Course contact details
Postgraduate Admissions
Email:pgadmissions@abdn.ac.uk
Phone:01224 272090
University of Aberdeen
Directorate of Global Engagement, Marketing and Recruitment
King's College
Aberdeen
AB24 3FX
Petroleum Engineering (Online) (Taught)
- MSc
- 30 Months
- Online study
- January 2026
- Postgraduate
- Distance learning
Course summary
Become a world-class petroleum engineer, ready to take up roles in the upstream oil and gas industry. Join our accredited online MSc in Petroleum Engineering, designed in partnership with industry.
Prepare for a career as a world-class petroleum engineer.
MSc Petroleum Engineering is accredited by the Energy Institute. It’s designed to ready you for career success in the oil and gas sector. You’ll gain the skills you need to deliver viable oil and gas field development plans. You’ll learn to appraise and select the right technologies for safe production recovery of hydrocarbon oil and gas and you’ll train using industry-standard simulation software.
Studying part-time online, you’ll cover every aspect of petroleum engineering, including:
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the fundamentals of petroleum geoscience
-
formation evaluation
-
well drilling and production
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reservoir engineering and simulation.
Hand-in-hand with industry
This degree has been developed by experienced industry professionals. Its content is reviewed and supported by an Industry Advisory Board of energy experts working in the field. This ensures that what you learn here is always current and connected to industry skills needs.
Modules
You’ll work through eight 15-credit courses and a 60-credit project to gain your MSc. This distance learning MSc Petroleum Engineering is delivered flexibly, 100% online. You can learn with us anywhere in the world, no student visa required, and set your study hours to suit you. Teaching is delivered through MyAberdeen, our online Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). It holds all the materials, tools and support you’ll need in your studies. This online Masters is designed and led by our School of Engineering, Department of Geology and Geophysics and energy industry experts. You’ll learn from a team of internationally experienced engineers, academics and professionals working within the oil and gas industry today.
Assessment method
This degree is assessed online. We’ll use a range of online assessment methods throughout your studies. These may include: written coursework, online tests, reports and projects.
Professional bodies
Professionally accredited courses provide industry-wide recognition of the quality of your qualification.
- Energy Institute, The
How to apply
International applicants
We welcome students from all over the world. You do not need a student visa to study online with us nor ATAS certification as a study visa is not required. Teaching is delivered in English.
This course has a subject classification which requires students whose nationality is outside the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland to have an ATAS certificate, irrespective of country of residence at the point of application.
Further information can be found on the UK Government's website: www.gov.uk/academic-technology-approval-scheme
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Entry requirements
A 2:2 UK honours degree (or equivalent) in any branch of Engineering or Applied Mathematics, or a 2:2 UK honours degree (or equivalent) in Geology, Physics or Chemistry and at least two years’ relevant experience.
Key subjects you must have covered: Mathematics and Physics.
These are our minimum entry requirements. They are given as a guide and do not guarantee entry.
English language requirements
| Test | Grade | Additional details |
|---|---|---|
| IELTS (Academic) | 6.5 | Overall - 6.5 with: Listening - 5.5 or above; Reading - 5.5 or above; Speaking - 5.5 or above; Writing - 6.0 or above. IELTS Indicator or IELTS General Training are not accepted. |
| TOEFL (iBT) | 90 | TOEFL iBT and TOEFL Home Edition: Overall - 90 with: Listening - 17 or above; Reading - 18 or above; Speaking - 20 or above; Writing - 21 or above. DI code is 0818 |
| PTE Academic | 62 | Overall - 62 with: Listening - 59 or above; Reading - 59 or above; Speaking - 59 or above; Writing - 59 or above. Online Test is not accepted |
| Institution's Own Test | Academic English Pre-sessional Programme (PSE) - Pass (valid for one year) Academic English Preparation Programme undertaken at other UK HEI - accredited by BALEAP and within 1 year of start of course |
To study for a postgraduate degree at the University of Aberdeen it is essential that you can speak, understand, read, and write academic English fluently. These skills will allow you to understand lectures, produce high standards of written work, and perform well in examinations.
We can assess your English language proficiency through a variety of means: through your nationality, through the qualifications you gained in high school, through the degree you undertook or are undertaking at university, or through a recognised English language test.
Postgraduate Standard requirements are used by the Schools of Biological Sciences; Engineering; Geosciences; Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition; Natural and Computing Sciences; and Psychology.
Please note certification must be within the two years prior to commencement of your course, unless otherwise stated.
Please use the checklist at the following webpage to determine how you can meet our English language requirements:https://www.abdn.ac.uk/study/international/requirements-pg-266.php
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
Per year tuition fees
| Location | Fee | Year |
|---|
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website.
Additional fee information
This indicative cost is based on 180 credits of study over three years, starting in January 2026. The fee quoted above is based on you starting your studies with us in the 2025/26 academic year.
Our tuition fees will rise by 3% for the 2026/27, 2027/28 and 2028/29 academic years. Our indicative cost includes a 3% fee rise each year.
Sponsorship information
The University of Aberdeen provides an Alumni Discount Scheme: The University of Aberdeen is very pleased to offer a 20% discount on postgraduate tuition fees for all alumni who have graduated with a degree from the University of Aberdeen.
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