Master’s in Innovative Public Procurement Engineering
Online master's programme of 1,900 hours in innovative public procurement engineering. 12 modules covering the legal framework, needs identification, pre-commercial procurement, innovation partnerships, competitive dialogue, tender specifications and award criteria, green and social procurement, IP and risk management, funding and scaling, applying Law 9/2017, Directive 2014/24/EU and the Spanish Public Sector Procurement Platform, with an assigned technical tutor.
Master’s in Innovative Public Procurement Engineering — studying from the United Kingdom
Civil and infrastructure engineering is a major employment sector in the United Kingdom, with significant activity in transport, water, energy and urban regeneration. Rail projects such as HS2 and ongoing network upgrades by Network Rail create demand for engineers in track, signalling, structures and systems. Smart city initiatives in cities including Manchester, Glasgow and Milton Keynes apply digital technologies to mobility, utilities and public services. Major contractors and consultancies including Balfour Beatty, Arup and AECOM employ civil and rail professionals across the country.
Fees for the United Kingdom: £7,440 (Pound sterling), with instalments and employer sponsorship available.
Relevant bodies in the United Kingdom
Typical roles
Questions from the United Kingdom
Which UK professional bodies are relevant to civil and rail engineering qualifications?
The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and, for rail, bodies such as the Permanent Way Institution and the Institution of Railway Signal Engineers are relevant in the UK. Chartered status is handled through the Engineering Council. SEIUM's qualifications are private and not accredited by these bodies, so you should confirm with ICE or the relevant institution how your study would be treated.
Do UK civil, rail and smart city employers recognise online private qualifications?
UK infrastructure employers, including consultancies, contractors, rail operators and local authorities, generally recruit based on competence, professional registration and project experience. A private qualification can add to your profile, but employers decide its relevance. Practical experience and progress towards professional registration usually carry more weight.
How does online study fit with a UK working schedule, and what about funding?
Online study lets you keep working in the UK, and no student visa is needed to study from home. Fees are payable in instalments, and some employers support job-related training, which is common practice in general terms but varies by employer. Each programme has a defined number of hours and an assigned technical tutor. Review the hours and funding options before enrolling.
Take the controls.
Run a real engineering trade-off from this field. Move the sliders, watch the model react in real time and beat the challenge.
What you will be able to do
Understand the legal framework of public procurement and its application to innovation.
Identify public needs and frame them as challenges.
Design preliminary market consultations.
Select appropriate procedures for procuring innovation.
Draft functional specifications and award criteria.
Manage risks and intellectual property in innovation contracts.
Plan the funding and evaluation of innovative procurement projects.
Who it's for
- Public procurement of innovation managers.
- Public procurement officers.
- Public innovation consultants.
- Public R&D project managers.
- Procurement legal advisers.
- European funds managers.
- Engineering or science graduates seeking to enter public administration.
What you'll work with
- Law 9/2017 (Spanish Public Sector Contracts Act)
- Directive 2014/24/EU (public procurement)
- Commission Notice C(2018) 3051 (guidance on innovation procurement)
- Communication COM(2007) 799 (pre-commercial procurement)
- Order PCI/86/2019 (Spanish Green Public Procurement Plan 2018-2025)
- Regulation (EU) 651/2014 (General Block Exemption Regulation)
- Law 14/2011 (Spanish Science, Technology and Innovation Act)
- Spanish Public Sector Procurement Platform
- Microsoft Project
- Excel (life-cycle costing)
- TED eTendering
- Power BI
12 modules · 1900 h
1.1Public procurement as a policy tool1.2Public procurement of innovation: concepts1.3Pre-commercial procurement and public procurement of innovative technology1.4European innovative procurement strategies1.5Challenge-driven innovation1.6Risks and barriers1.7Leading European experiences1.8Innovation indicators in procurement1.9Administrative culture and change management1.10Case study: an innovative public procurement project
2.1Law 9/2017 on Public Sector Contracts2.2European procurement directives2.3Principles of public procurement2.4Types of contract2.5Award procedures2.6EU publication thresholds2.7Appeals and administrative tribunals2.8Technology service and supply contracts2.9Responsibilities of contract managers2.10Practical exercise: choosing the procedure for a technology contract
3.1Functional needs analysis3.2Early demand mapping3.3Preliminary market consultations3.4Technology and market watch3.5Technology readiness levels (TRL)3.6Defining challenges3.7Involvement of end users3.8Analysis of alternatives3.9Documenting needs3.10Workshop: preliminary market consultation on an urban challenge
4.1The pre-commercial procurement exemption4.2Phases: design, prototype and testing4.3Allocation of intellectual property rights4.4State aid4.5Selection of proposals4.6Technical monitoring of prototypes4.7Evaluation of prototypes4.8Transition to commercial procurement4.9Pre-commercial procurement cases in Europe4.10Case study: planning a pre-commercial procurement
5.1Regulation of the innovation partnership5.2Research and acquisition phases5.3Selection of partners5.4Intermediate targets and payments5.5Early termination of the partnership5.6Ownership of results5.7Legal risks of the procedure5.8Experiences in Spain5.9Comparison with other procedures5.10Practical exercise: structure of an innovation partnership
6.1Competitive dialogue under the LCSP6.2Competitive procedure with negotiation6.3Design contests6.4Excluded R&D contracts6.5Lots and framework agreements6.6Dynamic purchasing systems6.7Outcome-based functional specifications6.8Variants and improvements6.9Selecting the right procedure6.10Case study: competitive dialogue for autonomous mobility
7.1Functional and performance specifications7.2Innovation-related award criteria7.3Best price-quality ratio7.4Life-cycle costing7.5Social and environmental criteria7.6Abnormally low tenders7.7Technical capacity requirements for SMEs7.8Scoring formulae7.9Expert committees7.10Workshop: drafting functional award criteria
8.1Green public procurement8.2EU GPP criteria8.3Environmental labels in tender documents8.4Carbon footprint in procurement8.5Social performance clauses8.6Reserved contracts8.7Circular economy in procurement8.8Spanish Green Public Procurement Plan8.9Measuring results8.10Practical exercise: green criteria for the purchase of buses
9.1Industrial and intellectual property rights9.2Licences and exploitation9.3Confidentiality and trade secrets9.4Technology risk management9.5Market risks9.6Guarantees and penalties9.7Contract modification9.8Liability and insurance9.9Dispute resolution9.10Case study: risk matrix for an innovation contract
10.1ERDF funds for public procurement of innovation10.2Spanish State Research Agency programmes10.3Horizon Europe and innovative procurement10.4Buyers' consortia10.5Cross-border joint procurement10.6Co-financing and reporting10.7Multi-year budgets and annual instalments10.8Return assessment10.9Next Generation EU funds10.10Lab: preparing an application for innovative procurement funding
11.1Managing the innovation contract11.2Pilot tests and validation11.3Performance indicators11.4Impact evaluation11.5Transfer and scaling up11.6Lessons learnt from pilots11.7Dissemination of results11.8Good-practice platforms11.9Sustainability of the solution11.10Workshop: evaluation plan for a technology pilot
12.1Identification of the public challenge12.2Market and technology analysis12.3Selection of the procedure12.4Drafting the tender documents12.5Risk management plan12.6Funding plan12.7Evaluation and scaling12.8Conclusions and future lines of work12.9Master's Thesis report12.10Master's Thesis: defence before a panel
How you'll learn
The programme is delivered 100% online on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and an assigned technical tutor. There are no fixed timetables: you progress at your own pace within each intake, so it is compatible with full-time work.
Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is Spanish Public Sector Procurement Platform, Microsoft Project, Excel (life-cycle costing), TED eTendering and Power BI, in free, academic or evaluation versions. You work on real procedures for preliminary market consultations, drafting functional specifications and evaluating pilots of innovative solutions. Assessment is continuous by module, plus the final Master's Thesis.
Standards covered: Law 9/2017; Directive 2014/24/EU; Commission Notice C(2018) 3051; Communication COM(2007) 799; Order PCI/86/2019; Regulation (EU) 651/2014; Law 14/2011.
Build it end to end
Your final project follows the real engineering workflow, step by step, reviewed by your tutor.
Where this takes you
Requirements
- University degree in engineering, science or architecture, or equivalent demonstrable professional experience.
- Internet connection and a computer capable of running the programme's software.
- English sufficient to read technical standards.
Ready to start?
Send your application today. Our admissions team replies within 72 hours with your study plan and funding options.
Frequently asked questions
The programme totals 1,900 hours over 12–14 months. You set your own pace within each intake, and your tutor helps you plan the workload around your job.
You work with Spanish Public Sector Procurement Platform, Microsoft Project, Excel (life-cycle costing), TED eTendering and Power BI, using free, academic or evaluation versions. Your tutor indicates the free alternative wherever one exists.
A SEIUM Institute diploma, awarded on passing the continuous assessment and the Master's Thesis. It is SEIUM's own qualification, not an official state degree; its recognition depends on the programme completed and the regulations of each country.
Yes. Modules passed in a course or postgraduate diploma in the same area are recognised in the higher programme. Ask about the recognition policy when you enrol.
A university degree in engineering, science or architecture, or equivalent professional experience, plus a computer able to run the software and English sufficient to read technical standards.
Start dates are set by SEIUM's faculty for each intake. Our admissions team will confirm the next available date when you apply.
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