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University College Cork

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.

Who teaches this course?

The core of this course is taught by the full-time and part-time staff of the UCC Centre for Planning Education and Research (which is a full member of Association of European Schools of Planning) and by lecturers from the UCC Departments of Law, Applied Social Studies and Sociology. They are also assisted by visiting specialist lecturers for different subjects as required.

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.

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.

Entry 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.

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.

If you are applying with Qualifications obtained outside Ireland and you wish to verify if you meet the minimum academic and English language requirements for this programme please click here to view the grades comparison table by country and for details of recognised English language tests.

Non-EU Candidates

Non-EU candidates are expected to have educational qualifications of a standard equivalent to Irish university primary degree level. In addition, where such candidates are non-native speakers of the English language they must satisfy the university of their competency in the English language.

Duration

This programme is taken on a full time basis over two 12-week teaching terms. Lectures will be scheduled on two to three days per week and there will also be afternoon studio sessions or tutorials each week, all supported by individual study / reading time. There will be residential and day fieldtrips, both within and outside Ireland, and students will be asked to contribute towards the cost of these.

Careers or further progression

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

Further enquiries

Ms. Tina McSweeney
t.mcsweeney@ucc.ie
+ 353 21 4904356
http://mplan.ucc.ie

Subjects taught

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).

For detailed information on the current programme modules and module descriptions, see the Postgraduate College Calendar

**All Applicants please note: modules listed in the course outline above are indicative of the current set of modules for this course, but these are subject to change from year to year. Please check the college calendar for the full academic content of any given course for the current year.

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.

Assessment method

Assessment
Modules are assessed almost entirely through coursework: essays, designs, field journals, tutorials, team projects, written reflection, individual presentations and individual projects. Around 25% of the modules also have a short written examination at the end of the relevant teaching period, making up 30-40% of the marks available for the module.

Application date

Closing dates

Closing Dates for Application

Applications for 2018 start dates will open on November 1st 2017.

EU Applicants: UCC operates a rounds closing date system for the majority of postgraduate taught programmes (detailed below).

Some programmes have a specific closing date. Applicants are advised to consult with the postgraduate prospectus for programmes with a specific closing date.

The UCC rounds EU application system closing dates for Postgraduate Taught courses are detailed below. However, we would advise applicants to apply as soon as possible.

Deadline for receipt of Applications: Offers will be made:
For all completed applications received by January 15th 2018 Offers will be made by January 29th 2018

For all completed applications received by March 1st 2018 Offers will be made by March 15th 2018

For all completed applications received by May 1st 2018
Offers will be made by May 15th 2018

For all completed applications received by July 2nd 2018
Offers will be made by July 16th 2018

Late applications may be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis for any courses that have remaining capacity for places.

While there is no official closing date for Research courses applicants are advised to submit their application at least two months ahead of their proposed start date. There are four official Research start dates September/October, January, April and July.

Non-EU Applicants:

Please visit the following page for further information for Non EU applicants http://www.ucc.ie/en/international/studyatucc/postgraduateprogrammes/tau...