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Inter-disciplinary Urban Design MRes

London, Bloomsbury

The Inter-disciplinary Urban Design MRes is a faculty-wide one-year research degree designed to allow students to tailor their own learning and research to their background and future aspirations. Students can construct their study in an inter-disciplinary manner, enabling them to explore urban design as a critical arena for advanced research and practice.

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2023/24)
£14,100
£7,050
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Overseas tuition fees (2023/24)
£26,200
£13,100
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Duration
1 calendar year
2 calendar years
5 calendar years
Programme starts
September 2023
Applications accepted
All applicants: 17 Oct 2022 – 30 Jun 2023

Applications open

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

A minimum of an upper second-class Bachelor's degree in a cognate discipline or a relevant Master's degree from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

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.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 2

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level. International Preparation Courses

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

This programme provides an interdisciplinary space in which students can examine the challenges of urban design from comparative and cross disciplinary perspectives; students are exposed to the latest cutting-edge urban design research and teaching at The Bartlett, UCL and are offered the opportunity to conduct a substantial piece of individual urban design research, receiving training in methodologies appropriate to the conduct of urban design and urban scale research.

Who this course is for

This programme is an interdisciplinary degree, so it will consider applicants from all different backgrounds. It may be particularly suitable for students from architectural, planning, urban design, landscape, civil engineering, geography, environmental studies, yet also of further interest to students from eg. political sciences, sociology, anthropology, media and communication, and the creative arts, with a particular interest for the built environment, urban places and urban placemaking.

Read about what it takes to study for a Master's at UCL

What this course will give you

The Bartlett brings together dozens of urban design focused research and professional specialisms required to research, understand, design, construct and manage the urban environments of the future.

This degree allows the student to tap into both taught and research learning and training of their choice, across the various Schools of The Bartlett, via a bespoke programme diet.

The MRes is a unique and in-depth research programme allowing the student to experience the academic research world in a short period of time. It trains the student professionally as well as academically, offering insights of what the experience of doing a PhD may be like, and that of being an academic researcher.

This is a faculty-wide programme, and students are able to access perhaps the largest global concentration of urban design related researchers and professional expertise.

The programme has a simple and highly flexible structure, designed to allow students to tailor their learning both to their own background, and how they wish to specialise in the future.

Read about what you'll get out of a graduate programme

The foundation of your career

The programme is globally unique and will give students an important employment edge in allowing them to tailor their studies to their own individual circumstances, building on existing strengths or extending their knowledge. It will deliver a research training in urban design whilst also helping to build a unique and first-class portfolio of work in which the student, rather than syllabus, is the driving force.

Employability

The programme opens up a range of future opportunities for participants along two primary paths:

  • It provides an opportunity for students seeking to further their professional careers, to specialise in urban design and, within that broad arena, to engage deeply with a particular research agenda of direct relevance to their future professional practice.
  • For students seeking a research or academic career, the MRes provides the ideal training for a PhD and eventually an academic or other research position.

Teaching and learning

Methods of delivery will vary (because of the flexible nature of the programme) but a typical student might encounter studio teaching, formal lectures, analytical modelling, small-group tutorials and discussion, formal presentations, and site visits. Student performance is assessed through individual and group work, essays, and project work.

Modules

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.

Compulsory 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. Modules that are in use for the current academic year are linked for further information. Where no link is present, further information is not yet available.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MRes in Inter-disciplinary Urban Design.

Fieldwork

We will run field trips as part of our postgraduate degree programmes. We expect to be able to run our trips to continental European destinations unless there are any further Covid-19 restrictions.

Accessibility

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

Visit us

All open days and events

Online - Open day

Graduate Open Events: MSc/MRes Urban Spatial Science Q&A

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Join us for a virtual open day presentation and Q&A for prospective students interested in our MSc/MRes programmes in Urban Spatial Science at the UCL Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis. Programme leaders Dr Andrew Maclachlan and Dr Duncan Smith will introduce the degrees and be on call to answer any questions you may have. A current student will also be present to discuss their experience of CASA and life at UCL.

Online - Open day

Graduate Open Events: MSc Development Administration & Planning

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This will be an opportunity for prospective DAP students around the world to meet staff, tutors, and alumni, understand the programme, ask questions about the application process (what to look for in an application), discover what the programme offers beyond the curriculum and learn about its future prospects. This event will be crucial for prospective students to make an informed decision about pursuing postgraduate studies at the DPU.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time Part-time
Tuition fees (2023/24) £14,100 £7,050
Tuition fees (2023/24) £26,200 £13,100

Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary. Where the programme is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

The purchase of books many constitute an additional cost, but there is no requirement to purchase any book as part of the programme. Optional modules may incur additional expenses.

For more information on additional costs for prospective students please go to our estimated cost of essential expenditure at Accommodation and living costs.

Funding your studies

UCL offers a range of financial awards aimed at assisting both prospective and current students with their studies.

Any additional funding available from the Bartlett School of Planning and the Built Environment Faculty Office are advertised on the respective websites.

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Brown Family Bursary

Deadline: 8 June 2023
Value: £15,000 (1 year)
Criteria Based on both academic merit and financial need
Eligibility: UK

Next steps

Students are advised to apply as early as possible due to competition for places. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.

When we assess your application we would like to learn:

  • why you want to study Inter-disciplinary Urban Design at graduate level
  • why you want to study Inter-disciplinary Urban Design at UCL
  • what particularly attracts you to this programme
  • how your academic and professional background meets the demands of this programme
  • where you would like to go professionally with your degree

Together with essential academic requirements, the personal statement is your opportunity to illustrate whether your reasons for applying to this programme match what the programme will deliver.

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2023-2024

Apply for this course

Got questions? Get in touch

Bartlett School of Planning Department
Bartlett School of Planning Department

bsp.office@ucl.ac.uk

UCL is regulated by the Office for Students.