Fire Safety Engineering

The course will be delivered through lectures, tutorials and practical exercises. Guided teaching and formal assessments will enhance the development of transferable skills such report-writing, maintenance of case notes, formal presentations, participation in discussions, ability to work to deadlines, computing skills, public speaking, scientific analysis, adherence and development of laboratory protocols and research methods.

There are different assessment methods employed across the modules. Some modules are assessed by both examination and coursework, while others are assessed by coursework only, which may take the form of group projects, modelling exercises or time-controlled assignments or seminar presentations.

Benefitting from extensive research funding, we hold an enviable reputation for the quality of our teaching and research activities. All Fire courses are underpinned by the Research Centre in Fire and Hazards and benefit from the dedicated fire laboratories including equipment for small and intermediate scale facilities.

Our well-equipped modern fire engineering laboratory facilities comprise of state-of-the-art fire research equipment, used by experienced academics, are available for research and teaching. There are specialist facilities which include analytical and material characterisation equipment. A number of experiments, ranging from the investigation of fire retardants to the combustion properties of materials, and fire toxicity can be undertaken. We also have computational fluid dynamics facilities that provide the use of CFD based fire modelling for research, teaching and consultancy.

Find out more about our facilities: Fire Laboratories

To enhance your work experience you will have an opportunity to undertake a professional placement as part your MSc. This will extend your study time by six to twelve months depending on the length of the placement. Alternatively, there are opportunities to choose an industry-based project.

You are responsible for finding your own placement. We will support you in preparation for this with the Faculty Placement Team and Careers Team, who can help you plan and develop your CV and applications, and have practice interviews.

As a full-time student you can underpin your studies with a range of balancing modules. The remainder of the MSc is a series of options which may involve external speakers as well as expertise from our staff. You should check availability if you wish to undertake any option in particular.

MSc Fire Safety Engineering commences in Semester 1 with Fires in Buildings which examines: fundamental principles; mechanisms controlling spread of fires and fire development in enclosures; movement and smoke control; fire resistance and fire severity; human behaviour in fires and evacuation; the mechanism of fire suppression agents.

Running in parallel, a Research Methods module supports the Dissertation, which is an in-depth study involving theoretical, computational, experimental or investigative analysis.

The Dissertation is undertaken in Semester 3 together with the Engineering Design Project, which is an integration of themes of design, ICT and technology within a practical context requiring students to work in teams as well as individuals.