystems such as constructed wetlands, green roofs, and other green infrastructure for resilient and sustainable water management. - CIV_ENV 364 Sustainable Water Systems (1.0 credit)
Engineering elements of water supply and water pollution abatement. Water quality standards, water and wastewater treatment processes, and the management of receiving waters to control pollution. - CIV_ENV 365 Sustainability, Technology, and Society (1.0 credit)
Technical discussion of sustainability, sustainable development, global warming, natural and renewal resources and utilization, industrial ecology, eco-efficiency, technology related to sustainability, and risk assessment. - CIV_ENV 368 Sustainability: The City (1.0 credit)
Exploration of the issues that motivate the design and engineering of sustainable resource use and development. - CIV_ENV 376 Transportation System Operations (1.0 credit)
Traffic flow theory; vehicle and human factors, capacity analysis, intersection performance and control; management and control of arterial streets and networks; neighborhood traffic restraint, urban transit operations. Operations concepts and theories applied to actual problems through laboratory practice. - CIV_ENV 479 Transportation Systems Planning and Management (1.0 credit)
Functional and structural description of transportation systems; characteristics of major US transportation modes; transportation analysis, planning, problem-solving, and decision-making methods illustrated through urban, freight, and intercity case studies. - CIV_ENV 387 Design of Sustainable Urban Developments (1.0 credit)
The goal of this course is to design high performing neighborhoods, districts and communities that incorporate principles of density, diversity and flexibility around the “operating system of nature.” - PROJ_MGMT 446 System Thinking for Sustainable Design (1.0 credit)
Systems thinking is required to create a sustainable future. With its many interacting systems, sustainable design is too complicated to be addressed in a linear fashion, as is typically the case. This course will explore holistic thought processes and focus on various nonlinear approaches to implement a sustainable design process. Included among the core discussions will be systems thinking, regenerative design principles, the integrative design process, and interdisciplinary practice. - ISEN 410/EARTH 342 Topics in Contemporary Energy and Climate Change (1.0 credit)
The increasing worldwide demand for energy presents a number of complex interdisciplinary challenges, from resource depletion to climate change. Class examines the history and geography of energy use; links between energy and climate change; and technological, economic and environmental benefits and drawbacks of various energy sources. - ISEN 420/ENTREP 474 NUvention: Energy (1.0 credit)
Graduate students from schools across campus come together in interdisciplinary teams to develop a product or service and a business in the burgeoning sustainable energy industry. By simulating the product/service and business development process, NUvention Energy helps students develop creative, interpersonal, business, and technical skills. Teams are mentored by an ISEN board of energy industry professionals and cleantech entrepreneurs. NUvention: Energy is collaboratively offered by ISEN and the Farley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation; Farley runs the NUvention program portfolio (which includes other offerings in medical, nano, web, social impact, etc). - CHEM 393 Green Chemistry (1.0 credit)
Green chemistry is defined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances. This class will seek to develop a broad view on green chemistry, with focus on exploring the economic, health and regulatory considerations which make it a multi-billion dollar enterprise. An emphasis on practical real-world scenarios (case studies) that provide us guidance in making better socially conscience decisions will be made. The course can be viewed primarily as being concerned with the philosophy of chemistry as dictated by our modern world in the 21st Century.
Over the course of the program, all MSES students must take the required core curriculum plus 3.0 credits of electives within their chosen specialization. Some electives may appear within multiple specializations.
MSES Electives:
- ISEN 421 Scaling Sustainable Technology (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Introduces concrete strategies that can be employed in taking new sustainable offerings to scale in the development life cycle. Focus is on expanding test products into larger volume market deployment strategies, modes of financing, testing, and future-proofing. - ISEN 440 Energy Project Finance & Development (1.0 credit) - Syllabus
Design, permitting, financing, and implementation process of large-scale energy infrastructure developments including solar, wind, electricity storage, natural gas and hydrogen facilities. - ISEN 450 Fundamentals of Energy Trading and Risk Management (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course provides a broad overview of the nature of physical and paper trading energy markets (with a particular focus on energy) and the various strategies that can be employed by firms and investors in them. The course touches on issues relating to risk management and discusses the use of derivatives to combat risk in resource markets. Additionally, it will explore broad topics in the field of commodity futures such as backwardation and contango. - ISEN 452 Government Incentives (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course will review the suite of incentive tools offered by the federal and state governments to encourage private actors to develop infrastructure, produce commodities, and tolerate risk inherent in commercial energy and sustainability enterprise, as well as incentivizing individuals to make decisions about personal property and behavior. - ISEN 453 The Economics of Environmental Justice (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
This course is designed for a broad base of students working in energy and sustainability to ensure a common understanding of environmental justice and its role in today’s markets. This course is highly appropriate for students who may not make environmental justice the central focus of their career but will undoubtedly need to understand the definition of, rationale for and economic value of environmental justice. - ISEN 454 Financing the Energy Transition (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
The course is designed principally to address the interests of students who expect to embark on a career either as an investor (VC, PE) or as a leader (business, government or non-profit) with finance or fundraising responsibilities. The course will touch upon a range of concepts, tools and content including finance, accounting, and investing fundamentals. The instructor will attempt to identify “best practices” in today’s high growth energy marketplace.
- ISEN 463 Circular Economy (1.0 credit) - SYLLABUS
Use systems thinking to understand the technological, economic and policy implications of circular economies. Focus on real-world applications, testing the feasibility of circular systems and analyzing their design. - ISEN 472 Climate Activism and Its Business Impacts (0.5 credit) - SYLLABUS
Offers an overview of climate activism and its business impacts over time. Analyzes the way in which consumer behavior and corporate policy are affected by activism.
Other Approved Electives:
** Students may take no more than 1.0 credit worth of these approved electives **
- ISEN 420/ENTREP 474 NUvention: Energy (1.0 credit)
Graduate students from schools across campus come together in interdisciplinary teams to develop a product or service and a business in the burgeoning sustainable energy industry. By simulating the product/service and business development process, NUvention Energy helps students develop creative, interpersonal, business, and technical skills. Teams are mentored by an ISEN board of energy industry professionals and cleantech entrepreneurs. NUvention: Energy is collaboratively offered by ISEN and the Farley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation; Farley runs the NUvention program portfolio (which includes other offerings in medical, nano, web, social impact, etc).
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