BSc Planning and Real Estate with Professional Placement / Course details

BSc Planning and Real Estate with Professional Placement is a four-year degree, which will provide you with the core academic and professional training in planning and real estate.

You will consider the issues faced by professionals in dealing with the planning, development and management of all aspects of our built and natural environments.

Effective planning, development and management of our towns, cities and countryside is crucial in an age when governments and societies all over the world are struggling to deliver sustainable development.

Big data, real estate finance, spatial analysis, policy formation, environmental sustainability and public engagement are all key to this process and form the core principles of the programme.

Understanding and engaging with the problems facing the communities and places in which we live, work and play is at the heart of what we do in the department of Planning and Environmental Management at The University of Manchester. The course is ideal if you:

• are passionate about the factors that influence society and want to learn about economic, political and socio-environmental systems, and how to manage these interactions sustainably;
• want to take a vocationally led degree that equips you with a wide range of hands-on technical, design, decision-making and communication skills that make you highly employable;
• want to diversify your learning outside of lectures, enjoying a variety of field visits, work placement opportunities, working for 'real-world clients'; and the option to study abroad for a semester.

The curriculum of Years 1, 2 and 4 will consider the issues faced by professionals in dealing with the planning, development and management of all aspects of our built and natural environments.

Each year will offer increased opportunities to specialise in aspects of planning and real estate policy, management and evaluation.

In the third year of study, you will normally embark on a paid work placement with an organisation engaged with planning, environment, urban design and/or real estate to apply the conceptual, digital and communication skills you practice.

BSc Planning and Real Estate is accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), as well as a spatial qualification by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI).

To acquire full accreditation by the RTPI, you must also complete a specialist qualification, which can be achieved by transferring onto our four-year integrated master's course (five-years with professional placement).

Manchester is a great place to study planning and real estate.

It is a major UK city undergoing rapid urban change, which provides an ideal base for exploring urban development pressures and how these shape economic, social and environmental futures.

The changes to the city mean that understanding how we finance and manage investment, and what this means for further development are critical factors in effective growth.

The city is also ideally placed for you to learn about a wide variety of rural environments which have interesting implications for planning and real estate markets, including three spectacular National Parks, areas of intensive farming and impressive coastlines.

Accreditation

This course is accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and partially accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) - meaning you'll be well set-up for a professional career in planning or real estate after you graduate.

International fieldwork

This course has normally included a field trip to a European country during your second year, where you can put what you have learnt so far into practice.

Local fieldwork

Conduct fieldwork on a local scale, exploring the city of Manchester - and its surrounding areas - to supplement your studies and assessments.

Year in practice

Normally spend 12 months working within the dynamic world of planning, environment, urban design and real estate putting into practice the skills you learn on the degree helping you to gain your professional accreditation.

We combine traditional lecture-based teaching with tutorials, seminars and workshop sessions.

Practical subjects, such as Geographical Information Systems (GIS), Photoshop and SketchUp - as well as general computer skills - are taught in university computer suites.

This work is accompanied by group work and the occasional lecture session, giving you an overall hands-on learning experience.

Project-based learning, incorporating studio-based design work, field research and study visits are integral to our MPRE course.

These projects provide an excellent opportunity for you to integrate your knowledge and skills and apply them to real situations - exposing you to professional practice.

Important notice

The School of Environment, Education and Development (SEED) recognises the value of fieldwork. However, the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff remains our priority. The School will assess on a regular basis the viability of any travel and fieldwork and communicate any significant changes to our students at the earliest possible opportunity.

The ability of fieldwork and travel to proceed, and whether any changes to proposed fieldwork and travel might be necessary, will remain subject to factors such as the:

• rules and guidance on travel and activities implemented and published by the UK and overseas governments;
• outcome of any risk assessments conducted by the University;
• educational value and student experience of the fieldwork, if significant changes to the proposed fieldwork would be necessary;
• availability of appropriate insurance cover;
• availability of appropriate travel and accommodation and any significant changes to their financial costs.

All fieldwork and travel will be subject to a rigorous risk assessment process and the implementation of any protective measures identified by the risk assessment to ensure the health and safety of all our students and staff.

In some circumstances, it may become necessary to make changes to fieldwork or programme related travel. The University will notify you of those changes at the earliest opportunity. If any fieldwork does not go ahead as planned, then the School's focus will be on seeking to offer a suitable alternative and ensure that the Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) of the programme are met.

Please note that Countries may change their immigration and visa regulations at short notice. The School cannot guarantee that where visas are required for fieldwork, they will be granted but we will take steps so that if a visa is refused, affected students are not academically disadvantaged.

We place strong emphasis on coursework and continuous assessment.

Coursework takes a variety of forms - from essays and reports, to posters, oral presentations, team promotions, and project demonstrations (sometimes to practising professionals).

Your dissertation, which takes place in the fourth year, will draw together the different strands of the course and allow you to study a subject that really interests you.

You will work with an individual supervisor to conceive, plan, execute and write up an independent and novel piece of research.

You can develop your practical skills in our project studio/class, model-making workshop, specialist laboratories for fieldwork analysis, and computer suites with specialist design and spatial analysis software.

See facilities  for more information.