From Anticipated to Emergent Risks: Lessons Learned from Designing a Joint Master’s Programme in Low-Carbon Structural Engineering

The development of joint and integrated master’s programmes within international consortia involves complex academic, institutional, and regulatory challenges. This paper reflects on risk assessment and risk materialisation within the Low Carbon Structures (LowCarb-S) project, an Erasmus Mundus Design Measures action aimed at developing a future joint master’s degree in sustainable structural engineering across six European universities. During the proposal phase, a structured risk analysis was conducted to anticipate challenges related to curriculum harmonisation, alignment of learning outcomes, accreditation procedures, institutional engagement, and governance. Although these risks were formally identified and mitigation strategies proposed, the programme development phase revealed notable discrepancies between anticipated and actual risks. Several challenges evolved differently than expected, and additional risks emerged. Key emergent risks included divergent national accreditation cultures, varying interpretations of sustainability and low-carbon competencies, differences in institutional readiness for joint degrees, and difficulties in translating strategic educational objectives into coherent and assessable curricula. Moreover, interdisciplinary integration—central to the programme’s ambition—introduced a level of complexity that was underestimated at proposal stage. By contrasting projected and real risks, this paper highlights the limitations of conventional proposal-stage risk assessments and emphasises the need for adaptive and process-oriented risk management throughout joint programme design. The findings provide practical insights for academic leaders and project coordinators involved in Erasmus Mundus initiatives, European University alliances, and the development of innovative, sustainability-oriented engineering programmes.