MSc Digital Technology for Sustainable Agriculture

2025 Details

Programme Commencing:

September 2025

Programme duration:

1 Year Full Time

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MSc Digital Technology for Sustainable Agriculture

The world’s population is expected to grow to approx. 10 billion by 2050. This growth will result in increased demand for resources, raw materials and food. Furthermore, the world faces intersecting challenges like climate change, exploitation of natural capital and an aging and declining rural population.

To produce a “sustainable food future,” the world must increase food production while cutting GHG emissions and maintaining (or reducing) the land used in agriculture.

Digital agriculture could address these challenges by making the agri-food value chain more efficient, equitable, and environmentally sustainable - before, during, and after on-farm production.

The programme is aimed at students who wish to build their knowledge and skills-base to address the complexities of developing, deploying and managing digital technology in the agriculture sector. With a focus on design, numeracy, and hardware software technology, our students will be deeply engaged agricultural with production, and specifically technology to enhance efficiency, sustainability, resilience and reliability.

The programme is delivered by a highly research-intensive and multi-disciplinary school – Ireland’s premier agri-food related research entity with excellent networks into the agri-food industry and with a particular focus on working with industry to provide sustainable technical solutions. The school’s academic staff have a major global research impact, with three professors who are among the top 1% of the most cited researchers in the world according to the latest Highly Cited Researchers list published by Clarivate.

Why UCD

Engineering at UCD is highly attractive to students due to the exposure to world leading researchers and the significant career prospects.

UCD is ranked in the top 1% of higher education institutes worldwide.
Degrees with high employability with dedicated careers support.

Ireland’s largest and most international university.
Established in 1854 with 160 years of teaching and research excellence.

What will I study?

This programme is primarily delivered face to face, but will also include some fully online modules and blended delivery models. All modules are optional and students will be able to take themed clusters of modules (e.g. three modules of precision farming, three modules of sensing technology, three modules of computers and electronics, three modules of data science) to reflect specific technical interests or needs for upskilling.

Credit Structure:

90 total credits, 60 credits of taught modules and 30 credits for a research project.

All autumn and spring modules are optional and must be selected in consultation with the Programme Director.

Students will be able to take themed clusters of modules (e.g. three modules of precision farming, three modules of sensing technology, three modules of computers and electronics, three modules of data science) to reflect specific technical interests or needs for upskilling.

Modules include:

Data Programming with Python
Crop technology and Mechanisation
Soil Technology
Hyperspectral Imaging
Remote Sensing and GIS for Decision Making
Computers and Electronics in Agriculture

Numerical Methods for Agriculture
Sensors and Sensing Systems
Optical Sensing Technology
Precision Agriculture
Precision Livestock Management
IoT enabled Agrifood Production

A message from our Programme Director:

"Rapid advances in computing technologies are leading to radical transformations across a multitude of industry sectors. Data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence offer new solutions to challenges in sectors including agriculture. Although this degree is new within UCD, Digital Agriculture is recognised as one of the most critically important technical disciplines supporting the use of new and advanced technologies integrated into one system. The MSc programme provides students with an understanding of the tools that digitise data capture relating to the environment and activity (sensor technologies and systems), move the data (accumulation networks), store the data (databases), analyse data to gain insights (models and AI), share the resulting information along the agricultural value chain (distribution networks) and provide actors and stakeholders access to the digital chain (interfaces). The mix of full-time and part-time students sharing modules opens a promising dynamic in which learners can complement and help one another in the broader context. The modules will employ technology-enabled flexible teaching approaches suitable for both full-time students and upskilling professional learners."

Dr Dimitrios Argyropoulos

Entry Requirements:

A 2.2 or higher in an Honours degree (NFQ Level 8 or international equivalent ) in Agriculture, Biological science, Physical science, Environmental related, Engineering or Computer Science is required.

Other disciplines and holders of Certificate and Diploma qualifications will be considered subject to an application detailing suitable mathematical, technological, and analytical skills, particularly if these can be demonstrated by experience in a relevant industrial/work environment.

Where an applicant has no formal qualification experential experience will be taken into consideration on a case by case basis.

Other programmes of interest:

Water, Waste & Environmental Engineering Biosystems & Food Engineering Sustainable Energy & Green Technologies

More Information:

See course details How to Apply Ms Laura Egan-O'Brien
laura.egan-obrien@ucd.ie
+353 1 716 1916 Connect with us

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