Master Sustainability Transitions

Rotterdam Business School's Master programmes are built on three pillars:

• An innovation-driven, challenging real-life study environment
• An international collaboration
• A flexible learning environment

What will you learn?  

In this programme, you will learn how to understand and work with sustainability transitions in real organisational and societal contexts.  

You will explore how transitions are shaped by policy, markets, technology, organisational change, and collaboration across sectors, and how these forces influence the way organisations adapt and transform.  

You will work on topics such as:  

• Energy transitions   

• Circular business models   

• Sustainable strategy and implementation   

• Transition leadership and change in practice   

STR combines practice, research, and leadership development. You will work on real-life cases from existing organisations, develop evidence-based solutions, and strengthen the capabilities needed to navigate complexity, work across perspectives, and turn strategy into action.  

You can expect approximately 13 hours of contact time per week and about 28 hours of self-study.  

The STR master is structured around five interlinked modules, each designed to build the knowledge, skills, and attitudes required to drive sustainability transitions. The curriculum combines applied research, professional collaboration, and personal development—embedded in real-world challenges across sectors and systems.

Together, these demonstrate your ability to research, act, and lead at master’s level in real sustainability transition contexts.

Learning in STR is active, collaborative, and real-world driven. You will work in small, international teams using challenge-based learning to tackle complex transition issues. Courses blend seminars, interactive workshops, field visits, and guest lectures from practitioners and researchers.

You will engage with real organisations through the Transition Action Lab, case work, and applied research projects. Learning is guided by experienced lecturers, researchers, and stakeholders from the public and private sectors. Reflection, peer feedback, and portfolio development help you track your progress and prepare for impact in your future career.

What skills will you develop?  

Throughout STR, you will build the knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to work effectively in complex sustainability transitions.  

You will learn how to:  

• Understand how organisations, systems, and society interact
• Analyse sustainability challenges from multiple perspectives 
• Work with stakeholders across sectors and interests   
• Design research and translate insights into action 
• Communicate strategically in complex environments
• Navigate uncertainty, resistance, and organisational change   

You will also strengthen the personal capabilities needed to work on sustainability transitions in practice, including self-awareness, resilience, ethical judgement, openness to complexity, and reflexive leadership.  

These capabilities are developed throughout the programme and brought together in your Graduation Portfolio, where you apply them to a real-world transition challenge. 

The Master Sustainability Transitions (STR) is part of a national movement to strengthen applied sustainability education across the Netherlands. Within this coalition, STR holds a unique position: it is rooted in Rotterdam, a city that serves as a living lab for transition challenges in energy, mobility, circular economy, and inclusive innovation.

This dynamic urban environment is your playground for experimentation and learning—but the ambition goes far beyond the local scale. The global nature of sustainability transitions requires professionals who think systemically, act collaboratively, and lead with purpose.

STR prepares you to become a transition catalyser: someone capable of navigating complexity, connecting sectors and disciplines, and taking action—wherever change is needed. Whether your path leads to business, government, or civil society, this programme equips you to make a meaningful contribution to a just and sustainable future.  

Congratulations! You have earned your Master’s degree in Sustainability Transitions and will receive the title Master of Science (MSc).

With your diploma, you will receive a diploma supplement with a DS label. This English-language document makes it easier to demonstrate the value of your degree abroad, whether for admission to further studies or in your job search.

What can you do after graduation?  

Sustainability transitions are reshaping every sector from business and finance to government, consulting, energy, and innovation.  

That means organisations increasingly need professionals who can understand complex change, work across disciplines, and lead through uncertainty.  

STR prepares you for a future-proof professional profile that is relevant across industries and sectors.  

After graduation, you may work in areas such as:  

• Sustainability and ESG
• Consulting and strategy 
• Policy and governance 
• Energy transition
• Circular economy
• Business transformation 

Rather than preparing you for one narrow role, you will graduate with a flexible and future-proof profile where you can lead organisations through sustainability transitions challenges.