Dual Master’s Degree with the Columbia Climate School

Programme objectives

This dual degree programme, jointly offered by the Paris Climate School at Sciences Po and the Columbia Climate School, provides a multidisciplinary approach to educating future leaders equipped to navigate the interconnected worlds of climate science and global governance. This historic partnership brings together the first two academic institutions in Europe and the United States devoted entirely to climate studies. The programme combines world-class expertise and a global outlook to address the defining challenge of our time. 

The programme builds on the complementary strengths of the two institutions:

• Sciences Po’s long-standing expertise in social sciences and public policy, spearheaded by the Paris Climate School, Europe’s first social sciences school dedicated to climate issues ;
• The Columbia Climate School’s leading position in the study of Climate solutions, bringing together expertise across Earth systems and sustainability. 

The curriculum aims to translate scientific knowledge into collective action, corporate strategies, and effective public policies.

This programme leads to two qualifications: a Master of Arts (MA) from Sciences Po in Ecological Risk, Transition, and Governance and a Master of Science (MS) in Climate from Columbia University.

Main focus areas and distinctive features

This interdisciplinary and complementary programme covers Earth sciences, climate risks and impacts, and the ecological transition, as well as public policy, economics, law, finance, and geopolitics.

Through this rigorous programme, students develop a crucial fluency across both policy and science, learning to approach complex problems from multiple vantage points.

The programme stands out for:

• The acquisition of two complementary degrees, combining a Master’s degree focusing on adaptation, risks, resilience, value-chains, and finance, of the transition at Sciences Po, with a Master’s degree centred on exact sciences, sustainability, and modelling at Columbia University.
• The development of a unique hybrid profile, enabling students to master both the analytical or quantitative dimensions of climate change and its complex governance challenges.

Programme structure

The curriculum spans two years, with each year comprising 60 ECTS credits (or equivalent).

Year 1 at Sciences Po (Paris)

Students develop a deep understanding of the geopolitical, economic, legal and governance dimensions of the ecological transition. They thus acquire the analytical frameworks needed to design, evaluate, and implement effective climate solutions. 

The programme incorporates a hands-on pedagogy, including a Transformation Lab and seminars led by practitioners. 

Students may choose one of our three specialisations:

• Financing the transition.
• Value Chains and Industrial Transformation.
• Adaptation, Risks and Resilience.

Year 2 at the Columbia Climate School (New York)

Students strengthen their expertise in climate systems science, adaptation and mitigation pathways, quantitative methods, risk analysis and applied problem-solving. They thus acquire the technical tools and interdisciplinary frameworks needed to design and evaluate climate solutions.

The programme includes seminars focused on climate solutions, integrated case-study-based learning and a compulsory Capstone project.

Career Prospects

Graduates are prepared for senior management roles in a rapidly expanding global job market where there is a high demand for professionals capable of bridging climate expertise with policy, social sciences, and governance.

The dual degree offers unmatched career versatility across various sectors, including:

• International organisations (UN, OECD, World Bank, European Union).
• Public administrations and government departments (Green Transition, Finance, Industry).
• Private sector: consultancy firms, financial institutions, industrial companies and insurance firms.
• Research and higher education sector.
• NGOs.

In addition to the experience gained, the STEM designation of the MS in Climate awarded by Columbia greatly facilitates entry into the job market in the United States or within international organisations with a strong technical focus. This accreditation provides access to the extended OPT scheme, allowing graduates to work for up to three years in the United States after graduation.

Admissions

The programme is open to applicants from all over the world. The admissions process is competitive, as the degree is aimed at students with an excellent academic record and a career plan suited to the programme.

Further information on the admissions process.

Tuition fees

Students pay tuition fees to the institution where they are physically studying:

• At Sciences Po during the first year;
• At Columbia University during the second year.

Contact us

For any enquiries, please email paris.climate-school@sciencespo.fr.