Planning & Sustainable Development

Course Outline
The Postgraduate Diploma in Planning and Sustainable Development is an introductory graduate-level course in spatial planning and development for cities, regions, towns, rural areas, and neighbourhoods. It has an international flavour and exposes students to the kind of real-world sustainability and environmental challenges that are found in public, private and community settings throughout the world.

Our graduate students come from many different disciplines, so our course offers a rich learning environment for people to fine-tune their areas of interest into a practical, ethical and effective field of action with relevance in the contemporary world. For students who perform well on this course and wish to progress to a professionally recognised masters-level qualification there is an option to transfer to the second year of the UCC M.Plan course which is a comprehensive, two-year course compatible with European standards and with international professional training models for planning.

The course will be of particular interest to students from developing countries who want to gain a foundation training in Planning and Sustainable Development as well as other international students who have a particular interest in studying in Ireland and have a wider interest in the theory and practice of planning. Students who do not feel able or ready to commit to two years study for the accredited qualification will find that the Course is an excellent way to gain a foundation qualification and fully assess their motivation to progress to the second year of the accredited MPlan Course.

Modules will cover topics including:
- place-making and design
- community engagement
- spatial planning at various different scales
- environmental awareness
- development in urban areas
- legal and political know-how
- International and global planning issues and processes
- technical competence and an understanding of the realities of sustainable development.

The course develops a wide range of skills and abilities leading to a strong capacity for making real-world, imaginative and balanced contributions about the future of places in many different sectors.

Transfer to the MPlan
Students who pass all modules with an aggregate score of 50% (i.e. 600 out of 1200 marks) may opt not to be conferred with the Postgraduate Diploma and may transfer their registration to the Second Year of the Masters in Planning and Sustainable Development (MPlan2) in the following academic year (full-time). For details of this programme, see http://www.ucc.ie/en/cke69/. Such students must inform Student Records and Examinations Office (exams@ucc.ie) that they will not be conferred with the Postgraduate Diploma and opt instead to progress to Second Year of the Masters in Planning and Sustainable Development (M.Plan2) in the following academic year (full-time).

Why Choose This Course
The UCC Centre for Planning Education and Research is known for the high quality of its graduates and its broad-based approach to learning. This Diploma is ideal for early- or mid- career students who have a personal or career interest and engagement in this subject area but are not in a position to commit to a full two-year master's programme. With an international focus and a disciplinary ethos which straddles the physical sciences, the social sciences and the humanities, it is a course that is also suitable for English-speaking graduates from North America, Asia and from the Global South who are interested in furthering their education in a progressive European university.

Modules
Further details on the modules listed above can be found in our book of modules. Any modules listed above are indicative of the current set of modules for this course but are subject to change from year to year.

University Calendar
You can find the full academic content for the current year of any given course in our University Calendar.

Requirements
Applicants should normally have a degree at Second Class Honours level (or higher) in an appropriate subject in the fields of Science, Arts, Humanities, Social Science, Law, Commerce, Engineering, Architecture, or Government or similar. Selection will be based on academic achievement, written expression of interest, an interview and any relevant work experience (if any).

Applicants who hold a degree at a level lower than Second Class honours may also be accepted subject to the requirement that they demonstrate, at interview, a high level of engagement and interest in the subject and a clear capacity for carrying out studies at postgraduate level.

English Language Requirements
Applicants that are non-native speakers of the English language must meet the university approved English language requirements.

For applicants with qualifications completed outside of Ireland:
Applicants must meet the required entry academic grade, equivalent to Irish requirements.

International/non-EU applicants
For full details of the non-EU application procedure please visit our how to apply pages for international students. In UCC, we use the term programme and course interchangeably to describe what a person has registered to study in UCC and its constituent colleges, schools, and departments.

For more information please contact the International Office.

Closing Date: 13 April 2022.

How Do I Apply

1. Choose Course
Firstly choose your course. Applicants can apply for up to two courses under one application. Details of taught courses are available on our online prospectus.

2. Apply Online
Once you have chosen your course you can apply online at the online application portal. Applicants will need to apply before the course closing date. There is a non-refundable €50 application fee for all courses apart from the Education - Professional Master of Education - (Secondary School/Post-Primary Teacher Training) which has a €100 application fee.

Applicants for the Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health Nursing must apply on the PAC website when the programme opens for applications.

3. Gather Supporting Documents
Scanned copies of the following documents will need to be uploaded to the online application portal in support of your application. Applicants may need to produce the original documents if you are accepted onto a course and register at UCC.

- Original qualification documents listed on your application including transcripts of results from institutions other than UCC

- Any supplementary items requested for your course.

Please log into the online application portal for more details.

4. Application processing timeline
Our online application portal opens for applications for most courses in early November of each year. Check specific course details.

5. Rounds
For courses that are in the rounds system (Irish and EU applicants), please check the rounds closing dates.

Questions on how to apply?
Please use our web enquiry form to contact us.

Additional Requirements (All Applicants)
Please note you will be required to provide additional information as part of the online application process for this programme. This will include the following questions:

You may enter the details of professional or voluntary positions held. We strongly encourage you to complete this section with all relevant work experiences that will support your application.

In addition to your previously declared qualifications, please outline any additional academic courses, self-learning and professional training relevant to this programme.

Please describe your motivation and readiness for this programme.

Please enter the names and email addresses of 2 referees. Applicants will also be required to send an online reference request to their referee after submitting the online application, via the online reference request system on the application portal.

The closing date for non-EU applications is 13 April 2022

1 year full-time

Skills and Careers Information
This Diploma is an ideal postgraduate platform for people who wish to build on their primary degree into an applied and relevant subject area. This means that their initial foundation in geography, arts, social science, politics, law, design, humanities, science or other fields can be built on in ways that enable them to make a real contribution to how cities, towns, regions and places can be designed and managed into the future in the interests of society and the common good. With a built in option to convert to a full masters in this subject area graduates will have opportunities to work in the public, private, education and community sectors and their skills and competencies are recognised by a range of employers in a wide variety of contexts both in Ireland and internationally