This course is available through the following application route(s)
Climate change, environment, and Corporate Social Responsibility are creating an ever increasing demand for employees with skills in carbon footprinting, GHG accounting, and Life Cycle Assessment. Drivers of this demand are the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (particularly understanding and managing scope 3 emissions), the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (2021) Act, Future Jobs initiative “transition to low carbon economy’ and Ireland’s National Plan on Corporate Social Responsibility.
This programme provides the competency, knowledge, and skills required to work with ISO standard methods for carbon footprinting, GHG inventory, and life cycle assessment in a commercial environment.
Course Content and Structure:
Modules: The Graduate Diploma in Carbon Accounting and LCA comprises 60 credits over a calendar year. In the Autumn students take BSEN30360 Life Cycle Assessment, BSEN40820 Carbon Footprinting and BSEN40720 Carbon and Sustainability (15 ECTS in total), in the Spring, BSEN40400 LCA Applications and BSEN40810 Greenhouse Gas Accounting (15 ECTS in total) and in the summer BSEN40800 Industry Project (30 ECTS).
Delivery: All lectures and tutorials can be completed online, with the option of attending some on campus if desired. The lectures are recorded to accommodate students' needs, so you can review them at your convenience if you're unable to attend live sessions
Course Hours: The programme is delivered over three trimesters, starting in September, January and May. Each trimester is 12 weeks of teaching plus 3 weeks for final assessments. The workload is around 6-9 contact hours plus time to work on assignments per week between September and April. In May a similar amount of time is dedicated to project work.
Application Assessment: Applications may include a short 10-minute interview.
Module Information:
Under the "What modules can I take?" section below you will see general module information, for a more detailed description including module selection rules click here.
Following completion of this Graduate Diploma, students will be able to:
Complete one of the following:
There is an ever increasing demand for employees the with skills that this Graduate Diploma provides. While theoretical knowledge of GHG and other emissions is important, there is a clear demand in Ireland for people with the skills necessary to complete Carbon Footprint, GHG Inventory and Life Cycle Assessment of product and organisations. This skill is transferable across sectors and can be aligned with the different parts of a business, be that process and production, management, health and safety, sustainability or even marketing. This graduate diploma will be ideal for professional development or for reskilling by those looking for a new career opportunity.
Graduates progress into:
Employers include, Veolia, Arup, Codema and RPS.
Below is a list of all modules offered for this degree in the current academic year. Click on the module to discover what you will learn in the module, how you will learn and assessment feedback profile amongst other information.
Incoming Stage 1 undergraduates can usually select an Elective in the Spring Trimester. Most continuing undergraduate students can select up to two Elective modules (10 Credits) per stage. There is also the possibility to take up to 10 extra Elective credits.
| Trimester | Credits | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Stage 1 Core Modules |
BSEN30640 | Life Cycle Assessment O/L | Autumn | 5 |
Stage 1 Core Modules |
BSEN40720 | Carbon & Sustainability | Autumn | 5 |
Stage 1 Core Modules |
BSEN40820 | Carbon Footprinting | Autumn | 5 |
Stage 1 Core Modules |
BSEN40400 | LCA Applications | Spring | 5 |
Stage 1 Core Modules |
BSEN40810 | GHG Accounting | Spring | 10 |
Stage 1 Core Modules |
BSEN40800 | Industry Project | Summer | 30 |
UCD is strongly committed to advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), embedding sustainability in teaching, research, operations, and community engagement. Sustainability principles are integrated into this programme, ensuring students graduate equipped to address global challenges. UCD’s leadership in this area is internationally recognised, ranking 47th globally and 27th in Europe in the QS World University Rankings for Sustainability 2026. UCD also leads impactful research in areas such as climate action, clean energy, and social equity, supported by a comprehensive Sustainability Strategy focused on reducing emissions, enhancing biodiversity, and fostering a sustainable campus culture.
Here are the SDGs which align more visibly with this programme:
Professor Nick Holden, Programme Director.
"When I started working with life cycle assessment, over 20 years ago, I was the only person in Ireland using the method. Since then LCA and carbon footprinting have become critical issues for industry in Ireland and beyond. It is amazing to think that almost all livestock farms in Ireland now voluntarily participate in a national carbon footprinting programme (Origin Green) because of the benefits gained. I have seen increasing interest in what we doing the last few years as companies and their employees have to learn about and implement management of GHG emissions (particularly scope 3). While theoretical knowledge of GHG and other emissions is important, there is a clear demand in Ireland for people with the skills necessary to complete Carbon Footprint, GHG Inventory and Life Cycle Assessment of product and organisations. This skill is transferable across sectors and can be aligned with the different parts of a business, be that process and production, management, health and safety, sustainability or even marketing. This graduate diploma will be ideal for professional development or for reskilling by those looking for a new career opportunity ".
Graduate Profile: Ita White, Senior Research Officer, Teagasc Food Research Centre
"I chose the Grad Dip in carbon accounting and life-cycle assessment as I wanted to upskill on my return to work following a career break. The programme covers a number of methods to assess climate impact and I enjoyed the variety of teaching and learning approaches employed. One of the strengths of the programme is the ability to select projects and assignments for your particular area of interest. The diverse backgrounds and support from my fellow students also added positively to the experience. I found the programme both challenging and stimulating and it has given me the skills, knowledge and confidence to incorporate aspects of sustainability into my day-to-day work. One other highlight for me was the support provided by the course tutors and college as a whole. As a mature student returning to education I received fantastic support."
Funding: A limited number of funded places are now open through www.springboardcourses.ie
NFQ Level 8 honours degree (or international equivalence ) in a relevant subject or >5 years relevant professional experience.
Part Time option suitable for:
Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants: No
General application route(s) for Irish/UK/EU applicants* for International (non-EU) applicants* to Graduate Diploma in Carbon Accounting & Life Cycle Assessment:
| ROWCLASS | Apply to |
|---|---|
| showAudience-audienceEU showAudience-audienceInt | T384 Graduate Diploma in Carbon Accounting & Life Cycle Assessment Graduate Diploma Part-Time Commencing September 2026 Graduate Taught Not available to International applicantsApply |
