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Urban Planning, Design and Management BSc

Urban planning is concerned with the complex management of change within the built and natural environment. This programme, accredited by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and recognised by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI), gives you the skills to work in both traditional planning careers and in various related professional and specialist areas.

Key Information

Programme starts

September 2022
UCAS code
K421
Duration
Full-time: 3 years
Accreditation
Royal Town Planning Institute, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
Application deadline
26 January 2022
Location
London, Bloomsbury

Entry requirements

A Levels

Grades
ABB
Subjects
No specific subjects. At least two A level subjects should be taken from UCL's list of preferred A level subjects.
GCSEs
English Language and Mathematics at grade C or 5.

Contextual offer

Grades
BBB more about contextual offers
Subjects
No specific subjects. At least two A level subjects should be taken from UCL's list of preferred A level subjects.
GCSEs
English Language and Mathematics at grade C or 5.

IB Diploma

Points
34
Subjects
A total of 16 points in three higher level subjects, with no score lower than 5.

Contextual offer

Points
32 more about contextual offers
Subjects
A total of 15 points in three higher level subjects, with no score lower than 5.

UK applicants qualifications

For entry requirements with other UK qualifications accepted by UCL, choose your qualification from the list below:

Equivalent qualification

BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma (QCF) or BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (RQF - teaching from 2016) with Distinction, Distinction, Distinction.

Pass in Access to HE Diploma with a minimum of 30 credits at Distinction, 12 credits at Merit and 3 credits at Pass, all from Level 3 units.

D3,M1,M1 in three Cambridge Pre-U Principal Subjects

ABB at Advanced Highers (or AB at Advanced Higher and BBB at Higher)

Successful completion of the WBQ Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate plus 2 GCE A levels at grades ABB.

International applications

In addition to A level and International Baccalaureate, UCL considers a wide range of international qualifications for entry to its undergraduate degree programmes.

Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates

UCL Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates (UPCs) are intensive one-year foundation courses for international students of high academic potential who are aiming to gain access to undergraduate degree programmes at UCL and other top UK universities.

Typical UPC students will be high achievers in a 12-year school system which does not meet the standard required for direct entry to UCL.

For more information see: ucl.ac.uk/upc.

English language requirements

If your education has not been conducted in the English language, you will be expected to demonstrate evidence of an adequate level of English proficiency. Information about the evidence required, acceptable qualifications and test providers can be found on our English language requirements page.

The English language level for this programme is: Good

A variety of English language programmes are offered at the UCL Centre for Languages & International Education.

Degree benefits

  • This programme offers students a broad-based education in the built environment with an opportunity to specialise in planning and urban design. It provides students with a route towards professional accreditation by the two most internationally recognised professional bodies for built environment professionals in the UK.

  • The Bartlett's strong track record in academic research and policy advisory work, as well as our links to professional practice, feed into the core and specialist aspects of the programme, ensuring that contemporary challenges and issues in theory and practice are addressed.

  • Based in London, we are able to offer our students a range of fascinating 'live projects' to use as case studies in their academic work, access to a diverse range of employers, and an unrivalled concentration of professional meetings, seminars, conferences, exhibitions and events.

  • The Bartlett maintains an international outlook and provides opportunities for combined study overseas in Europe, North America, Australia and Hong Kong.

Accreditation

This BSc, if followed by an appropriate Graduate Diploma or MSc programme, leads to eligibility for professional membership of the the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI). After graduation you are eligible to apply for the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) which leads to full professional membership of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

Degree structure

In each year of your degree you will take a number of individual modules, normally valued at 15 or 30 credits, adding up to a total of 120 credits for the year. Modules are assessed in the academic year in which they are taken. The balance of compulsory and optional modules varies from programme to programme and year to year. A 30-credit module is considered equivalent to 15 credits in the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS).

This programme shares common modules with the BSc in Urban Studies and BSc Urban Planning and Real Estate. Students can move freely between Urban Studies and this BSc up until the end of the first year.

This programme is based around three streams of modules. A hands-on project-based stream entitled Delivering Urban Change is designed to allow you to put into practice the knowledge gained through two other streams, Understanding Urban Change and Managing Urban Change.

The programme offers the opportunity to study overseas for one term in the second year as part of the degree. The school has long-established links with many universities in Europe, as well as a growing list in the USA, Australia and the Asia-Pacific.

In addition to core modules shared between all our three programmes, the programme offers specialist modules in rural planning (Beyond Cities), Urban Form, Urban Design, Regeneration, and Transport Policy and Planning.

Upon successful completion of 360 credits, you will be awarded a BSc (Hons) in Urban Planning, Design and Management.

Modules

Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability is subject to change.

Compulsory module(s)

  • Contemporary Cities (15 credits)
  • Beyond Cities: Rural Economies, Communities and Landscape (15 credits)
  • Introducing Planning Systems (15 credits)
  • Introducing Urban Design: Design Skills (15 credits)
  • Making Cities: The Production of the Built Environment (15 credits)
  • Management for Built Environment Professionals I (15 credits)
  • Planning History and Thought (15 credits)
  • Urban Lab I: Graphic Skills (15 credits)

Compulsory module(s)

  • Economics of Cities and their Regions (15 credits)
  • Green Futures (15 credits)
  • Management for Built Environment Professionals II (15 credits)
  • Strategic Planning Project (15 credits)
  • Urban Design: Theory to Practice (15 credits)
  • Cities and Social Change (15 credits)
  • Urban Form and Formation (15 credits)
  • Urban Lab II: Spatial Analysis (15 credits)

Compulsory module(s)

  • Urban and Environmental Politics (15 credits)
  • Development Project: Regeneration (15 credits)
  • Real Estate Development (15 credits)
  • Planning and Property Law (15 credits)
  • Regional Development, Planning and Policy in Global Context (15 credits)
  • Transport Policy and Planning (15 credits) 
  • Urban Design: Space and Place (15 credits)
  • Urban Project Management (15 credits)


Your learning

The School of Planning advocates and employs a very interactive, hands-on form of learning. Alongside lectures, seminars and tutorials we include field visits, group project work, and laboratory and design work sessions to improve your learning experience.

Students go on two extended field trips during their undergraduate degree: a European city in their first year and a UK city in their third year. In addition, many modules include fieldwork or site visits as part of the learning experience.

In the third term of the third year, a voluntary two-week work experience placement is offered, drawing from our pool of employers.

Assessment

Your final marks will reflect your success in a wide range of assessment types, including essays, individual and group projects, design work (posters/models/reports), presentations and a small number of exams. The broad range of assessment types is a distinctive feature of our planning programmes, and of The Bartlett's approach in particular.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support & Wellbeing team.

Careers

The programme enables you to acquire highly transferable knowledge and skills such as data collection, analysis and presentation, graphic skills, the ability to resolve problems and conflicts, negotiation and mediation, team work and leadership, managing work tasks, preparing and writing professional reports, as well as written, graphic and oral presentation skills.

Graduates find work in a vast range of positions in planning, property, urban design, economic development, housing, transport, and regeneration as well as other diverse sectors where their analytical, negotiating and problem-solving skills are valued. Demand for people with planning skills in the UK and abroad is strong. 

Due to the nature of our BSc programmes as a route for eligible membership of RICS/RTPI, many of our graduates also go on to further study.

UCL is committed to helping you get the best start after graduation. Read more about how UCL Careers and UCL Innovation and Enterprise can help you find employment or learn about entrepreneurship.

Student view
I love that my degree touches upon a lot of different focuses, for example my modules range from green politics to economics, with focuses on design or policy. It provides a full and extensive coverage of how cities and regions function. Hannah Richins - Urban Planning, Design and Management BSc Third Year

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

The fees indicated are for undergraduate entry in the 2022/23 academic year. The UK fees shown are for the first year of the programme at UCL only. Fees for future years may be subject to an inflationary increase. The Overseas fees shown are the fees that will be charged to 2022/23 entrants for each year of study on the programme, unless otherwise indicated below.

UK students
£9,250 (2022/23)
Overseas students
£29,400 (2022/23)

Full details of UCL's tuition fees, tuition fee policy and potential increases to fees can be found on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/prospective-students/undergraduate/funding-your-studies.

Additional costs

This programme does not have any additional costs apart from purchasing books or stationery, printing or photocopying.

A guide including rough estimates for these and other living expenses is included on the UCL Fees and funding pages. If you are concerned by potential additional costs for books, equipment, etc., please get in touch with the relevant departmental contact (details given on this page).

Funding

Various funding options are available, including student loans, scholarships and bursaries. UK students whose household income falls below a certain level may also be eligible for a non-repayable bursary or for certain scholarships. Please see the Fees and funding pages for more details.

Funding may be available from the Bartlett School of Planning or Bartlett Faculty Office.

Departmental scholarships

Funding opportunities relevant to the department may appear in this section when they are available. Please check carefully or confirm with the programme contact to ensure they apply to this degree programme.

Bartlett Promise Scholarship - Undergraduate

Value
Tuition fees plus £15,364 maintenance/yr
Eligibility
UK
Criteria
Based on financial need

The Scholarships and Funding website lists scholarships and funding schemes available to UCL students. These may be open to all students, or restricted to specific nationalities, regions or academic department.

Application and next steps

Your application

We will look for evidence of your interest in our subject in your personal statement. We hope to see demonstrable interest in, and understanding of, the links between urban planning and design, as well as an ability to write coherently, communicate effectively, think critically, and understand and solve complex problems. We will also assess your use of English. It is not essential for applicants to have previously studied art or design-based subjects, although these, and subjects such as geography, are useful.

How to apply

Application for admission should be made through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service). Applicants currently at school or college will be provided with advice on the process; however, applicants who have left school or who are based outside the United Kingdom may obtain information directly from UCAS.

Application deadline: 26 January 2022



Selection

We aim to invite offer-holders living in or near the UK to an applicant open day. This will typically include an introduction to UCL and the School of Planning, a presentation on UCL accommodation and finance, a taster lecture delivered by an academic in the School of Planning, lunch and a tour of the campus with current students, and an interactive Q&A session with members of staff and current students.

You may be asked to submit an essay in support of your application.

We welcome applications from people with non-standard qualifications, including mature students with relevant study or work experience. Please contact the Admissions Officer, George Burridge (bartlett.faculty@ucl.ac.uk), if you need further advice about the acceptability of non-standard qualifications.

For further information on UCL's selection process see: How we assess your application.


UCL is regulated by the Office for Students.


Page last modified on 15 September 2022