Master Spatial Planning

Institution Oxford Brookes University
Method At the institution
Location Oxford
Type Masters
Course fee By request

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Master Spatial Planning

Entry requirements Spatial Planning attracts students from a wide range of backgrounds and nationalities. Applicants are welcome from any academic discipline, as well as from among those in work and seeking continuing professional development. Admission is normally open to those with a good undergraduate honours degree (or equivalent) or other professional qualification relevant to planning and development, or an appropriate professional background. The course provides the opportunity to attain formal academic training and qualifications based on a diversity of professional backgrounds. Applications will also be considered from those who have no first degree but have three or more years professional experience in planning and have completed the University's Certificate in Spatial Planning Studies. Applicants whose first language is not English must demonstrate that their level of English is appropriate to study at postgraduate level. This course requires IELTS level 6 (preferably 6.5) in the academic test, with a minimum score of 6 in reading and writing. For TOEFL the required score is 550 (paper-based) or 213 or above (computer-based), with a score of 4.5 in the Test of Written English (TWE).
Academic title MSc / PGDip Spatial Planning
Course description MSc / PGDip
The MSc level offers full Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) accreditation in one calendar year. The postgraduate diploma needs to be combined with an approved specialist planning programme (see below), to fulfil the RTPI requirements.

Planners facilitate change in the built and natural environment and are major players in the practice of sustainable development. On completion of this course, graduates will have developed the critical thinking necessary to plan and manage human settlements as sustainable, healthy, equitable, attractive and competitive towns, cities and regions.

Spatial Planning develops the practical skills and rationality of planning (the science) as well as the creativity of place-making (the art). The course aims to provide graduates with an RTPI-approved education in accordance with the 2004 Policy Statement on Initial Planning Education.

Oxford Brookes has offered a graduate planning course in Oxford for over 40 years and is acknowledged as a leading provider of probably the most diverse routes to RTPI professional accreditation in the UK. We have over 50 teaching and research staff.
Course content

The course is offered at two levels: a master's degree (MSc) and a postgraduate diploma (PGDip).

The MSc course is based on the completion of the following compulsory elements, plus elective specialisations and a 15,000-word master's dissertation.
Compulsory elements:

    * Spatial Planning in Context explores the contexts within which the UK planning system needs to be understood: historical, spatial, social, economic, political and international. You will consider the issues that the planning system confronts and manages, and reflect on the range of approaches, historically and between countries, which may be taken to deal with planning issues.
    * Spatial Planning in Action presents an analysis and assessment of the structure, objectives and responsibilities underlying the practice of spatial planning from a UK perspective. The legal basis and administrative aspects of planning decision making are introduced, including development plan making, development control and the appeals process.
    * Place Making introduces the theories, processes and practice of place making, and evaluates these against their impact on urban form and different sectors of society. The module engenders the development of design alternatives, taking account of political, socio-economic, development, aesthetic and other key factors important in achieving high quality, sustainable public realms.
    * Delivering Sustainable Futures extends understanding of the principles of sustainability, the interpretation and practice of sustainable development, and the changing socio-political and environmental context within which plans are generated and implemented.
    * Contemporary Issues in Planning Practice and Research provides an opportunity to study developing issues in spatial planning and to develop skills in the analysis of planning debates and in problem-solving techniques.
    * Research Methods (Public Policy) provides a critical knowledge of methods and skills of research and their application to investigative work that informs public policy.
    * MSc Dissertation is an individual research study of up to 15,000 words. It reveals abilities to define and research an issue or problem of relevance to the discipline of planning and to make a contribution to knowledge in the chosen area of specialisation (see below).

MSc students are offered a high degree of choice and flexibility in terms of their elective specialisation, including:

Environmental Decision Making

    * Environmental Assessment provides an examination of the organisation, preparation, presentation, prediction, assessment and decision making in environmental assessment techniques. Key skills are emphasised in screening, scoping, review and the methods of assessment for noise, landscape, archaeology, ecology, traffic and socio-economic impacts.
    * Environmental Law and Decision Making examines the international, European and UK legal context of environmental decision-making. This considers the development of environmental law from international treaties and conventions into European and UK legislation. The module focuses on key areas of environmental law and the assessment procedures established by European Directives.

Historic Conservation

    *

      Design for Conservation This module is designed to provide an introduction to the differing philosophies underlying approaches to building in historic places. It examines the role of design guides, design codes and site briefs in securing 'appropriate' development in sensitive historic locations.
    *

      Conservation Economics This half unit provides an introduction to financial and economic aspects specific to the conservation of buildings. The module combines with Historic Conservation in Context, which provides an introduction and critical examination of the legal measures which exist to preserve and enhance the historic environment.

Planning in Developing Countries

    * Development and Urbanisation examines the theories, processes and consequences of rapid urbanisation in the developing world within the context of economic development and social change.
    * Urban Land Policy and Urban Management examines the processes of urban land development under conditions of rapid urban growth. The concept and development of land policy is examined.

Tourism Planning

    * Tourism Development: Issues and Analysis examines the growth, development and impacts of tourism, introducing the issues affecting the planning and development of tourism as a baseline understanding of tourism planning and sustainable development.
    * Strategic Planning for Tourism explores key traditions, systems and methods of tourism planning and policy, including strategic tools used in the planning of tourism at various levels of activity, but primarily focusing on the destination or community level of development.

Transport Planning

    * Transport Policy examines the evolution of transport policy in the UK, including its impact on transport conditions, land use patterns, and the institutional and policy framework within which transport planning is conducted. Comparisons with other EU member states are made.
    * Contemporary Issues in Transport Planning Practice is a critical exploration of issues faced by practitioners in developing and delivering local and regional objectives within the contemporary UK policy and institutional context.

Urban Design

    * Urban Design Studio I introduces you to advanced methods, techniques and concepts in urban design through the medium of a specific site development project.
    * Urban Design Theory I and II further develops an awareness of client groups, user needs, and professional and legal requirements of the urban environment, placing these in the context of a specific design project on a nominated site.

Urban and Regional Regeneration

    * Introduction to Regeneration introduces the context within which urban regeneration takes place, and looks at varying approaches to securing desired change, the challenges these involve and the ways in which these challenges have been met over time and space.
    * Regeneration and Neighbourhoods critically examines key issues in current regeneration theory, policy and practice, focusing on neighbourhood renewal and 'people'-based approaches to regeneration.

The PGDip level of the course is based on the completion of the compulsory element listed above, but replaces the dissertation with a 10,000-word Planning Practice Project. This is a major piece of independent study culminating in the production of a report that analyses the implementation process of a planning policy, a development programme or a major project. The postgraduate diploma can be completed in two semesters full-time or four semesters part-time, and must be combined with an approved specialist planning programme to fulfil the RTPI requirements.

Specialist planning programmes:

    * MSc Environmental Assessment and Management (EAM) examines the background to EAM, particularly in the context of planning, natural resource management, and principles. It develops skills in environmental impact assessment and environmental management.
    * MSc Historic Conservation examines the principles, procedures and practices of historic conservation within the context of the wider built environment and the planning process, developing skills and capabilities in practical conservation techniques and evaluation.
    * MSc Tourism and Environmental Management examines tourism growth and expansion against the backdrop of sustainable development. It introduces environmental assessment and management (EAM), and develops analytical skills for the planning and management of the industry.
    * MSc Transport Planning develops a holistic approach to the appreciation of transport issues and their resolution, with particular emphasis on the relationship between transport, sustainable development and land use planning at a variety of spatial scales.
    * MSc Urban and Regional Regeneration covers wide-ranging elements of regeneration including investment, property development, the operation of local and regional economies, and community-based dimensions of voluntary and public intervention.
    * MA Urban Design brings together theory and practice from several fields to demonstrate urban design as an integrated discipline. The focus is practical and seeks to engender positive intervention in the production of the public realm.
    * MSc Urban Planning in Developing Countries examines the theory, concepts and practice of urban planning in societies undergoing rapid economic, social, environmental and spatial change.

Teaching, learning and assessment

Learning methods include lectures, directed reading, workshops, seminars, and practical and project work. Some modules include site visits and fieldwork.

Teaching is organised on a module-credit basis, involving approximately 200 hours of student effort and approximately 36 hours of staff contact, normally delivered through three-hour teaching blocks over a 12-week period.
Each course module is assessed individually, generally on the quality of written or design work, and to some extent on verbal presentations. Assessment methods may include essays, seminar papers, formal written examinations, in-class tests, project work, design and verbal presentations, workshops, simulations and practical exercises.

Quality

In the last Research Assessment Exercise the School of the Built Environment scored 4 (out of 5*).

Teaching staff are drawn primarily from the Department of Planning but with some contributions from other faculties of the School of the Built Environment and from the wider University community. Visiting speakers from business and industry, local government, and consultancies and research bodies provide further input.