Master in Environmental Management and Audit

Master Environmental Studies

Program Presentation

The increasing importance in environmental management in state policies and, therefore, in business, is demonstrated by the extensive and increasingly strict legislation enacted in this regard. That is why a specialized position in environmental management within the companies is frequently required.

The globalization of markets has led to increased competition among organizations and the breakdown of many of the business paradigms. Today, an organization cannot afford a one-dimensional view of the production process, but must take into account many environmental, social, economic and ethical factors.This means that not only must it produce quality outcomes at a lower cost, but must also do so while respecting the environment and social conditions, of both the workers themselves and the community where it is manufactured or where the product is destined to go.

In this regard, training is essential to acquire the skills and strategies, systems, processes, tools and methods that allow the projection of managing organizations, mainly SMBs, as far as sustainable development is concerned.

The Master in Environmental Management and Audit presented here is an ideal solution for those organizations with the need to train integrated specialists in environmental management, understanding sustainability as a business opportunity and not as an associated cost.

Who is the programme for?

The proposed training methodology, coupled with the clarity, scope, and didactics of the content’s design, allows the Master in Management and Environmental Audits to be directed at university graduates from middle grade or higher who wish to receive training in environmental management and environmental audits to improve their employment prospects.

Diploma

Successful completion of the Program will enable you to be awarded the degree in Master in Environmental Management and Audit.

After successfully completing the Program, the student will receive the degree as awarded by the University where they have enrolled.

Program Structure

With regard to the distribution of time, it is established that:

  • Being a distance learning program and not subject to instructor-led classes, a specific beginning date is not set, and so the student can register at any time, provided that there are spaces available.
  • For academic and learning reasons, the program has a minimum duration of six months.
  • The maximum time available to perform the program is two years. In this period of time, the student should have submitted all of the appropriate evaluations, as well as the Final Project or Thesis.

The credit structure of the Master program in Environmental Management and Audits is collected presented in the following table:

  CREDITSa DURATIONb HOURSc
TOTAL 90 24 900
1st part: Environmental Consultancy (Required) 40 12 400
2nd part: Specialization (Optional) 30-40-50 9 300-400-500
3rd part: Scientific Research Methodology Final Project or Degree Thesis (Mandatory) 20 3 200

a. The equivalence in credits may vary according to the university that awards the degree
b. Duration in months
c. In previous versions of the Program, the total count can be reduced to 800 hours without the Scientific Research Methodology subject.

Objectives

General Objective

  • The purpose of the Program is for student’s acquisition of advanced training in a specialized and multidisciplinary nature, oriented to the professional specialization. Under this premise, the overall objective is to train professionals in the environmental area, who can work in multidisciplinary teams in the research and consulting fields.

Specific Objectives

  • Analyze the economic, social and environmental implications of sustainable development, realizing the importance of the concept in its reality.
  • Recognize the importance of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, discussing the best way to preserve them.
  • Deploy, with the help of case studies, an environmental management system in the company according to ISO 14001.
  • Design, with the help of examples and case studies, acoustic screens to isolate areas of leisure or highways.
  • Diagnose, through the use of an audit manual, the proper functioning of a company’s environmental management system.
  • Develop a waste water purification system and evaluate the different options for water treatment, to achieve a lower impact on the environment within the framework of the existing legislation.
  • Identify the current environmental legislation applicable to the company.
  • Make better use of local natural resources at all times, thereby contributing to sustainable development.
  • Question the externalities that occur in the area where one resides and how to internalize them.

Career Opportunities

Some of the professional opportunities for the Master's program in Environmental Management and Audits are the following:

  • Independent environmental consultant.
  • Organizational consultant for the environment.
  • Environmental technician in municipalities.
  • Environmental specialist.
  • Advisor for the introduction of Environmental Management Systems in the company.
  • Teaching.

Study Plan

The Master's degree in Environmental Management and Audits has a curricular structure based on 3 sequential training parts:

  • 1st PART: ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANCY (400 HOURS)

The first part allows one to know and understand, first, the theoretical, conceptual and historical foundations involved in environmental issues and, secondly, its organizational, social and technological implementations.

The aim is to get students to acquire an overview of the Environmental field, through the different but related multidisciplinary themes.

The subjects and the corresponding hours that make up the first part are shown in the following table:

1st PART: ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANCY
# SUBJECTS HOURS
TOTAL 400
1 Introduction 10
2 Ecology 20
3 Water Treatment 50
4 Waste Management 40
5 Air Pollution 30
6 Climatology and the environment 20
7 Noise Pollution 30
8 Natural Resources 40
9 Soil contamination 40
10 Business Environmental Management 40
11 Environmental Audits 20
12 Environmental Impact Assessment 40
13 Economy and the environment 10
14 Environmental Law 10
  •  2nd SPECIALIZATIONS (300-400-500 HOURS)

The specialization allows the student to deepen themself into the disciplines of the environmental sector, both professionally and personally, which are of greater interest to them.

The student must choose between a minimum of 300 and a maximum of 400 hours of the specializations offered, with the only exception being also opting for the courses on Integrated Management of Integral Water Management and Environmental Engineering: Industrial Wastewater Treatment, whose global computation is 500 hours. In any case, the student must choose a maximum of three specializations.

The objective is to achieve the maximum degree of specialization in the environmental field, achieving a complete, comprehensive and current training in this sector.

The specializations and the corresponding hours that make up the second part are shown in the following table:

2nd PART: SPECIALIZATIONS
# SUBJECTS HOURS
1 Integrated Water Management 300
2 Waste Management 300
3 Application of Renewable Energies 300
4 Conservation and Management of the Natural Spaces 300
5 Environmental Engineering: Solid Residue Treatment 200
6 Environmental Engineering: Industrial Water Residue Treatment 200
7 Environmental Education 200
8 Mining and the Environment 200
9 Marine Contamination 100
10 Environmental Engineering: Gaseous Effluents Treatment 100
11 Environmental Engineering: Energy Valuation 100
12 Recovery of Contaminated Soil 100
TOTAL 2400
  • 3rd PART: SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND FINAL PROJECT - DEGREE THESIS (200 HOURS)

The last phase of the Program is directed at the study of the Scientific Research Methodology subject and to the preparation of the Master’s Final Project.

3rd Part: SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND FINAL PROJECT - DEGREE THESIS
  SUBJECTS HOURS
1 SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND FINAL PROJECT 200
Total 200

Note: The contents of the academic program may be subject to slight modifications, depending on the updates or the improvements made.

Management

Academic Administration

  • Dr. Eduardo García Villena. Director of the Environment Area in the International Ibero-American University (UNINI)

Teaching staff and Authors

  • Dr. Ángel M. Álvarez Larena. Dr. in Geology. Prof. at the Autonomous University of Barcelona
  • Dr. Roberto M. Álvarez. Prof. of the University of Buenos Aires.
  • Dr. Óscar Arizpe Covarrubias. Prof. at the Autonomous University of Baja California Sur, Mexico
  • Dr. Isaac Azuz Adeath. Prof. at the Autonomous University of Baja California Sur, Mexico
  • Dr. David Barrera Gómez. Doctor from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia
  • Dr. Brenda Bravo Díaz. Prof. of the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Mexico
  • Dr. Rubén Calderón Iglesias. Prof. of the European University Miguel de Cervantes
  • Dr. Leonor Calvo Galván. Prof. of the University of León. Spain
  • Dr. Olga Capó Iturrieta. Dr. Industrial Engineering. Prof. of the Research Institute in Agropecuarias, Chile
  • Dr. Alina Celi Frugoni. Prof. of the International Ibero-american University
  • Dr. José Cortizo Álvarez. Prof. of the University of León. Spain
  • Dr. Antoni Creus Solé. Dr. in Industrial Engineering
  • Dr. Juan Carlos Cubría García. Prof. of the University of León. Spain
  • Dr. Raquel Domínguez Fernández. Prof. of the University of León
  • Dr. Luís A. Dzul López. Prof. of the International Ibero-american University
  • Dr. Xavier Elías Castells. Director of the By-product Exchange of Catalonia
  • Dra. Milena E. Gómez Yepes. Dr. in Project Engineering. Prof. of the University of the Quindio, Colombia
  • Dr. Ramón Guardino Ferré. Dr. in Project Engineering. Prof. of the International Ibero-american University
  • Dr. Emilio Hernández Chiva. Dr. in Industrial Engineering. Spanish National Research Council, CSIC
  • Dra. Cristina Hidalgo González. Prof. of the University of León
  • Dr. Francisco Hidalgo Trujillo. Prof. of the International Ibero-american University
  • Dr. Víctor Jiménez Arguelles. Prof. of the Autonomous Metropolitan University. Mexico
  • Dr. Miguel Ángel López Flores. Prof. of the National Polytechnic Institute (CIIEMAD-IPN)
  • Dra. Izel Márez López. Prof. of the International Ibero-American University
  • Dr. Carlos A. Martín. Prof. of the National University of the Littoral, Argentina
  • Dra. Isabel Joaquina Niembro García. Dr. in Project Engineering. Prof. of the Monterrey Institute of Technology
  • Dr. César Ordóñez Pascua. Prof. of the University of León
  • Dr. José María Redondo Vega. Prof. of the University of León. Spain
  • Dr. Gladys Rincón Polo. Prof. of the Simón Bolívar University, Venezuela

FUNIBER Training Scholarships

The Iberoamerican University Foundation (FUNIBER) allocates periodically an extraordinary economic item for FUNIBER Training Scholarships.

To apply, please fill out the information request form that appears in the web of FUNIBER or contact directly the Foundation’s headquarters in your country that will inform you if you need to provide some additional information.

Once the documentation is received, the Evaluation Committee will determine your application's eligibility for the FUNIBER Training Scholarship.