Student Guide
Nordic Master's Programme in Cold Climate Engineering
Programme main page
Curriculum 2017–2018
Specialization
The programme consists of three specialised study tracks:
- Land Track: Focus on Arctic geoengineering (DTU and NTNU)
- Sea Track: Focus on Arctic ships and offshore structures (NTNU and Aalto)
- Space Track: Focus on mapping and observing the Arctic (DTU and Aalto)
The main focus of the Nordic Master in Cold Climate Engineering is to give the students a profound understanding of how the obtained specializations can be applied in jobs as researchers, consulting or practising engineers in the Arctic. All graduates will have the ability to work within a team of experts having different international backgrounds such as education, values, language, culture, etc.. and have a profound understanding of the challenging Arctic environment. The teaching methods will include lectures, assignments, field work, laboratory work and project work. Theory is supported by experimental work and modelling, which are used intensively, and also depending on the track.
Sea Track
Sea Track focuses on Arctic ships and offshore structures and the courses are offered by NTNU and Aalto.
The track gives the graduates a comprehensive overview of the different aspects related to the design and analysis of Arctic ships and offshore structures as well as operations on ice-covered waters.
All students will participate in Arctic field work.
The Sea Track covers both the basic knowledge as well as application of Arctic marine technology. During the studies, the students have the possibility to participate on Arctic field work (Svalbard/UNIS), laboratory work at Aalto Ice Tank and numerical modelling of ice related problems.
Special Knowledge on Arctic Ships and Offshore Structures and Operations
Graduates from the Sea Track will have acquired special knowledge related to Arctic ships and offshore structures and Arctic operations and will be able to:
- Understand the complicated and specific natures of Arctic design and operation environment.
- Describe the challenging environment and use this knowledge for modelling purposes.
- Design and carry out Arctic field work measurement campaigns.
- Understand the basic characteristics of ice model scale testing.
- Use analytical and numerical models to predict ice-structure interaction and other ice related problems.
Year 1: Aalto
Semester 1 |
Courses MEC-E4003 Ice mechanics (5 ECTS) MEC-E1010 Dynamics of Rigid Body (5 ECTS) MEC-E1020 Fluid Dynamics (5 ECTS) MEC-E1050 FEM in Solids (5 ECTS) MEC-E1040 Dynamics of Structures (5 ECTS) MEC-E4004 Model scale testing in ice (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Courses: MEC-E4001 Winter navigation (5 ECTS) MEC-E4002 Ice loads on Structures (5 ECTS) EEN-E2001 Computational Fluid Dynamics (5 ECTS) MEC-E8001 Finite Element Analysis (5 ECTS) Plus 2 elective courses from below: MEC-E2007 Ship Structures and Construction (5 ECTS) MEC-E8003 Beam, Plate and Shell Models (5 ECTS) MEC-E8002 Continuum Mechanics and Material Modelling (5 ECTS) |
Year 2: NTNU/UNIS, including Master's Thesis
Select 1 of the 3 options below:
Semester 1 |
1. UNIS – Collection and analysis of data |
AT-334 Arctic Measurements Technique, operations and transport at UNIS (4 weeks August – early Sept) (10 ECTS) AT-332 Physical environmental loads on Arctic Coastal and Offshore Structures (Late Oct - Nov) (10 ECTS) TBA451 Marine Civil Engineering SP (carried out at UNIS) (10 ECTS) |
2. NTNU (UNIS) – Fixed and floating structures |
AT-334 Arctic Measurements Technique, operations and transport at UNIS (4 weeks August – early Sept) (7,5 ECTS) TBA4260 Ice actions on Arctic structures (7,5 ECTS) TBA4550 Marine Civil Engineering SP (7,5 ECTS) Plus 1 elective course from below: TBA4145 Port and Coastal facilities (7,5 ECTS) TKT4108 Dynamics – advanced course (7,5 ECTS) TKT4197 Non-linear finite element analysis (7,5 ECTS) |
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3. NTNU (UNIS) – Arctic marine systems |
AT-334 Arctic Measurements Technique, operations and transport at UNIS (4 weeks August – early Sept) (7,5 ECTS) TMR4560 Marine systems design SP (7,5 ECTS) TMR4565 Marine systems design SC (7,5 ECTS) Plus 1 elective course from below: TMR4130 Risk Analysis and Safety Management of Maritime Transport (7,5 ECTS) TMR4215 Sea Loads (7,5 ECTS) TMR4260 Safe Operation and Maintenance (7,5 ECTS) TBA5100 Theoretical soil mechanics (7,5 ECTS) TBA4145 Port and Coastal facilities (7,5 ECTS) |
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Semester 2 |
Master's Thesis |
Select 1 of the 3 options below: Collection and analysis of data (UNIS): TBA4920 Fixed and floating structures (NTNU): TBA4920 Arctic marines systems (NTNU): TMR4930 |
Year 1: NTNU/UNIS
Semester 1 |
Courses TBA4265 Arctic and Marine Civil Engineering TBA4260 Ice actions on Arctic structures TKT4192 Finite Element in Strength analysis Plus 1 elective course from below: TBA4275 Dynamic response of irregular loading TBA4145 Port and Coastal facilities TBA5100 Theoretical soil mechanics |
Semester 2 |
Courses (offered by UNIS): AT-211 Ice mechanics, loads on structures and instrumentation (15 ETCS) AT-205 Frozen ground engineering for Arctic Infrastructures (15 ETCS) |
Year 2: Aalto, including Master's Thesis
Note: 25 ECTS in the autumn and 35 ECTS in the spring
Semester 1 |
Courses: MEC-E4004 Model Scale Testing in Ice (5 ECTS) MEC-E2009 Marine Risks and Safety (5 ECTS) MEC-E1020 Fluid Dynamics (5 ECTS) Plus 2 elective courses from below: MEC-E1030 Random loads & processes (5 ECTS) - cannot be chosen if the student has taken TBA4275 at NTNU MEC-E4003 Ice mechanics (5 ECTS) - cannot be chosen if the student has taken AT-211 at UNIS MEC-E1010 Dynamics of Rigid Body (5 ECTS) MEC-E2001 Ship Hydrodynamics (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Course: MEC-E4001 Winter Navigation (5 ECTS) Master's Thesis: Master's Thesis (30 ECTS) |
Space Track
The Space Track focuses on Earth observation techniques, mapping and navigation in the Arctic and the courses are offered by Aalto and DTU.
The track gives the graduates a profound understanding of how to use space as an environment for developing instruments to benefit people and society.
The students on the Space Track must choose between two specialisations:
a. Earth Observations Techniques with a focus on sensing and mapping solutions for the Arctic.
b. Mapping and Navigation with a focus on high-latitude and Arctic/Antarctic areas.
Special Knowledge on Exploration Techniques Used in the Polar Regions
Graduates from the Space Track will have acquired a thorough overview of technologies used for climate monitoring, mapping and navigation and will be able to:
- Design, build and operate functional space and Earth observation systems.
- Set up Earth observation research projects.
- Conduct science and applied Earth monitoring with the research results
Option 1: Start at Aalto
Year 1: Aalto
Semester 1 |
Courses: ELEC-E3151 Mathematical computing (5 ECTS) GIS-E6010 Project (10 ECTS) ELEC-E4130 Electromagnetic fields (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4111, Introduction to Nano and Radio Sciences (3 ECTS) ELEC-D4110, Radio Science for Space and Environmental Applications (2 ECTS) ELEC-E4230 Microwave Earth observation instrumentation (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4220 Space Instrumentation (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Courses: ELEC-E4420 Microwave Engineering 1 (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4510 Earth Observation (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4520 Space physics (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4240 Satellite systems (5 ECTS) |
Year 2: DTU, including Master's Thesis
Note: 25 ECTS in the autumn and 35 ECTS in the spring
Semester 1 |
Courses: 30200 Measurement technologies in Earth and Space Physics (10 ECTS) 42490 Technology, economics, management and organisation (10 ECTS) Elective course (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Course: 30752 The cryosphere (5 ECTS) Master's Thesis: Master's Thesis (30 ECTS) |
Option 2: Start at DTU
Year 1: DTU
Semester 1 |
Courses: 30200 Measurement technologies in Earth and Space Physics (10 ECTS) 30230 Data analysis and modeling in Geoscience and Astrophysics (5 ECTS) 30350 Remote Sensing (10 ECTS) 30210 Data processing methods in Earth and Space Physics (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Courses: 30340 Radar- and Radiometer Systems (10 ECTS) 30750 Earth System Science (5 ECTS) 30752 The cryosphere (5 ECTS) 42490 Technology, economics, management and organisation (10 ECTS) |
Year 2: Aalto, including Master's Thesis
Semester 1 |
Courses: GIS-E6010 Project (10 ECTS) ELEC-E4240 Satellite Systems (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4210 Introduction to Space (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4750 Radiowave Scattering and Propagation (5 ECTS) Plus 1 elective course from below: ELEC-E4220 Space Instrumentation (5 ECTS) ELEC-E4740 Antennas workshop (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Master's Thesis: Master's Thesis (30 ECTS) |
The specialisation Mapping and Navigation offers two main options: Start at Aalto or start at DTU. There are electives within the two main options.
See the detailed course plans for the different options of the Mapping and Navigation specialisation below.
Option 1: Mapping and navigation - start at Aalto
Year 1: Aalto
Semester 1 |
GIS-E1010 Geodesy and Positioning (5 ECTS) GIS-E1040 Photogrammetry, laser scanning and remote sensing (5 ECTS) GIS-E1020 From measurements to maps (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Courses: GIS-E3010 Least-squares methods in geoscience (5 ECTS) GIS-E5010 Earth system geodesy (5 ECTS) GIS-E3030 Advanced laser scanning (5 ECTS) Plus 1 or 2 of the elective course from below: GIS-E3020 Digital image processing and feature extraction (5 ECTS) GIS-E3040 Advanced photogrammetry (5 ECTS) GIS-E3050 Advanced remote sensing (if not selected above,5 ECTS) GIS-E4020 Advanced spatial analytics (5 ECTS) GIS-E4011 Geographic Data Management (5 ECTS) GIS-E5040 Mathematical Geodesy (5 ECTS) GIS-E1060 Spatial analysis (5 ECTS) |
Year 2: DTU, including Master's Thesis
Semester 1 |
Courses: 30200 Measurement technologies in Earth and Space Physics (10 ECTS) 30220 Synthesis in Earth and Space Physics (10 ECTS) 42490 Technology, economics, management and organisation (10 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Master's Thesis: Master's Thesis (30 ECTS) |
Option 2: Mapping and navigation - start at DTU
Year 1: DTU
Semester 1 |
Courses: 30200 Measurement technologies in Earth and Space Physics (10 ECTS) 30230 Data analysis and modeling in Geoscience and Astrophysics (5 ECTS) 30550 Satellite-based Positioning (5 ECTS) 30560 Physical Geodesy (5 ECTS) 30210 Data processing methods in Earth and Space Physics (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Courses: 30530 Geographic Information Systems (5 ECTS) 30540 Mapping from Aerial and Satellite Images (5 ECTS) 30750 Earth System Science (5 ECTS) 30752 The cryosphere (5 ECTS) 42490 Technology, economics, management and organisation (10 ECTS) |
Year 2: Aalto, including Master's Thesis
Semester 1 |
Courses: GIS-E6010 Project course (10 ECTS) Plus 1 or 2 of the elective course from below: GIS-E5040 Mathematical Geodesy (5 ECTS) Plus additional elective courses to gain a total of 30 ECTS for the semester, e.g.: GIS-E1010 Geodesy and Positioning (5 ECTS) GIS-E1020 From Measurements to Maps (5 ECTS) GIS-E1030 Introduction to Spatial methods (5 ECTS) GIS-E1040 Photogrammetry, laser scanning & remote sensing (5 ECTS) GIS-E3010 Least-Squares Methods in Geoscience (5 ECTS) GIS-E1060 Spatial Analysis (5 ECTS) GIS-E4020 Advanced spatial analytics (5 ECTS) GIS-E4011 Geographic Data Management (5 ECTS) |
Semester 2 |
Master's Thesis: Master's Thesis (30 ECTS) |
Nordic Master's thesis
For the master thesis you will have two supervisors, one from each of the two institutions involved in the study track. Your thesis work will be assessed by both institutions and in some cases also an external examiner. See examples of theses here.
- The student proposes a master’s thesis topic and professors (thesis supervisor). Nordic Master students have both supervisor from 1st University and 2nd University Master's thesis
- The master's thesis shall be written on a topic related to the major, agreed upon between the student and the teacher who is specialised in the topic of the thesis.
- The student applies for a master’s thesis topic
- The student may apply for a master’s thesis topic once s/he has completed a minimum of 60 credits towards the master’s degree. The topic application is available in eAGE system The student returns the application to the Student Services of the degree programme no later than two weeks before the date of the degree programme committee meeting. The student is responsible for ensuring that his or her official study plan has been approved.
- The master’s thesis topic is presented by the thesis supervisors. The thesis supervisor signs the topic application and proposes a thesis advisor(s) for the thesis
- The Student Services of the degree programme reviews the completed studies. The transcript of records from 2 year University will be send to 1 year University
- The degree programme committee of the school approves the topic and the language of the master’s thesis, and appoints a thesis supervisor and one or two thesis advisors for it
- The degree programme committee of the school approves the topic and the language of the master’s thesis, and appoints a thesis supervisor and one or two thesis advisors for it. If the degree programme committee does not approve the topic, the application is returned to the student.
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The student prepares a plan for master’s thesis
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The student prepares a master’s thesis plan in his or her own words in accordance with the instructions of the thesis supervisor.
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Supervision of master’s thesis
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The student and thesis advisor agree on the execution of the master’s thesis supervision. While the master's thesis is being worked on, the thesis supervisor from 2nd and 1st University shall provide the student with opportunities to report on the progress of the work, on which the supervisors shall give feedback. Similarly, the supervisors may require the student to report on the progress of the work. As necessary, the school may assign the thesis supervisors to also act as a thesis advisor for the thesis.
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The student submits the complete master’s thesis for review to the thesis supervisors and agrees with the supervisors on a presentation / seminar presentation as well as on the writing of the maturity essay
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The supervisors organises an event for presenting the master’s thesis. At Aalto University a presentation is compulsory but it can be organized via Skype.
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Master’s thesis presentations are organised on a regular basis at the level of departments and degree programmes. The student may also give the presentation after writing the maturity essay if the thesis supervisor agrees to it.
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The student presents the master’s thesis/gives a seminar
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The student must present the master’s thesis or give a seminar presentation on it. As a rule, the master’s thesis presentation is attended by the student, thesis advisor(s) and thesis supervisors. The student may also give the presentation after writing the maturity essay if the thesis supervisor agrees to it.
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The thesis supervisor gives the student permission to write maturity essay
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The thesis supervisors and student agree on the time and place of the maturity essay. The student may also write the maturity essay before presenting /giving a seminar presentation on his/her master’s thesis.
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The student writes the maturity essay
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The student shall write a maturity essay to demonstrate conversance with the topic of the thesis and proficiency in English language.
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The thesis supervisor reviews the contents of the maturity essay. The thesis supervisor submits a notification to the Student Services of the degree programme of a completed maturity essay.
- The student requests evaluation of master’s thesis in writing
- The evaluation and approval of the master's thesis shall be requested in writing from the school. The student returns his or her application for the evaluation of the master’s thesis via the e-transactions system https://eage.aalto.fi as soon as
- a) the topic has been approved,
- b) the presentation or seminar presentation given or a date set for it, and
- c) the maturity essay has been completed.
- The evaluation and approval of the master's thesis shall be requested in writing from the school. The student returns his or her application for the evaluation of the master’s thesis via the e-transactions system https://eage.aalto.fi as soon as
Plagiarism check by Turnitin
Turnitin is a help for practising scientific writing. Practically, it is a submission box where an originality report is generated of the submitted texts and a teacher can give feedback on the submission with assessing tools.
Plagiarism checking by Turnitin is compulsory part of master's thesis. More information about Turnitin.
Apply for evaluation and submit an electronic version of your thesis at eAge system
- Before submitting your thesis, please make sure that the version is approved by your supervisor and complete and finalized, including all revisions.
- PDF/A file: Save your thesis in the PDF/A format.
- Application and submition form: Login to the eAge system with your Aalto user ID
- First check your email address at User details (it is used to contact you with any possible questions regarding your thesis and notifying you of the approval decision so it is important that your email address is up to date)
- Fill in the Application form and press Save
- You will be asked for a consent to electronic notification. The eAge system will send an email notification after the decision regarding the evaluation has been marked in the system, but if you do not give consent, you will receive a letter by post.
- Upload your thesis to the Master's Thesis tab. Please note that the form can only be submitted after uploading the thesis.
- Submit the thesis and application by pressing Save on the Case details tab.
Electronic version of the master's thesis and publishing it online
All approved theses and their meta data will be archived in full text in the Aaltodoc publication archive. The meta data refers to i.e. name of the author, topic of the thesis and translation of the topic, name of the thesis supervisor and advisor as well as key words. At eAge you will determine what kinf of publication rights you give for your thesis in Aaltodoc publication archive. The meta data of the thesis and the PDF files are also available through the INSSI database.
The date of publishing can be postponed by a maximum of one year from the date of thesis approval. Hence, the thesis does not need to be published immediately, if you wish to postpone the publishing for reasons related to other publications, patent applications or trade secrets, for example. However, you should still keep in mind that the thesis is always a public document.
If you choose not to give permission for electronic publishing, only library staff will have access to the archived PDF file; it will not be available for anyone else.
If you notice any mistakes in your work, please contact the library ([email protected]).
You may also make hard copies of your thesis if you want.
- The thesis supervisors evaluates the master’s thesis and writes a statement on it
- The master’s thesis supervisors shall present a written statement explaining the grounds for the evaluation and a proposal for a grade; as a rule, this shall be done within one month of the thesis submission.
- The degree programme committee approves and evaluates the master’s theses
- The degree programme committee shall decide the approval and grading of the thesis after examining the written statement by the thesis supervisor and any other statements written. If the degree programme committee does not approve the thesis or grade it, the application is returned to the student.
- The Student Services of the degree programme inform the student of the decision by degree programme committee, issue the student with a copy of the thesis supervisor’s statement, and enter the data into student register
- The Student Services of the degree programme inform the student of the decision of the degree programme committee, issues the student with a copy of the statement of the thesis supervisor, and enters the data into the student register.
- The student is informed of the degree programme committee decision and issued with copy of thesis supervisor statement
- Student informed of degree programme committee decision and issued with copy of thesis supervisor statement. Students dissatisfied with the grade of their master’s thesis may appeal the matter in writing to the Aalto University Academic Appeals Board within 14 days of receiving notification of the decision.
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