University College London (UCL)
Advanced Materials Science (Materials Innovation and Enterprise) MSc
London, United Kingdom
MSc
DURATION
1 year
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 39,800 *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* international students: full time £39,800 | UK students: full time £16,000. Additional fees may apply
The MSc program in Advanced Materials Science (Materials Innovation and Enterprise) is designed to give students a strong foundation in understanding the properties and applications of new materials. It covers core topics like material characterization, processing techniques, and the development of innovative materials for various industries. Students get hands-on experience through laboratory work and projects that focus on translating scientific knowledge into real-world solutions. The program also emphasizes entrepreneurship and enterprise skills, preparing students to bring new materials to market or start their own ventures within the materials sector.
In addition to technical expertise, the course offers insights into intellectual property, business strategies, and commercialization processes. This blend helps students develop a broad skill set suited for careers in research, development, and industry leadership. The program encourages collaboration with industry partners and supports student-led projects, fostering practical experience and networking opportunities. Overall, it aims to prepare graduates to contribute to the future of materials innovation while understanding the commercial and enterprise aspects vital for success in today's fast-changing landscapes.
UCL Scholarships
There are a number of scholarships available to postgraduate students, including our UCL Masters Bursary for UK students and our UCL Global Masters Scholarship for international students. You can click the link below to search via the scholarships finder for awards that you might be eligible for. Your academic department will also be able to provide you with more information about funding.
External Scholarships
Online aggregators like Postgraduate Studentships, Scholarship Search, Postgraduate Funding and International Financial Aid and College Scholarship Search contain information on a variety of external schemes.
If you have specific circumstances or ethnic or religious background it is worth searching for scholarships/bursaries/grants that relate to those things. Some schemes are very specific.
Funding for disabled students
Master's students who have a disability may be able to get extra funding for additional costs they incur to study.
Teaching and learning
The programme will introduce you to the area of advanced material science through lectures, case study workshops, individual and group activities, and lab practices. You will be expected to supplement material provided by lecturers with your own independent learning and research, by reading around the subject and by engaging with wider activities in advanced materials science, for example, by attending seminars.
The programme’s compulsory curriculum is assessed by a combination of different methods that typically include individual coursework, a group project and/or a written examination, individual research projects with associated presentations, dissertation reports and viva voce. Students are also given time to revise and work through their assessed work with opportunities for individual and group feedback.
Assessment methods vary according to modules and are designed to enable students to demonstrate learning over time.
Each taught module is normally lectured for 30 hours with around 20 hours tutorials and/or tutor-led practices. The student is expected to spend around 100 hours on self-directed study for each taught module.
For full-time students, typical contact hours are around 12 hours per week. Outside of lectures, seminars, workshops and tutorials, full-time students typically study the equivalent of a full-time job, using their remaining time for self-directed study and completing coursework assignments.
In terms one and two, full-time students can typically expect between 10 and 12 contact hours per teaching week through a mixture of lectures, seminars, workshops, crits and tutorials. In term three and the summer period, students will be completing their own research project, keeping regular contact with their supervisors.
Modules
Full-time
In Term 1, you will study compulsory modules relating to the Microstructural Control in Advanced Materials, Advanced Materials Processing and manufacturing, and you will be exposed to the concepts of research design and research methods, thus gaining the necessary knowledge to develop your research project during the year. You will also start the route-specific compulsory module Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice.
In Term 2, you will further develop the skills gained in term 1, where you go on to undertake compulsory modules in Advanced Materials Characterisation, Materials Design, Selection and Discovery, as well as starting your six-month independent research project on exploitation of advanced functional materials for real-world applications, such as solar cells, photodetectors, light-emitting diodes, transistors, lasers and biosensors. . You will also study a route-specific compulsory module in Advanced Materials for Real-world Applications.
In Term 3 and Summer Term, you will continue to engage in your research project, supported by your project supervisor. This will culminate in you presenting your research progress and findings to your contemporaries in both written and oral presentation formats.
Compulsory modules
- Advanced Materials Characterisation
- Materials Design, Selection and Discovery
- Advanced Materials Processing and Manufacturing
- Research Methodology
- Literature Project
- Research Project
- Microstructural Control in Advanced Materials
- Advanced Materials for Real-World Applications and Exploitation
- Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice
Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MSc in Advanced Materials Science (Materials Innovation and Enterprise).
What this course will give you
Advanced Materials Science (Materials Innovation and Enterprise) MSc relates scientific theories to research and applications of advanced materials, encourages innovation and creative thinking, and contextualises scientific innovation within the global market and entrepreneurship.
This programme aims to deliver innovative teaching; from group design projects, that provide a unique opportunity for students to design the next generation of advanced materials, to the module on Advanced Materials for Real-world Applications which provides a detailed overview of the various categories of functional materials and emerging advanced devices for real-world applications in high-tech sectors, as well as the module on Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice, where students learn how to apply research in the commercial world.
Students on this interdisciplinary programme benefit from UCL's emphasis on enterprise- and research-led teaching informed by current research input from departments across UCL.
In addition to the specific skills and knowledge students acquire by taking this programme, they also develop managerial and entrepreneurship skills, and transferable skills in areas including literature survey, design of experiments, materials research, critical data analysis, teamwork and effective communication skills using real-life case scenarios and student-led group projects.
You will be based at our UCL East campus in the heart of East London, with easy access to all the cultural, entertainment and academic resources across the capital.
The foundation of your career
Graduates from this programme are prepared to enter a variety of fields such as aerospace, biomedical, engineering and other multidisciplinary industrials, with students being offered roles at companies including Shell, Johnson Matthey, Rolls-Royce, Merck, Oxford Instruments, Huawei, Bytedance, Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola.
This programme has also provided students with an excellent foundation for the pursuit of further academic study such as another postgraduate degree or doctoral research. Graduates have gone on to be awarded full PhD studentships in Purdue University in the USA, Universities of Oxford, Queen Mary, Nottingham, Bath, St Andrews, Imperial College London, and UCL in the UK, as well as other top universities in Australia and Hong Kong.
Employability
On successful completion of this programme, our students will be equipped for a future career as a materials scientist or engineer in academia or industry, or as an entrepreneur to either build a new venture or join an existing SME.
Networking
Staff at the Institute for Materials Discovery have extensive professional networks and often organize research seminar talks given by internal and external academic and industrial speakers worldwide. Students are strongly encouraged to participate in these scientific seminars. In addition, students are also encouraged to organize their own academic, social and alumni events with staff supports to enhance their sense of belonging.