Town Planning MSc (PGCert PGDip)

Course structure

In order to meet the high professional standards required by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI), students are required to complete four core modules as part of the course and have the opportunity for specialist study in allied areas.

Course delivery is divided into three parts.

(i) A taught portion requiring attendance at the university for lectures, seminars, tutorials, workshops, laboratory classes, individual supervision sessions and team working.

(ii) An individual research programme (the masters project) where you will broaden your learning and develop research skills directed at critical appraisal, examine innovative solutions to the problem at hand, and are taught to produce and defend a written thesis on a selected town planning topic with a university-based supervisor. 

(iii) An individual professional learning log using an industry-based mentor.

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, you’ll be told about any new developments through our applicant portal.

Areas of study

All students will study four core modules and select three option modules. These will allow you to specialise in the areas of the course that interest you the most.

Core modules

• Planning Theory and Practice
• Policy and Implementation in Town Planning
• Sustainable Urbanism in Coastal Communities
• Comparative Practice in Property and Planning 
• Learning Log
• Masters dissertation

Options include:

• Design Present
• Critical Readings
• Sustainable Construction
• Independent Study Module
• Environmental Impact Assessment
• Systems for Environmental Management
• Environmental Policy and Law 
• Environment Placement
• Introduction to Geographical Information Systems
• Applications in Geographical Information Systems
• Spatial Data Analysis

Who is this course for?

The programme is for:

• Graduates with unrelated first degrees seeking to study for planning qualifications
• Graduates in any relevant discipline – such as geography, architecture, building, surveying, law – wishing to gain a higher or specialist planning qualification
• Graduates with a first degree in planning looking to study for a masters qualification as a route to a professional career or further study at doctorate level
• Candidates without a degree who can demonstrate significant work experience and a wish to build a professional career will be considered for entry on to the certificate programme initially

Due to the professional nature of this course, overseas students who have already completed a postgraduate qualification can still register for this course and apply for a Tier 4 visa.

International requirements

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Course fees

Bursaries

The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) and the University of Brighton are offering three students, who are starting the Town Planning MSc in 2019, a bursary of £2,000 each.

Eligibility criteria
Applicants must:

• be a UK/EU citizen
• have a First or Upper Second Class degree at undergraduate level in any discipline
• demonstrate an interest in town planning as a career (as shown in your statement – please see below)
• have an offer of a place on the Town Planning MSc.

How to apply for the bursary
Applications will be assessed on a statement. The statement, of no more than 500 words, which confirms that you meet the above criteria and highlights the following:

• your interest in planning
• what you hope to do on completion of the course
• why you need financial support
• what other financial support you will receive.

Please submit your statement, of no more than 500 words, plus confirmation that you meet the criteria by email to Ms Georgia Wrighton – G.Wrighton3@brighton.ac.uk

Deadline
Friday 11 October 2019 at 5pm. A decision on the bursary will be made by the end of October and candidates informed by email. If you are successful arrangements for payment will be given via email.

Scholarships, bursaries and loans

We offer a range of scholarships for postgraduate students. Bursaries and loans may also be available to you.

Find out more about postgraduate fees and funding.

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies, although we have tried to keep this to a minimum. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included, whilst studying a course in the School of Architecture and Design are listed below:

• In your first year of studies, you will need to buy a drawing and modelling toolkit. Each course will suggest a list of items of which some will be essential, and others optional. You should budget around £100–£250 for these.
• For most courses you will need to budget between £100 to £300 per year for printing and portfolio costs. Costs will vary depending on type of printer and type and size of paper used. Some students tend to work digitally, spending more on printing and some by hand, spending more on materials so these costs vary widely between students.
• Most essay and report submissions can be made online however, you should budget around £25 for printing and binding dissertations in your final year.
• For most courses you will need to budget between £10 and £100 for material costs per design project. Costs will vary depending on how and what you use to make models. You are encouraged to recycle used materials where possible.
• Course books are available from the university but you may wish to budget from £15 to £100 per year to buy your own copies and subscribe to design magazines.
• You will have access to computers and necessary software, however many students choose to buy their own hardware, software and accessories. The amount spent will depend on your individual choices but this expenditure is not essential to pass any of our courses. Find out what free software is available from the university.
• You will need to budget between £5–£50 to exhibit work for the end-of-year show. Fundraising by the student society, BIAAS, normally helps towards this cost.
• Most courses include mandatory site visits and travel expenses are included in the fees.
• There will be opportunities to attend additional study trips throughout the course but these are not required to pass your course. The cost of travel to them will be covered by the course but there may be additional costs varying from a packed lunch to entrance to a museum.
• International field trips are offered in each year which are optional and are not required to pass your course. You should expect to budget approximately £150–£350 for these, to cover flight, accommodation, food and entrance to museums. The total amount spent would be based on location and number of trips taken.

You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page if you require further information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2019–20.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

What's included in the fee?

When costs such as health or DBS checks, or use of specialist materials are incurred as a mandatory requirement of the course they are included in your tuition fee.

You may incur additional costs depending on the optional modules or activities you choose. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. Before you apply check with us for advice about what is included and what optional costs you could face so you can budget accordingly. You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page.

See our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as further information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Local area

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Maps

Accommodation

University building

Moulsecoomb campus map