Graduate Professional Diploma Program (GPDP)

The Graduate Professional Diploma Program (GPDP) was established in 2015 at IHE Delft with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The GPDP disseminates sanitation and sanitary engineering knowledge to professionals without the means, time or interest to pursue an MSc degree in this field, or with an MSc degree in a related field and a wish to specialize professionally. At the moment the only GPDP is hosted by IHE Delft, however likely more similar GPDPs will be launched by other universities in the near future.

Since the establishment of the GPDP, more than 150 participants from 54 countries have enrolled in the program and 36 have so far earned a diploma.The program consists of a sequence of four or five online courses, regular short courses or a combination. The number of ECTS points varies from 3 to 6 per course. The minimum study load for obtaining a diploma is 20 ECTS, which equals a workload of 560 hours. The online courses can be followed part-time, without interrupting a day-time career. In order to ensure that the program fits the personal circumstances of the applicant, courses will be selected and a personal study plan will be designed in collaboration with a study advisor.The total duration of the program depends on this study plan, with a minimum of 1.5 and a maximum of 4.5 years. All the graduates will benefit from a dedicated career development program, supported by the Foundation and will become a member of the Global Sanitation Graduate School and alumni community.