MSc Urban Design

Institution University of Strathclyde, Business School
Method At the institution
Location Glasgow
Type Masters
Course fee By request

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MSc Urban Design

Objectives Our course aims to teach urban design in a multidisciplinary manner that reflects its inherent complexities. It promotes a general and intricate understanding of the city by examining the various factors that generate urban form. It focuses on physical planning and the design of urban spaces and their enclosure. Moreover, it aims at understanding how to create a democratically organised, socially inclusive, economically prospering, environmentally sustainable, architecturally beautiful and culturally vibrant city.
Academic title MSc Urban Design
Course description High quality urban design is a basic requirement for the successful development of our built environment and of our society in general. Urban design as "the art of making places for people" is back on the agenda after a period of neglect and it is now a systematic and comprehensive field of research and practice, including aspects like appropriate mixed use, pedestrian oriented civic spaces, neighbourhood friendly circulation patterns or context respecting design.

The course is design based and relies also on theoretical input. The design studio is the core element of the course and runs throughout the first two Semesters. In parallel, the various aspects of urban design are explored in taught classes. In their third semester, students can decide to develop the theme of the studio as an advanced design project or to concentrate on relevant aspects in a theoretical manner as a written dissertation.

Over three semesters, the course is structured as follows :

    * Theory and practice: Exploring concepts and tools of urban design
    * Theory in practice: Developing a realistic project
    * Practice in theory: Reflecting upon issues of urban design

Curriculum

The topic addressed in the course is the urbanity of places within the context of globalisation. It focuses on the metropolis or city region. The main task of the course is to develop appropriate strategies for sustainable urban development, encompassing social, political, economic, environmental, architectural, aesthetic and psychological aspects.

The design studio is based on a real case of urban redevelopment in Scotland. Project development ranges from comprehensive planning to urban detail, including issues of urban space, architecture, landscape, representation, economy, sociology, sustainability, environment and transport.

Taught classes include the following topics :

    * Urban design history**
    * Urban theory
    * Environmental impact and sustainability
    * Urban governance*
    * Planning systems*
    * Real estate markets*
    * Real estate development*
    * Urban design policy and practice*
    * Urban design representation
    * Urban transport planning
    * Project work and project management
    * Urban landscape design**
    * Urban design field trip**

* Classes delivered by the Department of Urban Studies, University of Glasgow
** Classes also offered to students from the Department of Urban Studies, University of Glasgow.
Several of these classes are shared with other MSc courses from the Faculty of Engineering.

Learning Outcomes

    * Develop a knowledge of the fundamentals of urban design, including its theoretical principles, historical development and examples, practicalities and techniques, in relation to current and future challenges.
    * Develop an understanding of the economic, legislative, societal issues that affect the processes of urban change, quality of life and sustainability, and a capacity to discern how these will have different effect of different societal groups and situations, in the present and over time.
    * Develop design skills at both the strategic and detailed scales, to support ideas, scenarios, and development with a complete design representation of urban change.
    * Develop an ability to communicate and work with others - individually and in teams, with colleagues and stakeholders - through an understanding of negotiation, mediation and advocacy skills.

Learning Style

The course is delivered through studio work, special projects, lectures and seminars. The studio involves work on the urban design of a complex urban area at different scales and develops through a structured series of design exercises from the urban design framework to the neighbourhood and the individual public space defined by urban architecture.

The taught classes include lectures and student presentations. They will usually run as 2.5 day modules to allow for flexible booking by CPD and part time students. In addition, academic skills modules are offered by the Postgraduate Training Programme of the Faculty of Engineering.

Sharing modules with other Departments and Universities, the course offers a vibrant interdisciplinary learning environment. It is based on both teamwork and individual work. Other learning methods include workshops, field trips and lectures by renowned visiting speakers.

Assessment

Assessment of student work takes place throughout the course and is executed in a number of ways as exercises, project submissions, seminar presentations, essay submissions. Most subject areas employ continuous assessment, their credit rating comprising a number of assessed components which are made explicit in the course handbook.