Sustainable Finance

Short Course - 15 credits at SCQF level 11

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a sprig of a plant emerging from a pile of coins

Short Course & Professional Development

Learn to make resilient, long-term, and performance-oriented decisions. This Sustainable Finance course builds your understanding of key sustainability issues and develops practical skills to integrate social and climate considerations into valuation, financing, and investment decisions.

The course is designed in consultation with industry professionals, opening doors to careers in sustainable finance. Updated recently in 2025, it covers the fundamentals, key instruments, methodologies, and frameworks for integrating sustainability into financial decisions, alongside global initiatives and regulations.

Participants gain practical skills to create long-term value and explore advanced sustainable finance approaches, making it ideal for professionals from government, academia, finance, business, and civil society.

Mode of Study

Online Learning

Mode of Attendance

Part Time

Start Date

9 February 2026

Course Length

10 weeks

In this course, you will explore sustainable finance, including capital markets, key participants, and motivations for sustainable investments.

You will learn methods and financial tools to create long-term value and implement sustainable finance strategies.

You will examine approaches such as ESG integration, exclusion, best-in-class, thematic, and impact investing.

You will understand environmental, climate, social, and governance risks, transition finance, greenwashing, and rating divergences.

You will also study green and social bonds, regulations, and frameworks, review academic research on sustainable investing, and develop skills to evaluate portfolio performance and integrate sustainability into financial decisions.

RGU Upskilling

Undertaking a RGU online short course can help you to develop or change your career or support your business to grow.

We're proud to offer a range of online short courses tailored to meet the evolving needs of businesses and individuals both locally, nationally and in the global community. Additionally, if you are domiciled in Scotland, you may be eligible for a fee-waiver place, which means you could study for free. Identified and created in collaboration with industry, these credit-bearing online courses are designed to enhance employability for individuals and organisations looking to upskill their workforce.

Find out more about the range of courses on offer and the benefits of studying online with RGU:

RGU Upskilling

Course & module information

Modules and delivery order may change for operational purposes. The University regularly reviews its courses. Course content and structure may change over time. See our course and module disclaimer for more information. The university is currently undertaking an update to the course information system. This may result in minor, temporary inaccuracies, to course and module information. If you have any concerns or questions about relating to your chosen programme, please contact our admissions team.

Detailed module information

Learning Methods

The course will be delivered online using the University’s virtual learning environment, Moodle.

There are materials introducing the core concepts for each week’s delivery and students will have the opportunity to connect with the academic tutor every week both virtually through online forums and in-person via a live online classroom. Additionally, you will construct and manage a sustainable portfolio of financial assets that you will monitor in terms of its performance.

Materials and exercises are available online, allowing you to study flexibly and independently at time and place to fit around existing work and life commitments.

This is a 10-week course with 7 weeks for teaching and 2 weeks for working on the assessment and submission.

Activity Summary

Lectures - total of 8 hours of recorded lectures, 30 minutes per week
Practical class or workshop - total of 8 hours of live classes, 1 hour per week
Session with an industry practitioner - 1 hour per module
Independent study - xx hours in total for the module

Independent Study

This course is completed through online independent study. It is expected that you will spend a minimum of xx hours study over the 10 weeks of the module, including the preparation and submission of your written assessment. Your academic tutor will be there to support you through the module.

Assessment

This course is assessed through individual written coursework. Construction and management of a sustainable finance portfolio in the form of weekly workshop exercise which will also be assessed.

Staff Delivering on This Course

You will be taught by academic staff with publications in leading academic and industry journals and extensive experience in both the finance industry and higher education.

Academic Support

The Inclusion Centre advises and supports students who disclose a sensory or mobility impairment, chronic medical condition, mental health issue, dyslexia and other specific learning differences. Applicants are encouraged to arrange a pre-entry visit to discuss any concerns and to view the facilities.

The Inclusion Centre

Online Learning & Support

All undergraduate and postgraduate students, whether you are learning on campus or by online learning, benefit from using our collaborative virtual learning environment, Moodle. You will be provided with 24/7 online access to your learning material and resources, along with the ability to interact with your class members and tutors for discussion and support.

Moodle

Study Skills Support

The Study Support Team provides training and support to all students in:

Academic writing
Study skills (note taking, exam techniques, time management, presentation)
Maths and statistics
Information technology support

Study Skills Support

Library Support

The Library offers support for your course, including the books, eBooks, and journals you will need. We also offer online reading lists for many modules, workshops and drop-ins on searching skills and referencing, and much more.

University Library

Degree course credit

Subject to meeting the entry requirements, those who complete this course and achieve 15 credits may be able to use this credit towards a number of RGU courses including:

MSc Accounting and Finance

MSc Business and Management

MSc Energy Management

MSc Financial Management

Job Prospects

Upon completion of this course, students can apply sustainable finance principles within businesses, asset management firms, banks, and financial institutions.

They can work in roles related to responsible investing, portfolio construction, and ESG analysis, or as investment advisers who integrate sustainability into financial decisions. The course also prepares students for positions in consultancy, corporate finance, and sustainability-focused research.

RGUflex

Collect academic credit flexibly and claim an award from the University. RGUflex delivers on-demand flexible learning where you can upskill, reskill or pursue a passion. It can also be used by employers to allow them to build an education pathway for their employees to gain the skills and knowledge to meet business needs.

Find out more

There are no prerequisites for this course.

Academic Year 2025/2026

Fee-waiver places

If you are domiciled in Scotland, you may be eligible for a fee-waiver place, meaning you can study for free.

To meet the requirements to be allocated a funded place, applicants must meet the criteria to be assessed as "Home" for the purposes of fees. Find out more about the Fee Status and the Scottish Government regulations that we use to make our assessment:

Determine your fee status

Eligibility is assessed on application and further evidence may be required.

All other applicants

Applicants who are not eligible for a fee-waiver place will be required to meet the module cost to study:

Course fee - £520 for entire module

Additional Costs

Some other costs are not included in the course fees:

Accommodation and Living Costs
Printing

Other Fees and Costs

Disclaimer

For new intakes, course fees are reviewed and published annually for each mode of delivery. Tuition fees are fixed for the duration of a course at the rate confirmed in the offer letter. For further information:

Finance and Funding

*"Rest of UK (RUK) and Ireland" includes England, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.

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Any Questions?

Get in touch with the team and we'll do our best to help.

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Applications closed

Applications for this course have now closed, but we may run this course again in the near future.

If you have a question about the course or would like to register your interest for future dates, get in touch with the team and we'll do our best to help.

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Terms and Conditions of Admissions and Enrolment