Shelter is one of the most basic human needs, but the provision of that shelter - the development of enough housing of the right type and quality in the most appropriate locations - is a challenge that few, if any, governments in the developed world have fully addressed. This MSc offers an interdisciplinary perspective on the 'housing question' in advanced economies, with core contributions from across the faculty.
Students will develop appropriate design, analytical and presentational skills, and work on practical cases that test their capacity for creative thinking and problem-solving. The curriculum covers UK-specific policy and practice as well as a range of international case studies and globally relevant debates in the provision of housing.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of six core modules (90 credits), two elective modules from across The Bartlett School of Planning or beyond, subject to approval (30 credits) and a dissertation/report (60 credits).
A Postgraduate Diploma, six core modules (90 credits), two elective modules (30 credits), full-time nine months, is offered.
A Postgraduate Certificate, four core modules (60 credits), at least three months full-time, is offered.
Core modules
Optional modules
Dissertation/report
All students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a dissertation of 10,000 words
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, tutorials, projects and problem-based learning. Assessment is through a mix of essays, group projects, problem-sheets, individual projects, classroom tasks and the dissertation.
Fieldwork
There is a field trip to continental Europe in the Reading Week of term two (February).
Travel and accommodation costs for the field trip are included in the programme fee.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: Housing and City Planning MSc
There is a growing demand for our Master's graduates from a wide range of both public and private employers in the UK and overseas. Many have taken up posts in local and central government planning, others have moved into planning related consultancies. Past students have also found employment in numerous specialist sectors: in housing and transport, planning, urban regeneration and environmental agencies, public and private utility companies, and also in teaching and research.
Employability
As well as preparing students for careers in planning practice and housing delivery, all of our programmes offer an introduction to research and to key research skills.
Based in the heart of London, students are at the forefront of policy-relevant critical debate, empirical study and research-led teaching. The academic staff are multidisciplinary and are actively involved in shaping the theories and debates covered in their teaching. Our annual public lectures attract pre-eminent speakers from around the world and our student body has a broad international profile.
The Bartlett is the UK's largest multidisciplinary Faculty of the Built Environment, bringing together scientific and professional specialisms required to research, understand, design, construct and operate the buildings and urban environments of the future. The strong research focus across The Bartlett, and links to professional practice, feed into this programme, ensuring engagement with live issues and continual renewal of the subject material.
Students also have the opportunity to spend a period of the programme at a partner institution elsewhere in Europe, North America or Australia.
Accreditation
The programme is fully accredited by RICS so all students completing the full MSc are eligible for licentiate membership of the RICS.
The programme has 'specialist' accreditation from the RTPI so students who have an RTPI accredited undergraduate degree in planning who then complete this programme are eligible for licentiate membership of the RTPI (the 3+1 route).
The Research Excellence Framework, or REF, is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. The 2014 REF was carried out by the UK's higher education funding bodies, and the results used to allocate research funding from 2015/16.
The following REF score was awarded to the department: Bartlett School of Planning
81% rated 4* (‘world-leading’) or 3* (‘internationally excellent’)
Learn more about the scope of UCL's research, and browse case studies, on our Research Impact website.
Whether you are a recent graduate in a related subject or you are a professional working in the field, this innovative course will investigate the latest issues and developments in housing, regeneration and urban management. It is delivered in a vibrant city where investment and large-scale developments will offer scope to apply your knowledge and hone your skills on real-life projects.
You will develop expertise in leadership and management, community engagement and spatial planning, and you will learn to appraise and implement policy while keeping a critical eye on the contemporary housing and regeneration field. Taught through interactive seminars, your learning will benefit from the input of leading practitioners working in partnership with planners and urban designers.
You will be entitled to free student membership of the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Chartered Institute of Housing, ensuring you will benefit from career guidance and networking opportunities from the moment you join the course.
You will be guided by staff with extensive hands-on experience in industry. Our Built Environment research team have contracts with the UK government and governments across Europe, as well as links with local authorities, social enterprises and leading housing companies, ensuring your learning remains current and up to date.
Research Excellence Framework 2014
Research Excellence Framework 2014: our University's results for the Architecture, Built Environment and Planning unit, which it entered for the first time, were impressive with 37% of its research being rated world leading or internationally excellent.
You will be able to progress your career with local authorities, development agencies, housing associations, voluntary sector organisations or enterprise partnerships. Our graduates have held senior management positions in local councils and for some of the country’s top housing companies, leading complex regeneration and development projects.
A growing body of research calls for the recognition of the complex, multi-faceted and gender-specific nature of homelessness (Barrow and Lawinski, 2009; Mayock and Sheridan, 2012; Mayock et al, 2015a; Savage, 2016). This project will apply a gender lens to the issue of housing and homelessness in Ireland in order to:
The following qualitative research methods will be employed:
This course is aimed at built environment professionals and others with a relevant background who wish to gain an in-depth understanding of planning and sustainable development, whether to improve career prospects in their country or enter international practice. Through the course you will examine the growing problems of sustainable development facing cities, regions and communities in a rapidly urbanising world, subject to growing climate change and other environmental, economic and social pressures and risks.
Based in London, you will have access to internationally recognised experience of spatial planning for sustainable development, and explore contemporary theories, public policy thinking and good practice in planning in both the developed and developing worlds. The University of Westminster is the UK's first Habitat Partner University. We work with UN-HABITAT and like-minded institutions to promote the socially and environmentally sustainable development of towns, cities and regions, in accordance with the UN Millennium Development Goals.
This course addresses the growing problems of sustainable development facing cities and communities in a rapidly urbanising world. It explores contemporary theories, public policy thinking and good practice in planning that spans both developed and developing world contexts, and offers you the opportunity to explore one area of specialism in a related field in some depth.
There are two Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI)-accredited pathways through the course. The Spatial Planning Pathway has a strong urban design component and an emphasis on the development planning process. The Urban Resilience Pathway provides a sustainable development-focused route with a core emphasis on climate change mitigation and adaptation planning. Both pathways cover all these aspects to some degree.
The following modules are indicative of what you will study on this course. Other modules with course-related learning outcomes may be taken subject to timetabling constraints and the agreement of the Course and Module Leaders.
Core modules – both pathways
Core module for Spatial Planning Pathway
Core module for Urban Resilience Pathway
Optional modules
The course is fully accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) as a "combined planning programme".
Students on the course are most likely to be working in a relevant built environment or sustainable development-related profession. Overseas students may be receiving a government bursary. Graduates from the course may secure promotion within their existing or a new related area of work, or move onto more responsible positions within 18 months of completing their studies. This may include management posts or the responsibility for project or policy development. It is expected that graduates will enhance their potential to be considered for development positions outside their home country.
Graduates from this course can expect to find employment as planners or urban designers, urban regeneration or environmental management specialists in private consultancy, local and national government, and non-governmental sectors in their own country or internationally, including international development agencies.
This MA course will give you the knowledge, understanding and skills necessary to practise professionally as a spatial planner. It is designed to meet the growing employer needs for staff who can investigate changes in the natural and built environments, manage the challenges of climate change through sustainable development, and debate and critically reflect upon the knowledge and values underpinning current approaches to land use development. Completion of the MA course is the first step to become a full member of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI).
The course will support your personal and professional development. You will be able to work in the interdisciplinary and cross-sector environment of urban and regional development, in a variety of private, public and community contexts, and apply your knowledge to practise in specialist areas of planning. The course builds on the University's experience of delivering postgraduate courses in town planning for more than 60 years.
The course explores the current context and content of spatial planning. It does so from a UK and European perspective, and also investigates underlying theoretical debates.
If you want to gain a greater understanding of spatial planning, but do not want to study for a full Masters course, we also offer an Urban and Regional Planning Postgraduate Diploma and an Urban and Regional Planning Postgraduate Certificate. Scroll to the bottom of this page to find out more about these courses.
For the award of the MA students need to pass modules totalling 180 credits. MA students take all core modules and choose one specialist option module.
The following modules are indicative of what you will study on this course.
Core modules
Optional modules
On successful completion of the MA course students can become licentiates of the RTPI. After two years' experience in practice, they may make a submission for their Assessment of Professional Competence and, if successful, are then entitled to full RTPI membership.
Visiting lectures are given by a wide range of external practitioners. The teaching team has extensive links with planning institutions including the RTPI and the Town and Country Planning Association. The course includes part-time students working in planning-related positions in private and public sectors.
Most of the students on the course are already in planning or planning-related posts. Full-time students graduating from the course as qualified planners will normally be offered planning positions in the public or private sector on graduation.
Examples of companies that have recruited our graduates include:
Gain the leadership skills to work in the fields of housing, urban and neighbourhood management and community planning. Your course will enable you to engage in place shaping, economic development, public service delivery and the governance of urban areas. Using real-life companies and areas as case studies, you will examine the current issues affecting housing and regeneration and learn how to tackle them.
You will take part in group and individual projects to build on your current experience. This could include working in a parish council to organise a community plan, or helping an organisation to implement change management policies.
We will give you access to key players in housing and neighbourhood management, providing you with invaluable contacts after you graduate.
Research Excellence Framework 2014
Research Excellence Framework 2014: our University's results for the Architecture, Built Environment and Planning unit, which it entered for the first time, were impressive with 37% of its research being rated world leading or internationally excellent.
This course offers you practical, vocational training, combined with all the benefits of studying in a higher education environment. Your self-guided study helps you fit your learning in around your job, and you will have the advantage of one-to-one support from our committed tutors.
Studying our course will help you on your way to becoming a member of the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Chartered Institute of Housing, providing you with a wealth of services, advice and networking opportunities.
Many of our staff have practical experience of working within industry, so they can provide real-life examples from the workplace to support your learning.
The course focuses on career advancement through personal development. You will have the opportunity to reassess your role and gain the specialist skills to move into a new area. We will enable you to produce solutions to modern urban challenges so you can enhance the work you are currently involved with.
In an increasingly urbanised world, there is growing international demand for urban design graduates. This course will equip you with the knowledge and skills you need to participate in this rapidly expanding profession. Urban design involves shaping the physical setting for life in cities. The pace of urban change, and the challenge of making cities efficient, sustainable and meaningful, demands creative solutions to design and management. The Urban Design courses at Westminster provide a coherent approach to issues that face our cities, combining structured academic study with live design projects, allowing you to develop practical skills, a theoretical understanding and an informed approach to sustainable urban development.
Our Urban Design course is one of the largest and longest established in the UK. It enjoys an excellent reputation and our graduates are highly respected in the profession. Our students are from a variety of professions and backgrounds, including architecture, landscape architecture and planning, from the UK, Europe, and across the globe. They range from recent graduates seeking to expand their skill base before commencing their career or those considering a shift from an allied profession, to established professionals seeking to specialise or develop a more informed critical approach. Our central London location allows you to interact with a huge variety of practitioners and organisations, as well as drawing on the city’s huge range of resources; you will be at the heart of the debate over the future of cities.
The course places a strong emphasis on design, practical outputs and a multidisciplinary approach. While focusing on UK examples, the lessons from the courses are applicable to a wide range of international and economic contexts. This flexible and student-centred approach is highly valued by former graduates and their employers. The course is delivered by staff with many years' experience in practice, education, training, research, and consultancy in the UK and overseas. Outputs from the course combine into a portfolio demonstrating your ability to deal with the complexities of urban design in a practical and informed manner.
The following modules are indicative of what you study on this course.
Core modules
Optional modules
Graduates of this course typically find employment as urban designers in private consultancy or local authorities. Many find the course useful when developing careers in architecture, planning or landscape architecture.
This Specializing Master is organized by POLI.design, with the support of the Politecnico di Milano Design School and the School of Architecture, Urban Planning and Construction Engineering at the Politecnico di Milano.
The Specializing Master in Social and Collaborative Housing. Planning, Designing, and Managing the Contemporary Habitat was launched to meet the growing need for general knowledge and professional skills in planning, designing, and managing contemporary forms of living that are based on policies and choices of social integration and collaboration. Social and collaborative housing refers to construction projects that include offering living accommodations, services, initiatives, and instruments aimed at those who are unable to meet their housing needs on the market, either because of lack of adequate supply or for financial reasons.
For more informations, visit http://www.polidesign.net/en/housing
In an increasingly urbanised world, there is growing international demand for urban design graduates. These courses will equip you with the knowledge and skills you need to participate in this rapidly expanding profession. Urban design involves shaping the physical setting for life in cities. The pace of urban change, and the challenge of making cities efficient, sustainable and meaningful, demands creative solutions to design and management. The Urban Design courses at Westminster provide a coherent approach to issues that face our cities, combining structured academic study with live design projects, allowing you to develop practical skills, a theoretical understanding and an informed approach to sustainable urban development.
Our Urban Design programme is one of the largest and longest established in the UK. It enjoys an excellent reputation and our graduates are highly respected in the profession. Our students are from a variety of professions and backgrounds, including architecture, landscape architecture and planning, from the UK, Europe, and across the globe. They range from recent graduates seeking to expand their skill base before commencing their career or those considering a shift from an allied profession, to established professionals seeking to specialise or develop a more informed critical approach. Our central London location allows you to interact with a huge variety of practitioners and organisations, as well as drawing on the city's huge range of resources; you will be at the heart of the debate over the future of cities.
The course places a strong emphasis on design, practical outputs and a multidisciplinary approach. While focusing on UK examples, the lessons from the courses are applicable to a wide range of international and economic contexts. This flexible and student-centred approach is highly valued by former graduates and their employers. The course is delivered by staff with many years' experience in practice, education, training, research, and consultancy in the UK and overseas. Outputs from the course combine into a portfolio demonstrating your ability to deal with the complexities of urban design in a practical and informed manner.
The following modules are indicative of what you will study on this course.
Core modules
Optional modules
Graduates of this course typically find employment as urban designers in private consultancy or local authorities. Many find the course useful when developing careers in architecture, planning or landscape architecture.
Established provider of online distance learning Master’s courses in Environmental Science and Geography
