Engineering

Master of Science in Water Engineering

The Master of Science in Water Engineering is a postgraduate programme that prepares professionals for advanced practice in water resources engineering, hydraulic systems, and water supply management. The programme provides specialised training in hydraulic engineering, water supply systems, wastewater treatment, hydrology, and water resources management.

Core areas include water engineering, hydraulic engineering, water supply and sanitation, hydrology, wastewater treatment, water resources management, fluid mechanics, research methods, and thesis. Students engage with both theoretical and practical work through coursework, design projects, and research.

The programme is offered by Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology as a public institution through the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, as a specialisation option within the MSc in Civil Engineering. The programme is available in full-time mode over two years, combining coursework with research.

Students develop competencies in water resources, hydraulic systems, water supply, wastewater treatment, and research. The programme includes coursework, examinations, design projects, and a supervised research thesis, preparing graduates for water engineering and infrastructure roles.

JKUAT charges approximately KES 181,000 per year. No private university confirmed offering this exact programme. Entry requires at least an Upper Second Class Honours degree in Civil Engineering, Water Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, or a related field from a recognised institution.

Graduates pursue careers as water engineers, hydraulic engineers, water resources engineers, wastewater engineers, water supply managers, and lecturers across water authorities, government agencies, consulting firms, and universities.

Skills Required

Hydraulic Engineering and Systems Design
Water Supply and Sanitation Engineering
Hydrology and Water Resources Management
Wastewater Treatment and Management
Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics
Water Quality Management
Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Water Infrastructure Planning
Research Methods in Water Engineering
Academic Writing and Thesis Research

Key Subjects

Hydraulic Engineering and Systems Design
Water Supply and Sanitation Engineering
Hydrology and Water Resources Management
Wastewater Treatment and Management
Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics
Water Quality Management
Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Water Infrastructure Planning
Research Methods in Water Engineering
Thesis Research

Certifications

IWA Professional Membership
Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) Registration

Specializations

Hydraulic Engineering

Focuses on hydraulic engineering, covering hydraulic, engineering, systems, design, and managing hydraulic engineering and systems design.

Water Supply and Sanitation

Examines water supply, covering water, supply, sanitation, engineering, and managing water supply and sanitation engineering.

Hydrology and Water Resources

Covers hydrology, covering hydrology, water, resources, management, and managing hydrology and water resources management.

Wastewater Treatment

Focuses on wastewater treatment, covering wastewater, treatment, engineering, management, and managing wastewater treatment and management.

Irrigation and Drainage

Examines irrigation and drainage, covering irrigation, drainage, engineering, water, and managing irrigation and drainage engineering.

Water Quality Management

Covers water quality, covering water, quality, management, treatment, and managing water quality and management.

Duration: 2 years
Public, up to: Ksh 260,000
Job market: High

The programme

What you study, how long it takes, and how it is delivered.

Practicalities

Study mode: Full-time
Attachment: 0 months
Average class: 15 students
Award: Masters

What you study

10 subjects

Hydraulic Engineering and Systems Design
Water Supply and Sanitation Engineering
Hydrology and Water Resources Management
Wastewater Treatment and Management
Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics
Water Quality Management
Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Water Infrastructure Planning
Research Methods in Water Engineering
Thesis Research

Modules

12 in the programme

Hydraulic Engineering and Systems Design
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines hydraulic engineering, covering hydraulic, engineering, systems, design, and managing hydraulic engineering and systems design.
Water Supply and Sanitation Engineering
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers water supply, covering water, supply, sanitation, engineering, and managing water supply and sanitation engineering.
Hydrology and Water Resources Management
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines hydrology, covering hydrology, water, resources, management, and managing hydrology and water resources management.
Wastewater Treatment and Management
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers wastewater treatment, covering wastewater, treatment, engineering, management, and managing wastewater treatment and management.
Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines fluid mechanics, covering fluid, mechanics, hydraulics, flow, and managing fluid mechanics and hydraulics.
Water Quality Management
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Covers water quality, covering water, quality, management, treatment, and managing water quality and management.
Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Examines irrigation and drainage, covering irrigation, drainage, engineering, water, and managing irrigation and drainage engineering.
Research Methods in Water Engineering
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Covers research, methods, water, engineering, and conducting research in water engineering, preparing students for their thesis.
Water Infrastructure Planning
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Examines infrastructure planning, covering infrastructure, water, planning, design, and managing water infrastructure planning and design.
Advanced Hydraulic Modelling
Year 2Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers hydraulic modelling, covering modelling, hydraulic, simulation, analysis, and managing hydraulic modelling and simulation.
Flood Risk Management
Year 2Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines flood risk, covering flood, risk, management, engineering, and managing flood risk and management.
Research Thesis
Year 2Semester 212 creditsCore
Original supervised research thesis on a water engineering topic, demonstrating mastery of research methods and water engineering knowledge, assessed through written submission and oral defence.

Specialisations

Hydraulic Engineering
Focuses on hydraulic engineering, covering hydraulic, engineering, systems, design, and managing hydraulic engineering and systems design.
Water Supply and Sanitation
Examines water supply, covering water, supply, sanitation, engineering, and managing water supply and sanitation engineering.
Hydrology and Water Resources
Covers hydrology, covering hydrology, water, resources, management, and managing hydrology and water resources management.
Wastewater Treatment
Focuses on wastewater treatment, covering wastewater, treatment, engineering, management, and managing wastewater treatment and management.
Irrigation and Drainage
Examines irrigation and drainage, covering irrigation, drainage, engineering, water, and managing irrigation and drainage engineering.
Water Quality Management
Covers water quality, covering water, quality, management, treatment, and managing water quality and management.

A day as a student

A typical day during the MSc in Water Engineering programme combines lectures, design sessions, laboratory work, seminars, and independent study. Sessions cover hydraulic engineering, water supply, hydrology, wastewater treatment, and water resources management. Hydraulic engineering sessions examine hydraulic, engineering, systems, design, and managing hydraulic systems. Water supply sessions cover water, supply, sanitation, engineering, and managing water supply systems. Hydrology sessions cover hydrology, water, resources, management, and managing hydrology and water resources. Wastewater sessions cover wastewater, treatment, engineering, management, and managing wastewater treatment. Fluid mechanics sessions cover fluid, mechanics, hydraulics, flow, and managing fluid mechanics and hydraulics. Water quality sessions cover water, quality, management, treatment, and managing water quality. Laboratory sessions provide practical experience in water quality testing and hydraulic modelling. Design sessions provide practical experience in water system design and infrastructure planning. Seminars provide opportunities for presenting research findings. The programme culminates in a supervised research thesis on a water engineering topic.

The trade offs

In its favour

Programme addresses critical water infrastructure needs as Kenya invests heavily in water supply and sanitation projects.
JKUAT fee data verified from authoritative sources.
Graduates are eligible for EBK registration and IWA international professional membership.
Programme combines theoretical knowledge with practical laboratory and design sessions.

Against it

Only one university confirmed offering this specific specialisation in Kenya.
No private university confirmed offering this programme.
Programme is offered only in full-time mode, which may not suit working professionals.
Water engineering projects are capital-intensive, which may limit research opportunities.

What it costs

Tuition at both ends of the market, and how to pay for it.

What it costs, and where

Against 332 engineering courses

Public181k to 260k

181k at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology260k at Technical University of Kenya

Annual tuition in Kenyan shillings, rounded. The upright tick is the median for this field, so a bar sitting entirely to its right is an expensive programme by the standards of its own subject.

The fine print

JKUAT 181K/yr (kenyaeducationguide). TUK Group I 260K/yr (eafinder). Private unverified.

HELB postgraduate loans are available for Kenyan students. Universities may offer scholarships for eligible students. IWA and WWC may offer fellowships for water engineering research and education.

Funding options

HELB Postgraduate Loan
University Scholarship
IWA Fellowship

Scholarships

3 recorded

HELB Postgraduate Loan
LoanKsh 200,000Kenyan
Kenyan students pursuing postgraduate studies at recognised universities.
University Scholarship
ScholarshipKsh 181,000Kenyan
JKUAT may offer scholarships for eligible postgraduate water engineering students.
IWA Fellowship
ScholarshipKsh 300,000
IWA and WWC may offer fellowships for water engineering research and education.

Getting in

The grades, the alternatives, and who accredits the award.

What you need

KCSE mean grade: N/A (Postgraduate)
Alternative entry: JKUAT requires at least an Upper Second Class Honours degree in a relevant discipline. Lower Second Class may be considered with relevant work experience or a postgraduate diploma. Contact the university for specific admission requirements.

How you are assessed

4 components

Coursework and Continuous Assessment
Coursework30% of the mark
Continuous assessment through coursework assignments, design reports, laboratory reports, seminar presentations, and class participation.
Written Examinations
Examination70% of the mark
Written examinations covering hydraulic engineering, water supply, hydrology, wastewater treatment, and water resources management.
Design Project
Project40% of the mark
Practical assessment through design projects, demonstrating water system design, hydraulic modelling, and infrastructure planning skills.
Research Thesis
Research100% of the mark
Original supervised research thesis on a water engineering topic, demonstrating mastery of research methods and water engineering knowledge, assessed through written submission and oral defence.

Accreditation

The programme is accredited by the Commission for University Education (CUE). JKUAT (public) offers MSc in Civil Engineering with Water Engineering option through the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering. The programme meets CUE standards for postgraduate training in water engineering. Graduates may seek registration with the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) and international professional bodies including IWA. The programme aligns with EBK and IWA global water engineering frameworks.

Accredited by

Commission for University Education (CUE)
Academic accreditationRequired
Programme accredited by CUE. JKUAT (public) offers MSc in Civil Engineering with Water Engineering option through the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering. The programme meets CUE standards for postgraduate training in water engineering. Graduates may seek registration with the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) and international professional bodies including IWA. The programme aligns with EBK and IWA global water engineering frameworks.

Where it leads

The roles it opens, and what you leave with.

Where graduates go

6 roles

Water Engineer
High demandKsh 120,000 to Ksh 400,000
Designs and manages water systems, covering water, engineering, systems, design, and managing water engineering and systems.
Hydraulic Engineer
High demandKsh 120,000 to Ksh 400,000
Designs hydraulic systems, covering hydraulic, engineering, systems, design, and managing hydraulic engineering and design.
Water Resources Engineer
Moderate demandKsh 110,000 to Ksh 380,000
Manages water resources, covering water, resources, engineering, management, and managing water resources and engineering.
Wastewater Engineer
Moderate demandKsh 110,000 to Ksh 380,000
Designs wastewater systems, covering wastewater, engineering, treatment, design, and managing wastewater engineering and treatment.
Water Supply Manager
High demandKsh 120,000 to Ksh 400,000
Manages water supply, covering water, supply, manager, operations, and managing water supply and operations.
Water Engineering Lecturer
Moderate demandKsh 100,000 to Ksh 400,000
Teaches water engineering at university or college level, overseeing instruction, research, and academic supervision.

Graduate outcomes

Where these fields lead

8 careers

Tools you will learn

EPANET
SoftwarePrimary
EPANET for water distribution system modelling, covering water, distribution, modelling, analysis, and managing water distribution modelling and analysis.
SWMM
Software
SWMM for stormwater and wastewater modelling, covering stormwater, wastewater, modelling, analysis, and managing stormwater and wastewater modelling.
HEC-RAS
Software
HEC-RAS for hydraulic analysis and flood modelling, covering hydraulic, analysis, flood, modelling, and managing hydraulic analysis and flood modelling.
AutoCAD Civil 3D
Software
AutoCAD Civil 3D for water infrastructure design, covering CAD, water, infrastructure, design, and managing water infrastructure design.

Industry links

Common misconceptions

Water engineering is just about pipes and plumbing.
Water engineering covers hydrology, hydraulic systems, water resources management, wastewater treatment, and water quality beyond just pipes.
This programme is only for civil engineering graduates.
Water engineering is for professionals from agricultural engineering, environmental science, and related fields, not just civil engineering graduates.
Water engineering has limited career prospects in Kenya.
Water engineers are in high demand in water authorities, government agencies, and consulting firms as Kenya invests in water infrastructure.
This programme is the same as environmental engineering.
Water engineering focuses specifically on water systems and resources, distinct from environmental engineering which covers broader environmental management.
Water engineering is only about drinking water.
The programme covers wastewater, irrigation, drainage, flood control, and water resources management, not just drinking water supply.
You need water industry experience to study this programme.
While experience is beneficial, the programme is accessible to graduates from various engineering fields seeking water specialisation.