Process Automation part-time postgraduate programme

Featuring a common entry point, the structure of the programme gives a range of academic options, depending on the student’s desire for academic advancement, their availability of time to study, their career goals and ambition.

All students will be initially enrolled on the Certificate, and will then progress on to the Diploma, and then the MSc degree as they successfully complete each stage of the programme.

The programme contains a common suite of 16 modules – both core and elective, with some having prerequisites. The number of core versus elective modules per award will depend on the pathway and previous experience of each student. Students will be advised by our staff of their possible individual programme of study at the onset of their studies.

Postgraduate Certificate
The programme for the Postgraduate Certificate comprises four modules which normally would include the relevant core modules. On attaining the Certificate students may progress to commence the Diploma programme and study four more modules.

Postgraduate Diploma
The programme for the Postgraduate Diploma is that of the MSc degree but without the industrial project.

MSc Degree
MSc students will have typically taken two to three taught modules per year with completion of eight modules in three to four years. Allowing an extra one year for the industrial project, the expectation is of completion of the programme within four to five years.

The industrial project
The MSc requires completion of an industrial project and it is the culmination of the programme. It represents a major piece of design, development or research work done in-company. Supervision is carried out on a joint academic/industrial basis. The expectation is that it will take a total of 780 hours, equivalent to four months full-time work plus time to write the dissertation.

The Programme Modules

The 16 modules within the programme are all delivered with the following essential characteristics:

• organised for delivery at Imperial in one week blocks;
• attended by students typically aged 25 to 50, some sponsored by their companies;
• all students are treated equally, irrespective of their professional or academic background;
• a strong applications emphasis – many lectures taught by industrialists;
• a balance between breadth and depth, technique and technology, conventional and modern, theory and practice, information and understanding;
• intensive tuition in small student groups with similar interests but differing backgrounds; and,
• every module taken as part of the programme is assessed through a written examination and an assignment.

The modules are organised in one-week blocks of intensive tuition which enables students to balance their studies alongside work and domestic commitments. At the completion of each module is an assignment equivalent to another week’s full-time study, carried out in the student’s own time.

Students typically complete two or three modules per year although if they have satisfactorily progressed to the Postgraduate Diploma they may complete their eight modules in 12 months if they wish.

A rich variety of elective modules caters for the students’ differing backgrounds (chemical, instrumentation etc.) and enables them to select a path through the programme according to their interests, needs and future career direction.

The modules

Some modules are of a foundation nature, the emphasis being on breadth rather than depth. Their purpose is to fill in gaps in students’ background knowledge. The emphasis of the other modules is on depth of understanding – theoretical, technological and applied. These modules are taken according to students’ interests and requirements.

Courses and Advisory Recommendations

In general there is a free choice of any eight of the 16 modules: there are, however, some important constraints. Some elective modules require another module to be completed beforehand – these are indicated by the prerequisites listed in the table below.

Where a prerequisite is indicated, it dictates the order in which a student must take the modules. The modules are grouped into the following three categories, with the content of individual modules detailed on separate pages.

Core
Chemical Engineering Principles
Instrumentation & Measurement
Mathematics & MATLAB

Technology & practice orientated
Advanced Process Automation
Batch Processing & Automation
Dynamics & Control of Distillation Columns
Fuzzy, Neural & Expert Systems
Process Analytical Technology

Theoretical & technique orientated
Control Schemes and Strategies
Control Systems Technology
Management of Automation Projects
Advanced Process Control
Classical Control Systems Design
Modelling & Simulation
Modern Control Systems Design
Optimization & Scheduling

Should you be sponsored by your employer to participate in this programme of studies in Process Automation, Instrumentation and Control, your company will be nurturing and developing an employee who will add increasing value to its business.

Not only will your employer benefit from your learning but they will also gain:

•  an injection of the latest thinking and technical skills,
• your access to Imperial’s resources and events,
• your networking and exchanging of ideas with other like-minded individuals,
• your fresh insight into specific problems or technical issues,
• your selection of modules specifically designed to address the needs of modern industry,
• and your desire to hit the ground running as you will immediately apply your new learning within your organisation.

Imperial’s Centre for Continuing Professional Development addresses the life-long learning needs of professionals through the delivery of postgraduate short course training. The 16 programme modules are also offered as CPD courses through the Centre.

CPD short courses are delivered cyclically and to see when a preferred subject is being delivered, as well as finding details of how to book places and fees, please visit our schedule of modules.

Certificates of attendance will be issued on completion of a CPD short course. A CPD short course does not feature an examination or assessment. Therefore we strongly advocate that students wishing to gain a qualification should apply for the Postgraduate Certificate which is achieved by taking and passing the assessments for four modules.