For the AMS Institute, ‘engineering talent’ has two meanings: content and approach. The institute trains talented engineers in the development and implementation of metropolitan solutions and engineer talent through innovative education and real-life practice.

Developing and delivering metropolitan solutions requires talented, well-educated and motivated people. Talent can be found anywhere in the world, but developing that talent and focusing their energies on metropolitan solutions (in and for Amsterdam) requires new approaches. We combine the physical and digital worlds at all levels, blending on-site learning, distance education and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) to deliver individualized education at the scale necessary for a world full of talent on the one side and metropolitan challenges on the other.

Our MOOCS

MOOC I: Sustainable Urban Development

If you are interested in the challenges of the 21st century metropolitan regions and how these can be solved from within the city and its inhabitants, then this Sustainable Urban Development course is for you!

MOOC II: Co-creating Sustainable Cities

This MOOC will teach you about the dynamics of co-creation and the key principles of citizens interacting with service providing companies, technology, and infrastructure developers, policymakers and researchers.

MOOC III: Nature Based Metropolitan Solutions

Discover the potential benefits of nature-based solutions (NBS) in metropolitan areas and develop strategies for their implementation.

MOOC IV: Sustainable Building with Timber

Innovations in architecture, engineering, and manufacturing now enable timber construction for a wide range of buildings

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)

In 2017 we ran the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) ‘Sustainable Urban Development: Discover Advanced Metropolitan Solutions’ for the second time. In 2017 a second MOOC ‘Co-Creating Sustainable Cities’ was added to the AMS educational program. As the name implies, these courses are open to anyone with internet access and an interest in metropolitan solutions, and are free of charge. The AMS MOOCs engaged over 45,000 participants from more than 178 countries year to date.

Participants included cross-disciplinary academics and professionals in urban development with a desire to expand their knowledge. There is global interest in the educational activities of the AMS Institute and the MOOCs have a significant role in raising the international profile of the institute.

The MOOC’s are open, online available, for anyone who is interested in specific metropolitan challenges. They have a study load of 4-6 hours a week during 7 weeks and participants can earn a verified certificate of achievement to demonstrate knowledge.