Modules and Learning Outcomes at TUC (Semester 1)
Module Block “Sustainable Resource Engineering and Digital Mining” - 30 ECTS
Module Block Learning outcomes:
Upon successful completion of the module block, learners will be able to plan, evaluate, and justify responsible mining value chains from exploration to extraction, digital operation, governance, and circularity. Specifically, students will be able to:
intergrate geological, geochemical, mineralogical, geophysical, and geometallurgical information to characterise orebodies, link ore properties to processing performance and product quality, and build uncertainty-aware geological and block models using geophysical survey design/interpretation and data science methods (statistics, ML, geostatistics, spatial modelling). They can develop and use geometallurgical models (domaining/clustering, block-scale estimation, time-dependent integrated modelling) to reduce project risk and optimise extraction and processing decisions.
design safe and efficient extraction systems for both surface and underground mining: they apply geotechnical data, stability analyses, and risk/variability assessment to design open-pit excavations; develop low-impact drill–blast and slope management strategies; select suitable underground methods; and design key underground systems (layouts, support, ventilation, dewatering, backfill). They can identify and manage major operational, geomechanical, and environmental risks and integrate rehabilitation and closure thinking into mine planning.
apply digital mining technologies to support modern decision-making: selecting and using advanced micro-analytical techniques (SEM/TEM/EPMA) to generate reliable material characterisation linked to performance and environmental behaviour; designing and operating multi-source surveying and monitoring workflows (GNSS, photogrammetry, LiDAR, remote sensing, multispectral monitoring, GIS, VR/AR); and evaluating robotics, automation, IoT sensor networks, deep learning, and digital twins for monitoring, inspection, and productivity/safety improvements, while addressing implementation governance, ethics, and change management.
apply mining governance and innovation frameworks by using Design Thinking, Business Model Canvas, and Stage-Gate approaches to convert sustainability challenges into viable products, processes, or business models, supported by rapid prototyping and professional pitching. They can translate the EU environmental legal framework into operational requirements and design compliant rehabilitation and closure plans including baseline studies, stakeholder engagement, long-term monitoring/reporting, liability considerations, and financial assurance.
advance resource circularity by conducting LCAs for mining products and value chains, designing transparent and traceable supply-chain workflows, and critically evaluating data quality and assurance mechanisms. They can design and compare recovery strategies for critical raw materials from primary and secondary sources using mass balances, process selection (physical, hydro-, pyro-, bio-metallurgy), and sustainability-informed trade-off analysis.
Overall, learners will be able to produce evidence-based recommendations and defensible design choices that balance technical performance, safety, environmental footprint, regulatory compliance, ESG expectations, and economic constraints across the full mining lifecycle.
Module “Exploration” - 6 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
Upon successful completion, learners will be able to:
• Integrate geological, mineralogical, geochemical, geophysical, and geometallurgical information to link ore and mineral properties with processing performance, product quality, and end-use requirements.
• Demonstrate systematic understanding and critical application of analytical techniques, including mineralogical, geochemical, and geophysical methods, for orebody characterization, hydrogeological assessment, and environmental monitoring.
• Design, process, invert, and interpret geophysical surveys (e.g. seismic, ERT/IP, EM, GPR), quantifying uncertainty and integrating results into geological and block models to support exploration, planning, and risk-informed decision-making.
• Apply statistics, machine learning, spatial modelling, and geostatistics for exploration targeting, resource and grade modelling, estimation of geometallurgical variables, and uncertainty-aware prediction.
• Develop and apply geometallurgical models, including clustering/domaining of variables, block-scale estimation, and time-dependent integrated modelling of resources, mining, and mineral processing.
• Evaluate the role of strategic and tactical geometallurgy in reducing project risk, optimizing extraction and processing, and improving operational and economic performance.
• Characterize industrial minerals, rocks, and critical raw materials using deposit models, mineralogy, quality specifications, and beneficiation testwork, linking geology to market requirements and value-chain decisions.
• Design sustainable exploration, monitoring, and extraction programs that minimize environmental footprint, optimize cost–benefit, enhance safety, and support responsible closure.
• Critically assess economic, regulatory, and ESG constraints, including pricing, supply risk, criticality, permitting, and rehabilitation obligations, to propose responsible and sustainable development scenarios.
Module “Mining Governance and Inovation” - 6 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
Upon successful completion, learners will be able to:
• Apply innovation management frameworks (e.g. Business Model Canvas, Stage-Gate, Design Thinking) to identify opportunities and transform sustainable-mining challenges into viable products, processes, or business models with clear value propositions.
• Develop and evaluate sustainable business models for the mining and raw materials sector, incorporating technology transfer pathways, commercialization strategies, and value-chain considerations.
• Apply Design Thinking methodologies, including ideation, rapid prototyping, testing, and user-centered validation, supported by introductory fabrication skills (e.g. 3D printing, embedded systems) to demonstrate proof-of-concept solutions.
• Demonstrate transferable and entrepreneurial skills, including teamwork, communication, innovation competition participation, and professional pitching to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Critically assess technology adoption (e.g. digitalization, automation, circular economy solutions) using KPIs, ESG indicators, and lifecycle thinking to support strategic decision-making and continuous improvement.
• Apply the EU legal and regulatory framework governing mining rehabilitation and closure, including permitting, environmental assessment, liability, monitoring, and post-closure obligations, translating policy requirements into operational practice.
• Design compliant mine closure and rehabilitation plans, integrating baseline studies, stakeholder engagement, risk-based land-use objectives, long-term monitoring, reporting, and financial assurance mechanisms.
• Evaluate sustainability performance and governance frameworks, combining ESG metrics, regulatory compliance, and innovation outcomes to propose responsible, resilient, and future-oriented mining strategies.
Module “Digital Mining” - 6 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
Upon successful completion, learners will be able to:
• Explain the operating principles, capabilities, and limitations of advanced micro-analytical techniques (SEM, TEM, EPMA, including EDS/WDS and BSE/SE imaging) and select appropriate methods for multi-scale characterization of geomaterials.
• Prepare geomaterial samples and acquire high-quality microstructural and chemical data, applying appropriate preparation protocols, beam conditions, QA/QC procedures, and uncertainty-aware interpretation.
• Quantify mineral phases, textures, alteration features, and micro-cracking, linking microscale observations to geometallurgical performance, durability, and environmental behavior.
• Demonstrate understanding of coordinate systems, surveying principles, and data acquisition workflows, applying conventional and emerging technologies for surface and underground mining environments.
• Select and apply advanced surveying and monitoring technologies, including GNSS, photogrammetry, LiDAR/laser scanning, mobile mapping, satellite remote sensing, and multispectral monitoring for deformation analysis, rehabilitation assessment, and precision mapping.
• Collect, process, fuse, and manage multi-source spatial datasets using GIS platforms, visualization tools, and VR/AR systems to support decision-making, communication, and digital mine representations.
• Apply robotic platforms and IoT sensor networks (aerial, terrestrial, underwater, and sea-surface systems) for surveying, monitoring, and inspection in open-pit and underground mining environments.
• Evaluate mining robotics, automation, and autonomous systems, addressing robotic navigation, SLAM challenges, ML/DL-based image understanding, and autonomous monitoring for applications such as slope stability, borehole assessment, safety, and search-and-rescue operations.
• Apply data-driven approaches including deep learning and digital twins for continuous monitoring, predictive analysis, and performance optimization in mining and rehabilitation contexts.
• Critically assess implementation, governance, and ethical aspects of digital and robotic systems, including risk assessment, human–machine teaming, regulatory compliance, and change management, to deliver measurable improvements in safety, energy efficiency, and environmental footprint aligned with ESG objectives.
Module “Resource Circularity” - 6 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
Upon successful completion, learners will be able to:
• Conduct life cycle assessment (LCA) of mining products and value chains, defining goal and scope, compiling inventories, performing impact assessment, and interpreting results to identify hotspots in energy, water, emissions, and waste, aligned with ESG reporting requirements.
• Design transparent and traceable supply-chain workflows, applying supply chain management and logistics principles (supplier qualification, chain-of-custody, mass balance, risk mapping, KPIs) to ensure responsible sourcing from mine to market.
• Critically evaluate data quality, uncertainty, and assurance mechanisms, including audits, standards, and digital traceability tools, and communicate results effectively to support compliance, stakeholder trust, and decision-making.
• Explain the occurrence, mineralogy, and extractive routes of critical raw materials (CRMs) from primary ores and secondary resources (e.g. tailings, slags, e-waste), linking feed characteristics to process selection.
• Design, compare, and evaluate CRM recovery flowsheets, integrating physical separation, hydro-, pyro-, and bio-metallurgical processes with mass balances and performance indicators (recovery, selectivity, energy, water, and reagent demand) under sustainability constraints.
• Assess environmental, economic, and regulatory trade-offs, including circular-economy pathways and residue management options, to propose responsible, case-specific CRM recovery and value-chain strategies.
Module “Extraction” - 6 ECTS
Upon successful completion, learners will be able to:
• Design open-pit excavations using geotechnical data, stability analyses, and risk/variability assessment to ensure safe, efficient extraction with minimized rework and waste.
• Develop low-impact drill–blast, slope management, and stabilization strategies, integrating blast design, monitoring and instrumentation, fragmentation control, and geotechnical risk mitigation to support responsible surface mining operations.
• Evaluate and mitigate the environmental footprint of opencast mining, including dust, noise, water and groundwater impacts, chemical use, and acid mine drainage, embedding rehabilitation and closure considerations into mine planning.
• Select and justify underground mining methods (e.g. cut-and-fill, room-and-pillar, sublevel stoping and caving) based on orebody geometry, rock mass characteristics, safety requirements, and sustainability constraints.
• Design core underground mining systems, including development layouts, ground support, ventilation, dewatering, and backfill, applying risk-based approaches and performance KPIs such as dilution, recovery, energy consumption, and emissions.
• Assess geomechanical, operational, and environmental risks in underground mining—such as rockbursts, subsidence, water quality impacts, and waste management—and propose monitoring, mitigation, and closure strategies for responsible extraction.
Modules and Learning Outcomes at MUL (Semester 2)
Module Block “Mine Design, Risk and Environmental Management” - 30 ECTS
After completing this module block, students will be able to:
Plan mineral resource projects using an iterative, risk-aware approach, and make decisions that account for uncertainty and information quality.
Build and classify mineral resource models by creating deposit models, applying basic geostatistics, and evaluating confidence in estimates; perform practical 3D modelling tasks (e.g., strings, wireframes) in Datamine Studio and GEOVIA Surpac, and recognise limitations of computer-generated models.
Assess environmental and social impacts of mining across air, land and water, including pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions, and connect these impacts to responsible project planning and sustainable development.
Apply core principles of mine waste, remediation, reclamation and closure to prevent long-term impacts, and understand the structure and purpose of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), including mitigation measures.
Design mine closure and post-mining strategies using a life-cycle approach: define closure vision and success criteria with stakeholders, identify closure risks, plan rehabilitation and post-closure monitoring, and consider costing and financial assurance.
Manage safety and risk in mining operations by identifying hazards, conducting basic risk assessments, interpreting results, and defining practical controls and safety strategies that support a positive safety culture.
Work with communities and stakeholders to secure and maintain a Social Licence to Operate (SLO) by analysing social risks, applying SLO principles to business cases, and developing basic engagement and community-relations plans.
Apply rock mechanics to mine design by determining key rock parameters, analysing slope stability, designing safe open-pit slopes, selecting monitoring measures, and communicating engineering results clearly.
Collaborate effectively in teams and communicate technical and non-technical concepts clearly to different audiences (engineers, regulators, and communities).
Module “Planning of Mineral Resources Projects” - 5 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
On completion of the module Planning of Mineral Resource Projects, students can explain the key steps and iterative logic of project planning (project cybernetics) and the role of information quality, uncertainty and risk in decision-making. They can list the required steps and input data to build a deposit model, apply basic geostatistical methods to estimate mineral resources, and classify the resulting model based on estimation confidence. Students can also describe limitations and threats of computer-generated models and perform simple practical modelling tasks (e.g., strings and wireframes) in Datamine Studio and GEOVIA Surpac.
Module “Environmental Impacts of Raw Materials Production” - 5 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
On completion of the module Environmental Aspects of Mineral Extraction, students can ex-plain mining in the context of sustainable development and ethical responsibility, and identify and analyse the major environmental impacts of mineral extraction, processing and use on air, land and water (including pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions). They can describe key social and community impacts of mining projects and relate them to responsible project planning. Students understand the geological context of raw materials (deposits and genesis) and can discuss raw-material availability from a global perspective, including options to improve resource and energy efficiency and support sustainable supply. They can apply basic princi-ples of waste management, remediation of contaminated sites, and site reclamation and mine closure, focusing on preventing long-term impacts after mining ends. Students can also assess supply and environmental risks (especially for critical raw materials) and outline the structure and purpose of an environmental impact assessment (EIA), including impact identification and mitigation measures.
Module “Post Mining” - 5 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion, students will understand the objectives and scope of mine closure and post-closure, as well as its interdisciplinary dimensions, including environmental, social, technical and financial aspects. They can interpret and apply the relevant standards, frameworks and regulatory requirements. Furthermore, students can apply a life-cycle approach to closure planning, from design to post-closure. They can also define a closure vision and success criteria based on stakeholder input, baseline studies and sustainability goals. They can assess closure risks (physical, chemical, biological, social and financial) and design mitigation and rehabilitation solutions relating to stability, soils, revegetation and water. They can also plan post-closure monitoring and adaptive management, including costing and financial assurance. As part of the process, students can integrate stakeholder perspectives into closure planning and communicate closure concepts to non-specialists. They can critically evaluate post-mining land use options and justify sustainable choices using case studies. They can also work effectively in teams.
Module “Safety and Risk Management” - 5 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
After successful completion of this module, students can explain core risk concepts with emphasis on inherent mining risks, describe the risk management process, and identify and quantify hazards/risks. They can perform a simple risk assessment by selecting and applying basic risk analysis and evaluation techniques, interpret the results, and define appropriate risk response.
Module “Rock Mechanics” - 5 ECTS
Learning Outcomes:
Students will develop an understanding of the properties of rock and rock masses, as well as the fundamentals of stresses, strains and failure in rock materials. They can determine key parameters using standard rock mechanics methods and interpret the results for engineering purposes. Furthermore, students can explain slope objectives and stability/instability mecha-nisms. They can select appropriate slope stability methods, carry out stability calculations and design slopes for open pits. They can also design monitoring measures to manage slope performance and risk. Finally, students can communicate rock mechanics findings and stability results clearly in an engineering context. They can work independently and in teams on laboratory and design tasks, adopting a structured approach that considers safety when as-sessing slopes and designing mines.
Module Block Master's thesis, Science and Responsibility and Defense (Semester 3,4)
Module Block Master's thesis, Science and Responsibility and Defense - 30 ECTS
Learning Outcomes
This module block aims to guide students through systematic research and writing to enable them to master research methodology, deepen their understanding and exploration of their specialised fields, and cultivate their abilities in independent scientific research and academic writing. Students will not only be able to apply the theoretical knowledge they have learnt to solve practical problems, but also enhance their analytical skills, critical thinking and creativity, laying a solid foundation for their future academic or professional careers.
Upon completion of the module block, students will be able to:
1. Master the basic skills and methods of scientific research.
2. Be able to put forward research questions with research value and academic significance, and conduct in-depth discussions and answers through rigorous logical analysis and argumentation.
3. The society retrieves important literature in related fields, summarizes previous research results, identifies research gaps, and lays a foundation for follow-up research.
4. Analyze and evaluate information from multiple perspectives and develop the ability to make independent judgments.
5. Study and follow the standards of academic writing to ensure the scholarship and rigor of the research results.
6. Master the use of data processing and statistical analysis software to provide a reliable basis for research conclusions.
7. Learn to plan time and resources reasonably and improve self-management skills.
8. Improve expression and communication skills through thesis defense