City Planning

Planning is an exciting, varied and progressive profession which plays a pivotal role in decisions shaping the future of cities and regions.

Planners need to see the whole picture:

we need to be good thinkers, good analysts and good communicators.

We work with stakeholders across the spectrum of interests - … For more content click the Read More button below.Planning is an exciting, varied and progressive profession which plays a pivotal role in decisions shaping the future of cities and regions.

Planners need to see the whole picture:

we need to be good thinkers, good analysts and good communicators.

We work with stakeholders across the spectrum of interests - from global developers to local communities - to foster feasible, equitable, sustainable and progressive outcomes.

Sydney and NSW provide a fantastic laboratory to help understand the crucial role played by planners in addressing complex challenges, systematically placed in its global context through critical analysis and drawing upon best practice.

The Master of City Planning degree is designed for students with an undergraduate qualification in a related discipline seeking to move into a planning or planning-related field.

It is also tailored for professionals working in other sectors, especially those whose work may intersect with the planning system, or requires involvement with planning agencies.

The degree comprises core courses that strengthen disciplinary foundations and help develop advanced and specific knowledge and skills;

elective options which can be structured to pursue a specialist pathway (city development and renewal, healthy sustainable communities, history and theory, city design);

and a capstone project, delivered in conjunction with City Futures 'Australia's leading urban research centre' in which students undertake a piece of primary research in their selected area of interest.The MCP aims to produce high quality graduates who have acquired UNSW Graduate attributes and are capable, through their skills, knowledge and experience, of undertaking a wide range of tasks required of a qualified planning practitioner.

As well as preparing for the profession, a planning degree provides lifelong analytical, collaborate and communication skills much in demand more widely.Course offered in the MCP program are aimed to satisfy they key competence areas required of a qualified planner by the Planning Institute of Australia.Read More

Capstone Course

Students must take 6 UOC of the following courses.Students who take PLAN7149 Planning Thesis (12 UOC) are required to take BENV7020 Research Preparation for Higher Degree Research Students (6 UOC).keyboard_arrow_down

• One of the followingUDES00136 UOCUrban Design GraphicsBENV70206 UOCResearch Seminar

Capstone Thesis/Design Studio

Students must take 12 UOC of the following courses.keyboard_arrow_down

• PLAN714912 UOCPlanning Thesis
• One of the followingUDES000212 UOCUrban Design Studio 2UDES000112 UOCUrban Design Studio 1

Core Courses

Students must take 54 UOC of the following courses.keyboard_arrow_down

• PLAN71406 UOCLand & Environment Law
• PLAN71416 UOCLand Use Policy & Practice
• PLAN71426 UOCCity Equity & Wellbeing
• PLAN71436 UOCUrban Design
• PLAN71456 UOCCity Building - Infrastructure Planning
• PLAN71466 UOCCity Economics, Urban Development & Finance
• PLAN71476 UOCPlanning Techniques & Analysis
• PLAN71486 UOCStrategic Spatial Planning
• One of the followingSUSD00046 UOCSustainability and HabitabilitySUSD00016 UOCSustainable Development and the Urban Environment

Prescribed Electives

Students must take at least 24 UOC of the following courses.keyboard_arrow_down

• BENV67316 UOCContemporary Issues in Urbanism
• BENV73076 UOCWriting the City
• BENV77126 UOCHealthy Built Environments
• BENV77286 UOCGeographical Information Systems and Urban Informatics
• BENV78116 UOCUrban Renewal
• BENV78126 UOCCritical Spatial Thinkers
• CONS00256 UOCInfrastructure Planning, Procurement and Finance
• CVEN94056 UOCUrban Transport Planning Practice
• GEOS90116 UOCEnvironmental Impact Assessment
• IEST50016 UOCFrameworks for Environmental Management
• IEST50026 UOCTools for Environmental Management
• IEST50036 UOCAddressing Environmental Issues
• IEST50076 UOCEnvironment and Development
• IEST69096 UOCEnvironmental Management Systems
• PLAN71446 UOCPlanning History, Theory and Culture
• PLAN71566 UOCHousing Policy and Finance
• PLAN71576 UOCEngaging Communities
• REST00046 UOCProperty Investment and Finance
• REST00066 UOCProperty Development and Feasibility Analysis
• SUSD00096 UOCEnvironmental Auditing
• SUSD00106 UOCManaging the Sustainable Built Environment
• UDES00046 UOCHistory and Theory of Urban Development and Design
• UDES00066 UOCCase Studies in Urban Development and Design
• UDES00096 UOCUrban Landscape and Heritage

Capstone Course Maturity Requirement

Students must have completed 48 UOC before taking any of the following courses.keyboard_arrow_down

• BENV70206 UOCResearch Seminar
• UDES00136 UOCUrban Design Graphics

Thesis/Design Studio Maturity Requirement

Students must have completed 72 UOC before taking any of the following courses.keyboard_arrow_down

• PLAN714912 UOCPlanning Thesis
• UDES000112 UOCUrban Design Studio 1
• UDES000212 UOCUrban Design Studio 2

Admission requirements

A Bachelor degree with a credit average or above (WAM 65+). Students with an undergraduate degree in a cognate discipline are able to apply for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). Advanced standing may also be granted for completed or partially completed postgraduate awards from UNSW or from another institution. Applicants who do not meet these standard admission requirements may be able to enter the Grad Cert City Planning in the first instance. This will be at the discretion of the Program Director or Academic Coordinator who will assess applications on a case-by-case basis.

What is a cognate undergraduate qualification?

Urban planning is interdisciplinary in nature and requires students to develop skills sets and build knowledge across a breadth of areas. As such, planners often enter the profession from a commensurate range of backgrounds. Four key subject areas at undergraduate level offer a strong and appropriate background for a postgraduate planning education. These may either be reflected either as a degree specifically in any of these areas, but also where one (or more) of these areas are demonstrated in a substantive Major of a general Arts or Liberal Arts degree

• Built Environment subject areas, and in particular architecture, landscape architecture, construction, property development and urban design.
• Social, economic and environmental science subject areas, in particular geography, urban studies and sociology, demography, economics, social policy and politics, communication studies, health studies, international development, environmental ecology, environmental management, environmental sustainability
• Law/Jurisprudence
• Environmental and Civil Engineering subject areas, which would also encompass surveying and spatial science degrees

RPL Provisions

Students with an undergraduate qualification in the above subject/discipline areas will be eligible for RPL provisions of up to 24UOC, subject to application by the student and agreement of the Program Director on a case by case basis. Students from cognate backgrounds do not have to apply for RPL and can complete the full 96UOC, two year full-time degree if they wish.

1.Apply concepts and principles of urban planning in practiceGlobal Citizens

2.Implement systematic specialised knowledge and analytical skills to reach appropriate evidence-based decisions to inform planning issues and actionsScholars

3.Examine and evaluate international issues, perspectives, and opportunities within their field of studyGlobal Citizens

4.Practice professional and ethical conduct and personal accountability consistent with the expectations of the planning profession and the community when engaged in planning roles and activities

5.Apply critical thinking skills in order to address multi-scalar challenges and perspectives shaping space and place

6.Develop innovative, multidisciplinary and integrative plans to facilitate and influence appropriate social, economic and environmental outcomesScholarsGlobal CitizensLeaders

7.Critically analyse, reflect on and synthesise complex information, and apply concepts and theories to practiceScholars

8.Plan and execute a significant piece of independent research relevant to the planning discipline and professionScholars

9.Communicate and work effectively with a range of stakeholders to inform, consult and engage them in planning processesGlobal Citizens

10.Demonstrate cultural awareness, environmental and social responsibility, and a respect for diversityGlobal Citizens