Engineering

Master of Technology in Sustainable Energy Engineering

The Master of Technology in Sustainable Energy Engineering is a postgraduate programme that prepares professionals for advanced practice in renewable energy, energy systems, and sustainable energy technologies. The programme provides specialised training in solar energy, wind energy, bioenergy, energy management, and sustainable energy systems.

Core areas include renewable energy systems, energy conversion, solar energy engineering, wind energy engineering, energy management, energy policy, research methods, and thesis. Students engage with both theoretical and practical work through coursework, laboratory sessions, and research.

The programme is offered by the Technical University of Mombasa as a public institution through the School of Engineering and Technology. JKUAT offers a related MSc in Sustainable Energy Engineering through the Institute of Energy and Environmental Technology. Both programmes are available over two years.

Students develop competencies in renewable energy system design, energy analysis, sustainable energy technologies, and research. The programme includes coursework, examinations, laboratory sessions, and a supervised research thesis, preparing graduates for sustainable energy engineering practice and research roles.

TUM charges approximately KES 153,310 per year while 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 Engineering, Renewable Energy, or a related field from a recognised institution.

Graduates pursue careers as renewable energy engineers, energy consultants, solar energy engineers, wind energy engineers, energy managers, and lecturers across energy companies, consulting firms, government agencies, and universities.

Skills Required

Renewable Energy Systems Design
Solar Energy Engineering
Wind Energy Engineering
Bioenergy and Biomass Technologies
Energy Management and Auditing
Energy Conversion Technologies
Sustainable Energy Policy Analysis
Energy Systems Modelling and Simulation
Research Methods in Energy Engineering
Academic Writing and Thesis Research

Key Subjects

Renewable Energy Systems Design
Solar Energy Engineering
Wind Energy Engineering
Bioenergy and Biomass Technologies
Energy Management and Auditing
Energy Conversion Technologies
Sustainable Energy Policy Analysis
Energy Systems Modelling and Simulation
Research Methods in Energy Engineering
Thesis Research

Certifications

IRENA Professional Certification
EBK Professional Registration

Specializations

Solar Energy Engineering

Focuses on solar energy, covering solar, energy, engineering, PV, and managing solar energy engineering and photovoltaic systems.

Wind Energy Engineering

Examines wind energy, covering wind, energy, engineering, turbines, and managing wind energy engineering and turbine systems.

Bioenergy

Covers bioenergy, covering bioenergy, biomass, biofuel, conversion, and managing bioenergy and biomass technologies.

Energy Management

Focuses on energy management, covering energy, management, auditing, efficiency, and managing energy management and auditing.

Energy Policy and Planning

Examines energy policy, covering energy, policy, planning, regulation, and managing energy policy and planning.

Hydropower Systems

Covers hydropower, covering hydro, power, systems, generation, and managing hydropower systems and generation.

Duration: 2 years
Public, up to: Ksh 183,000
Job market: High

The programme

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

Practicalities

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

What you study

10 subjects

Renewable Energy Systems Design
Solar Energy Engineering
Wind Energy Engineering
Bioenergy and Biomass Technologies
Energy Management and Auditing
Energy Conversion Technologies
Sustainable Energy Policy Analysis
Energy Systems Modelling and Simulation
Research Methods in Energy Engineering
Thesis Research

Modules

12 in the programme

Renewable Energy Systems Design
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines renewable energy systems, covering renewable, energy, systems, design, and managing renewable energy systems design.
Solar Energy Engineering
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers solar energy, covering solar, energy, engineering, PV, and managing solar energy engineering and photovoltaic systems.
Wind Energy Engineering
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines wind energy, covering wind, energy, engineering, turbines, and managing wind energy engineering and turbine systems.
Bioenergy and Biomass Technologies
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers bioenergy, covering bioenergy, biomass, biofuel, conversion, and managing bioenergy and biomass technologies.
Energy Conversion Technologies
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines energy conversion, covering energy, conversion, technologies, thermodynamics, and managing energy conversion technologies.
Energy Management and Auditing
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Covers energy management, covering energy, management, auditing, efficiency, and managing energy management and auditing.
Sustainable Energy Policy Analysis
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Examines energy policy, covering energy, policy, planning, regulation, and managing sustainable energy policy and planning.
Research Methods in Energy Engineering
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Covers research, methods, energy, engineering, and conducting research in energy engineering, preparing students for their thesis.
Energy Systems Modelling and Simulation
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Examines energy modelling, covering energy, systems, modelling, simulation, and managing energy systems modelling and simulation.
Hydropower and Geothermal Systems
Year 2Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers hydropower and geothermal, covering hydro, power, geothermal, systems, and managing hydropower and geothermal energy systems.
Energy Storage and Grid Integration
Year 2Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines energy storage, covering energy, storage, grid, integration, and managing energy storage and grid integration.
Research Thesis
Year 2Semester 212 creditsCore
Original supervised research thesis on a sustainable energy engineering topic, demonstrating mastery of research methods and engineering knowledge, assessed through written submission and oral defence.

Specialisations

Solar Energy Engineering
Focuses on solar energy, covering solar, energy, engineering, PV, and managing solar energy engineering and photovoltaic systems.
Wind Energy Engineering
Examines wind energy, covering wind, energy, engineering, turbines, and managing wind energy engineering and turbine systems.
Bioenergy
Covers bioenergy, covering bioenergy, biomass, biofuel, conversion, and managing bioenergy and biomass technologies.
Energy Management
Focuses on energy management, covering energy, management, auditing, efficiency, and managing energy management and auditing.
Energy Policy and Planning
Examines energy policy, covering energy, policy, planning, regulation, and managing energy policy and planning.
Hydropower Systems
Covers hydropower, covering hydro, power, systems, generation, and managing hydropower systems and generation.

A day as a student

A typical day combines lectures, laboratory sessions, seminars, and independent study. Sessions cover renewable energy systems, solar energy, wind energy, bioenergy, and energy management. Renewable energy sessions examine renewable, energy, systems, design, and managing renewable energy systems design. Solar energy sessions cover solar, energy, engineering, PV, and managing solar energy engineering. Wind energy sessions cover wind, energy, engineering, turbines, and managing wind energy engineering. Bioenergy sessions cover bioenergy, biomass, biofuel, conversion, and managing bioenergy and biomass technologies. Energy management sessions cover energy, management, auditing, efficiency, and managing energy management and auditing. Laboratory sessions provide practical experience in solar PV testing, wind turbine simulation, and energy system modelling. The programme culminates in a supervised research thesis on a sustainable energy engineering topic.

The trade offs

In its favour

Programme addresses critical renewable energy needs with growing demand for energy engineers in Kenya.
Two public universities confirmed offering related programmes, providing options for students.
Programme covers diverse renewable energy sources including solar, wind, bioenergy, hydropower, and geothermal.
Graduates are eligible for EBK professional registration and IRENA international certification.

Against it

No private university confirmed offering this programme.
TUM fees are based on SSP Engineering fee structure; specific programme fees not separately listed.
Engineering jobs may require EBK professional registration for practice.
Laboratory work requires access to specialised renewable energy equipment which may be limited.

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 183k

181k at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology183k at Technical University of Mombasa

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 ~KES 181K/yr. TUM ~KES 183K/yr (official TUM PDF). Private unverified.

HELB postgraduate loans are available for Kenyan students. Universities may offer scholarships for eligible students. IRENA may offer fellowships for renewable energy research and education.

Funding options

HELB Postgraduate Loan
University Scholarship
IRENA Fellowship

Scholarships

3 recorded

HELB Postgraduate Loan
LoanKsh 200,000Kenyan
Kenyan students pursuing postgraduate studies at recognised universities.
University Scholarship
ScholarshipKsh 181,000Kenyan
TUM and JKUAT may offer scholarships for eligible postgraduate energy engineering students.
IRENA Fellowship
ScholarshipKsh 300,000
IRENA may offer fellowships for renewable energy 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: TUM and JKUAT require at least Upper Second Class Honours in a relevant engineering or energy field. Lower Second Class may be considered with at least two years of relevant research or work experience. Contact respective universities for specific admission requirements.

How you are assessed

4 components

Coursework and Continuous Assessment
Coursework30% of the mark
Continuous assessment through coursework assignments, laboratory reports, seminar presentations, and class participation.
Written Examinations
Examination70% of the mark
Written examinations covering renewable energy systems, solar energy, wind energy, and energy management.
Laboratory Assessment
Project40% of the mark
Practical assessment through laboratory sessions, demonstrating solar PV testing, wind turbine simulation, and energy system modelling skills.
Research Thesis
Research100% of the mark
Original supervised research thesis on a sustainable energy engineering topic, demonstrating mastery of research methods and engineering knowledge, assessed through written submission and oral defence.

Accreditation

The programme is accredited by the Commission for University Education (CUE). TUM (public) offers Master of Technology in Sustainable Energy Engineering. JKUAT (public) offers MSc in Sustainable Energy Engineering. The programme meets CUE standards for postgraduate training in sustainable energy engineering. Graduates may interact with EBK for professional registration, EPRA for energy sector licensing, and IRENA for international standards. The programme aligns with CUE, EBK, and IRENA global sustainable energy frameworks.

Accredited by

Commission for University Education (CUE)
Academic accreditationRequired
Programme accredited by CUE. TUM (public) offers Master of Technology in Sustainable Energy Engineering. JKUAT (public) offers MSc in Sustainable Energy Engineering. The programme meets CUE standards for postgraduate training in sustainable energy engineering. Graduates may interact with EBK for professional registration, EPRA for energy sector licensing, and IRENA for international standards. The programme aligns with CUE, EBK, and IRENA global sustainable energy frameworks.

Where it leads

The roles it opens, and what you leave with.

Where graduates go

6 roles

Renewable Energy Engineer
High demandKsh 130,000 to Ksh 450,000
Designs and manages renewable energy systems, covering renewable, energy, engineer, systems, and managing renewable energy engineering.
Energy Consultant
High demandKsh 140,000 to Ksh 480,000
Provides energy consulting, covering energy, consultant, advisory, efficiency, and managing energy consulting and advisory.
Solar Energy Engineer
High demandKsh 130,000 to Ksh 450,000
Designs solar energy systems, covering solar, energy, engineer, PV, and managing solar energy engineering and design.
Wind Energy Engineer
High demandKsh 130,000 to Ksh 450,000
Designs wind energy systems, covering wind, energy, engineer, turbines, and managing wind energy engineering and design.
Energy Manager
High demandKsh 120,000 to Ksh 400,000
Manages energy systems, covering energy, manager, management, efficiency, and managing energy management and operations.
Engineering Lecturer
Moderate demandKsh 100,000 to Ksh 400,000
Teaches sustainable energy engineering at university or college level, overseeing instruction, research, and academic supervision.

Graduate outcomes

Where these fields lead

8 careers

Tools you will learn

MATLAB/Simulink
SoftwarePrimary
MATLAB/Simulink for energy system simulation and modelling, covering MATLAB, simulation, modelling, energy, and managing energy system simulation.
HOMER Energy
Software
HOMER for hybrid renewable energy system design and optimisation, covering HOMER, hybrid, renewable, optimisation, and managing hybrid energy system design.
PVsyst
Software
PVsyst for solar PV system design and simulation, covering PVsyst, solar, PV, design, and managing solar PV system design.
RETScreen
Software
RETScreen for energy project feasibility analysis, covering RETScreen, energy, feasibility, analysis, and managing energy project feasibility analysis.

Industry links

Common misconceptions

Sustainable energy engineering is just about solar panels.
Sustainable energy covers solar, wind, bioenergy, hydropower, energy management, and policy beyond just solar panels.
This programme is only for electrical engineering graduates.
The programme is for professionals from mechanical, chemical, mechatronics, and renewable energy fields, not just electrical engineering.
Renewable energy has limited career prospects in Kenya.
Renewable energy is a growing sector in Kenya with high demand for engineers in solar, wind, geothermal, and bioenergy.
This programme is the same as environmental engineering.
Sustainable energy engineering focuses on energy systems and renewables, while environmental engineering covers broader environmental management.
Sustainable energy is too theoretical with no practical application.
The programme includes laboratory sessions, energy system modelling, and practical projects alongside theoretical foundations.
You need industry experience to study this programme.
The programme is accessible to recent graduates with relevant bachelor's degrees, not just experienced professionals.