Masters Degrees

MSc Electrical Power and Smart Grids

Please note: This page is for 2027 entry. Click here for 2026 entry.

UCAS code 1234
Duration 1 year full time
Entry year 2026
Campus Streatham Campus

Why study MSc Electrical Power and Smart Grids at Exeter?

  • A unique programme that focuses on operation, control and maintenance of future Smart Grid with particular emphasis on the challenges associated with Net-Zero and low carbon futures
  • Benefit from specialist facilities and equipment available at the Centre for Smart Grid where you will be encouraged to attend lab sessions and to undertake your own project work and research
  • Learn from academics who are experts in their fields whose teaching is inspired by the latest research
  • Graduates will be ready to take leading roles in achieving Net-Zero targets with cutting-edge technologies and data analytics for Smart Grid
Apply for Sept 2026 entry

Apply online

Fast Track (current Exeter students)

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Contact

Programme Director: Professor Farhad Namdari

Web: Enquire online

Phone: +44 (0)1392 72 72 72

Discover MSc Electrical Power and Smart Grids at the University of Exeter.

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Top 10 in the UK for General Engineering

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£6.5million investment in our teaching labs, workshop spaces and equipment

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Top 2 in the UK for Electrical & Electronic Engineering

2nd in The Guardian University Guide 2026

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Study the complex systems of energy demand, generation and distribution that will govern the net-zero electrical power networks of the future

Entry requirements

All applicants are considered individually on merit although we usually require a 2:2 honours degree (or equivalent) in a science or engineering discipline.

Relevant degrees: Civil Engineering; Structural Engineering; Building and Construction; Infrastructure Engineering; Applied Geology; Traffic Engineering; Physics; Architecture; Geology; Marine Technology.

Exceptional applications may be judged on experience in lieu of academic qualifications e.g. relevant professional experience.

Please also see our guidance on essential documentation required for an initial decision on taught programme applications.

Entry requirements for international students

English language requirements

International students need to show they have the required level of English language to study this course.

The required IELTS test scores for this course fall under Profile B1.

Please visit our English language requirements page to view the required test scores and equivalencies from your country.

As a student taking the ENGM029 Power Systems Analysis module at the University of Exeter, I find the mix of theoretical and practical elements really effective. The theoretical lectures provide a solid understanding of power system operations, and the practical, simulation-based labs help apply this knowledge in real-world scenarios. Overall, this module is challenging but extremely beneficial for anyone interested in power systems engineering. The module also includes a field trip to National Grids control room, really interesting!!

Elvin

Exchange student from Lund University

Elvin

Course content

You will be introduced to the latest trends and technologies that are transforming the energy and electrical power sector as the world pivots towards sustainable and digitalised power systems.

This programme makes use of the specialist facilities at the Centre for Smart Grid where you will be encouraged to attend lab sessions and undertake your own project work and research.

Compulsory modules will cover areas such as power system analysis; digital twinning and data analytics for power networks and design, implementation and resilience of smart grids and sustainable energy systems. The dissertation will allow you to complete a more detailed research project in an area of personal interest.

The modules below provide examples of what you can expect to learn on this degree course based on recent academic teaching. The precise modules available to you in future years may vary depending on staff availability and research interests, new topics of study, timetabling and student demand.

Please note that the module information displayed here is subject to change.

180 credits of compulsory modules

Compulsory modules

CodeModuleCredits
Compulsory 1
Sustainable Engineering15
MSc Dissertation60
Electric Machines and Power Electronics15
Power Systems Analysis15
Digital Twinning for Power System Plant15
Smart Grids and Sustainable Energy Systems15
Resilience of Electrical Energy Systems15
Introduction to Power Systems and Plant15
Introduction to Data Science and Statistical Modelling15

ECMM163: Sustainable Engineering

Sustainable engineering concerns the design or operation of systems with the aim of reducing energy demand, resource extraction and carbon emissions with the goal of minimising the impact on the environment. By transforming any sector to be more sustainable, it can play a major role in reducing the threat of climate change. But as a practising engineer you must also be aware of the wider role that sustainability plays for example in equality diversity and inclusion issues. This module discusses the interdependency between changes required across all activities of human life across all scales. This module will make you think across disciplines with the goal of evaluating sustainability on a whole system basis including resource supply and demand, energy supply and demand and sustainable management.

This module aims to provide you with an appreciation of the complexities which arise from considering sustainability and the need to tackle the issue from an interdisciplinary perspective. This module aims to provide some of the tools required to assess sustainability as well as the ability to critically analyse the extent to which a product, building, industry or service could be considered to be sustainable.

View an example full module specification

ECMM164: MSc Dissertation

This dissertation will give you the chance to demonstrate your knowledge, to exercise your initiative and personal responsibility, and to use the research techniques and skills you have developed throughout your degree.

You will be required to solve a research or industrially-related practical problem based on the topics learned within, but not exclusive to, the MSc programme you are registered for. The project work will lead to a major piece of work (dissertation) of approximately 15,000 words (max. 80 pages, including references and appendices) that involves project planning, analytical, experimental or empirical results and their interpretation, showing how the goals of the project have been met. You will receive a list of potential projects and will be required to express your two preferences. Alternatively, you can discuss your own dissertation ideas with the module leader / potential supervisor (academic staff) with a view to explore if they offer required technical rigour and research challenge. You will be encouraged to discuss your preferences with relevant academic staff before we allocate projects. As part of the research project, you are expected to undertake a considerable amount of self-study. There is no formal taught component in the module, apart from the writing support lectures and the suggested regular meetings with your supervisor.

View an example full module specification

ENGM009: Electric Machines and Power Electronics

Electric machines play an important role in industry, manufacturing, transportation and every aspect of our life. This module provides fundamental understanding of the main types of electric machines used in industry including DC machines, induction and synchronous machines. You will learn their principles of operation, equivalent circuits, control schemes and applications. This module will also cover semiconductor power electronics as important control devices and circuits in modern electric machine systems. The theory will be supported by a series of hands-on practical experiments to understand the operation and design of electric machines and power electronic circuits for real-world applications.

The aim of this module is to build a fundamental knowledge and understanding of the different types of electric machines used in industry and their applications , and develop the ability to analyse their operation, characteristics, and performance. This module also aims to develop  fundamental knowledge of semiconductor power electronics and the ability to analyse and design power converter circuits as control elements of electric machine systems. Through lectures, tutorials, worksheets and hands-on practical sessions, you will acquire knowledge and skill for the analyses of electric machines and power electronics for real-world applications.

View an example full module specification

ENGM029: Power Systems Analysis

Resilient electrical power systems are an essential part of the infrastructure essential for a modern society. This module will deepen your insights into steady-state power system operation and develop your skills in power system analysis. Hand calculations on a simple 3-bus power network will help you understand simulation-aided power flow calculation on a large, interconnected power network. Emphasis will be on the optimisation of the power system benefits in implementing economic dispatch and optimal power flow. An important aspect of this module is the delivery style, a mixture of theoretical and practical lectures and simulation-based laboratory exercises.

This module aims to develop your understanding of power system operation and its analysis from multiple core engineering perspectives. On successful completion of this module, you will attain the capability to calculate power flows in large power systems by iterative numerical approaches, be able to determine an optimal and economic dispatch of a power system and understand the criticalness of power system faults. This module will increase your confidence in performing an independent assessment of the steady-state operational conditions associated with a power system.

View an example full module specification

ENGM030: Digital Twinning for Power System Plant

Power system plant transports electrical energy from the generating sources to the consumers, and includes transformers, cables, overhead lines, switchgear, and the control and monitoring equipment that ensures power quality and resilience. The basic principles and key issues in designing the plant and ensuring the operational and maintenance strategies are appropriate for a resilient smart grid future are discussed in the module. It also introduces the concept of plant digital twins. This uses condition monitoring data, in conjunction with integrated simulation models, to evaluate the thermal, electrical, mechanical and chemical properties of the plant, and assess failure-risk and life-expectancy.

The module aims to educate you about the items of plant used in a power system, with a focus on design principles, modes of operation and lifecycle management. Furthermore, it will teach you the main concepts associated with condition monitoring and asset management.  By introducing state-of-art ideas in digital twinning the module will ensure you are equipped with knowledge of the digital tools needed to manage a future low-carbon smart grid.

View an example full module specification

ENGM031: Smart Grids and Sustainable Energy Systems

Progress towards Net-Zero is bringing a revolutionary change in fossil fuel-based power systems and forcing the transition to a low carbon Smart Grid. The main concepts in smart grids and sustainable energy systems will be discussed with a focus on the smart grid network architecture, enabling ICT technologies and standards, demand management, data analytics, cyber security, integration of low-carbon technologies such as intermittent renewables, electric vehicles, and storage. This module assesses their impact on network planning, economic design and operation, security, reliability and system resilience, as well as societal benefits.

This module aims to help you understand the key Smart Grid concepts with a focus on the smart grid network architecture, enabling ICT technologies, integration of renewable energy resources, demand management and other low-carbon technologies into the power network.

View an example full module specification

ENGM032: Resilience of Electrical Energy Systems

Power system engineers must ensure a mixture of intermittent renewable generation, hydro, nuclear and storage can satisfy the electrical energy demand of an increasingly electrified world. This needs increasingly smarter and more resilient local distribution grids, operating in conjunction with national/regional transmission grids interconnected to neighbours via HVDC or AC (EHV/UHV) interties. This module aims to expand your knowledge on practical issues related to system adequacy, reliability and resilience from different technological, societal and environmental perspectives. The objective is to increase your understanding of transient and voltage stability with an emphasis on disturbances caused by switching actions and short-circuit faults. Symmetrical components will be used to calculate and analyse balanced and unbalanced faults in a power network. The module will also include the fundamental relaying principles needed to achieve fast, dependable, selective, secure and stable protection, and discuss more recent probabilistic techniques and indices now applied to system adequacy and post-disturbance recovery. A framework for system resilience assessment will be established during this module.

This module aims to educate you about the concepts of power system adequacy, reliability and resilience; with an emphasis on power system control, dynamics, operation and protection.

View an example full module specification

ENGM045: Introduction to Power Systems and Plant

The modern power system is a complex and highly integrated network comprising a set of power infrastructure. This module provides an overview of the modern power system, and introduce key power system components and basic principles of the power system operation. The module will start from fundamental structure of power systems and then cover key components of power systems. The operations of power systems including energy conversion, power balance, load management will be introduced. Towards the end, the impact of renewable energy, electrification, climate change, AI and carbon market on power systems will be analysed. This module is particularly useful to ensure you have sufficient fundamental knowledge for other advanced modules.

This module aims to develop your understanding of modern power system structure, functions, components, and the key indicators impacting power system operations. On successful completion of this module, you will be able to describe the fundamental principles of modern power system and to explain the basic working principles and challenges of key power system components. This module will raise your awareness on technical operational problems in modern power systems.

View an example full module specification

MTHM502: Introduction to Data Science and Statistical Modelling

In this module you will be equipped with the tools required to collate, import and manipulate data together with methods for basic inference including probability, sampling variability, confidence intervals. You will be introduced to different types and sources of data and the tools for performing initial data analysis including producing simple graphical summaries of data and more sophisticated methods for visualising structures in data. You will learn the essential mathematical techniques that are required for the implementation and interpretation of statistical and machine learning methods.

View an example full module specification

 

Fees

2026/27 entry

UK fees per year: 

£14,300 full-time

International fees per year: 

£30,600 full-time

Fee information

Fees can normally be paid by two termly instalments and may be paid online. You will also be required to pay a tuition fee deposit to secure your offer of a place, unless you qualify for exemption. For further information about paying fees see our Student Fees pages.

UK government postgraduate loan scheme

Postgraduate loans are now available for Masters degrees. Find out more about eligibility and how to apply.

Scholarships

The University of Exeter offers a wide range of scholarships to support your education, with £7 million available for international students applying to study with us in the 2026/27 academic year, including our prestigious Exeter Excellence Scholarships. We also provide awards for sport, music and other achievements, as well as regional and partner scholarships with organisations such as Chevening, The Beacon Trust and the British Council. For more information on scholarships and other financial support, please visit our scholarships and bursaries page.

University of Exeter Alumni Scholarship

We are pleased to offer the University of Exeter Alumni Scholarship, a scholarship for University of Exeter alumni beginning a standalone postgraduate programme in 2026/27 with us a scholarship worth 20% of the cost of your first year tuition fees.

Terms and conditions, including deadlines, apply.

My MSc thesis focused on “Continuous evaluation of the RMS value of main voltages using a Raspberry Pi”—a project that ignited my passion for sensor technology. Designing a low-cost, high-precision voltage monitoring system taught me the art of problem-solving under constraints. This work even inspired my next step: a PhD at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering, where I’ll research deep-sea sensors for extreme environments!

The programme’s intensity pushed me to grow rapidly. Modules like Sustainable Engineering and hands-on labs strengthened my technical foundation, while group projects honed my teamwork and communication skills. Exeter’s Career Services also polished my CV and interview techniques, which helped me secure a PhD position seamlessly.

Read more from Yibo

Yibo

MSc Electrical Power and Smart Grids graduate

Yibo

Teaching and research

Teaching and assessment

The programme is delivered through a mix of lectures, tutorials, simulation and experimental laboratory exercises, project work and a dissertation.

Students will develop transferable skills such as communication skills, data handling and analysis, problem solving, decision making and research methodology.

Personal tutor

You will be allocated a Personal Tutor who is available for advice and support throughout your studies, along with support and mentoring from graduates who are now in industry. There is also a Postgraduate Tutor available to help with further guidance and advice.

A research- and practice-led culture

We believe every student benefits from being taught by experts active in research and practice. You will discuss the very latest ideas, research discoveries and new technologies in seminars and in the field.

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Careers

With electricity becoming the key energy vector in achieving society’s Net-Zero targets, new opportunities are on the rise in this field. Due to the integration of low carbon technologies and associated variabilities in energy supply and demand, recruiters are looking for workforce with additional knowledge and expertise in smart grid technologies, data analytics and renewables.

The MSc Electrical Power and Smart Grids prepares engineers for this demand from future power systems who will not only have knowledge on traditional power network but also latest trends and technologies to operate and maintain the future smart grid, application of data analytics techniques and addressing sustainability within the electrical power network.

Graduates will be able to progress to either a PhD degree or to various other roles across private and public sectors.

Dedicated careers support

You will receive support from our dedicated Career Zone team, who provide excellent career guidance at all stages of career planning. The Career Zone provides one-on-one support and is home to a wealth of business and industry contacts. Additionally, they host useful training events, workshops and lectures which are designed to further support you in developing your enterprise acumen. Please visit the Career Zone for additional information on their services.

Graduate destinations

The professional destinations of our graduates reflect the quality of this programme. Our graduates have gone on to enjoy prosperous and successful careers in several areas after graduation, such as engineers and teachers, and work at companies such as Devon County Council, Balfour Beatty, Pell Frischman and AECOM. This information has been taken from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) Survey (2011-2016). 

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