Newcastle University

Master of Planning MPlan Honours
UCAS Code: K400 (4 Years)

• Course Overview
• Modules
• Entry Requirements
• Careers
• Finance

A planning-related degree could be for you if you are:

• interested in your surroundings
• curious about how places change
• concerned about sustainability
• keen to influence the way our environment is developed or conserved

Newcastle provides the ultimate case study for planning students. The rise and decline of industry and the recent cultural renaissance have turned the city into a ‘living laboratory’ for exploration and study.  

There is a fantastic range of live planning projects on your doorstep and you will have plenty of opportunities to get out and about in the city and beyond through frequent projects and field trips.

The degree offers several opportunities to study planning in an international context. In your second year you may take a European field trip to examine planning issues in a European city. In the fourth year you can choose to spend a whole semester studying in Europe through the Erasmus exchange programme.

In Stage 4, you specialise in one of two routes: planning and regeneration, or environmental planning. You will also have the opportunity to work with outside planning and planning-related organisations on live reports, and attend practitioner workshop sessions.

Professional accreditation

Both of our planning degrees are professionally accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI). This means they satisfy the standards set by the planning profession.

See the Route to Chartered Town Planner section below for more information about our RTPI accredited qualifications and the flexibility of the planning programme at Newcastle.

Quality and ranking

Newcastle is ranked in the top 5 UK universities for planning in The Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide 2014, The Guardian University Guide 2014 and The Complete University Guide 2014. We also achieved an overall student satisfaction score of 91% in the 2013 National Student Survey.

Take time to see where your career interests lie

At Newcastle you have control over how far you want to take your planning education.

• Our four-year MPlan degree leads to an undergraduate Master of Planning qualification that satisfies the Royal Town Planning Institute's (RTPI) educational requirements for Chartered Town Planner status
• Our three-year Urban Planning BA Honours degree is also professionally accredited by the RTPI and offers a rewarding insight into urban planning and key environmental issues. You may use this qualification as a route into planning later in your career, following specialist postgraduate study. It can also be a launch pad into many other exciting professions

Both the MPlan and BA degrees cover the same modules for the first three years. This gives you the flexibility to transfer between the two up to the end of third year should your career ideas change as the course progresses.

MPlan students complete their planning education with an advanced study year in Stage 4. During this year, you can choose to specialise in one of two areas of planning:

• urban regeneration
• environmental planning

Stage 4 also includes the opportunity to:

• work with outside planning and planning-related organisations on live reports
• attend practitioner workshop sessions
• spend a semester studying in Europe through the Erasmus exchange programme

See The route to Chartered Town Planner section below for more information.

Year out in planning practice

MPlan students can enjoy the unique opportunity to undertake a one-year paid work placement and gain a Certificate in Planning Practice. This year counts as one of the two years’ practice required to become a Chartered Town Planner.

We source placements on your behalf in a range of locations across the UK. We also provide training in interview practice, CV writing and other key job-hunting techniques as part of your studies.

Previous host organisations include:

• Transport for London
• Fairhurst
• Rolfe Judd
• Bellway Homes
• Many local authorities

See The route to Chartered Town Planner section below for more information.

Combine planning with another subject

It is possible to combine planning with another subject through our Joint Honours degrees.

• Combine planning with architecture in our Architecture and Urban Planning degree, with potential transfer to our Single Honours courses at the end of Stage 1 should you decide you wish to pursue a career as a Planner or an Architect
• Combine planning with geography in our Geography and Planning degree, with potential to transfer to our Master of Planning or Urban Planning BA Honours degree at the end of Stage 1

Teaching and assessment

This programme is more vocationally oriented and this is reflected in the different methods of tuition we use. This means a typical week may involve lectures, seminars, and individual and group project work. Field trips in the UK and abroad are integral to the programme and form a key part of tuition and assessment. Further information can be found on our undergraduate web pages about the approach to teaching and learning at Newcastle University.

Methods of assessment include individual essays and projects, group work, presentations, and examinations. Our innovative teaching and assessment techniques involve the use of film, posters and presentations, making learning a creative and dynamic process. 

School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape

As a planning student at Newcastle you will be part of the School of Architecture Planning and Landscape. This is one of the few academic Schools in the UK specialising entirely in the built environment. The School has world-renowned expertise in:

• urban planning
• architecture
• landscape architecture
• urban design
• digital architecture

As a founder member of the Association of European Schools of Planning, we also have strong European links. This gives you the chance to experience differences in planning approaches beyond the UK through European field visits. MPlan students can also undertake a semester of study in Europe through the Erasmus exchange scheme in Stage 4.