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MSc Urban Studies

Drawing on the unrivalled range of urban expertise at ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº, this programme offers a highly distinctive interdisciplinary, critical and creative approach to the study of cities and urban life.

About this degree

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Cities are increasingly a central focus for research, policy-making and public debate. It has been widely claimed that more than half the global population now lives in cities and according to the United Nations this is set to rise to three-quarters by the year 2050.

The scale and complexity of these developments necessitate the development of innovative modes of analysis that can address critical challenges and influence debates both within and outside the academy. These range from rethinking urban regeneration, gentrification, public space and multiculturalism to large-scale challenges such as slums, poverty and access to basic services. They include engagement with the way cities are at the maelstrom of social, cultural and ecological change reflected in new conceptions of identity, collective memory and the technological transformations of everyday life.

By taking this MSc you will be better able to understand these debates and apply your own knowledge in the course of your career - whether this is geared towards further research and writing or through an enriched practical and professional contribution to the urban arena.

We attract students from a wide variety of disciplinary and geographical backgrounds, including a significant cohort of part-time students working in professional fields such as journalism, architecture, graphics design and transport planning.

Learn more about this course


Highlights

  • Located in ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº's Bloomsbury campus, you will engage with the broad range of urban expertise associated with the ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Urban Lab: from Geography to English and Engineering, from Urban Planning to the latest developments in Architectural History.
  • You will think carefully and critically about the latest international, comparative and historically informed perspectives on cities and urbanisation.
  • You will use London as a key laboratory to introduce and explore a series of interconnected critical themes within Urban Studies.
  • Tailor your cross-disciplinary learning to your own interests and enthusiasms with a broad range of potential optional modules spanning many different ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Departments.
  • You will develop the knowledge and skills necessary for careers in academia, public and private research, and other commercial and professional fields where an advanced understanding of cities and urban change is required.Ìý

Who is this course for?

Potential applicants are expected to have a first or upper second-class Honours degree in a relevant discipline from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.Ìý

What we are looking for is not necessarily students from a particular academic route but those with the intellectual curiosity and enthusiasm for studying and researching cities and urban life across a broad array of disciplinary approaches.


MSc Open Event

Hear more about the course from Dr Andrew Harris:

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Academic Staff
Dr Andrew HarrisÌý(Convenor)Department of Geography
Associate Professor Pushpa ArabindooDepartment of Geography
Dr Clare Melhuish¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Urban Laboratory

Staff closely affiliated with the Programme include:

Professor Ayona DattaDepartment of Geography
Professor Alan LathamDepartment of Geography
Professor Jennifer RobinsonDepartment of Geography
Dr Tatiana ThiemeDepartment of Geography
Fabien CanteDepartment of Geography
Professor Camillo BoanoDevelopment Planning Unit
Dr Ellie CosgraveSTEaPP
Mr Michael EdwardsBartlett School of Planning
Dr Michal MurawskiSchool of Slavic and Eastern European Studies
Department of Anthropology
Professor Ben CampkinBartlett School of Architecture

TestimonialsÌý

Yifan Li

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Tofunmi Kayode

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Nurin Huda Hanif

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Funding

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit theÌýÌýsection of the ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº website.

MSc Urban Studies is a central training programme for the Urban Studies, Planning and Spatial Science pathway of the UBEL ESRC DTP. For further information visit theÌýÌýpage. There are opportunities for 1+3 PhD awards including MSc Urban Studies study but you will need to develop a proposal by NOVEMBER before the intended start of study in September.

Visit the Prospectus for information on Fees:

Prospectus


CareersÌý

The Urban Studies MSc programme will improve the knowledge and skills necessary for careers in academia, public and private research, and other commercial and professional fields where an advanced understanding of cities and urban change is required.

Our graduates have found employment in, amongst other sectors, municipal and local government, urban political organisations, art consultancies, financial services, social enterprise companies, cultural institutions, community development organisations and think tanks.Ìý

We have an impressive record of students continuing to undertake funded PhDs. This includes at ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº (in Geography, the Development Planning Unit, Planning, CASA and Architectural Design) as well as in Europe and North America (such as at the University of Zurich, the Open University, LSE, Cambridge University, King's College, Universidade do Porto, Harvard, Humboldt University Berlin, TU Berlin, Oxford University and the University of Minnesota).


News from MSc Urban Studies

Disrupting the Speculative City

Disrupting the Speculative City: Power, Property and Community Resistance in London

The book tells how a grassroots campaign defended social housing and public assets from redevelopment that would have raised rents and risked social cleansing.

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Cami Warren Landing Page News

Tips and Insights for Incoming ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Department of Geography StudentsÌý

Starting out at the ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Department of Geography? Our students share their advice for navigating student life.

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XinTong Landing Page News

¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Geography Student Wins Joanna Stillwell Prize for Outstanding Dissertation

XinTong Chen has won the RGS Population Geography Research Group’s Joanna Stillwell Prize for her undergraduate dissertation.

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