Programme Overview:
- Duration:
- 1 Years
- Attendance:
- Full Time
- Mode of Delivery:
- Face-to-Face
- Next Intake:
- 2024/2025 September
- Contact Name:
- Katie O'Neill
- Contact Number:
- +353 (0)1 716 1781
- Fees:
- Fee Information
In today’s complex and rapidly changing world, with the threats posed by climate change, economic crises, energy security and rapid urban growth, planners face the challenge of creating places that combine environmental quality with a vibrant economy, quality of life and distributive justice. This one-year professional planning degree develops the requisite conceptual knowledge and practical skills required by planners in this increasingly complex environment. You will develop an understanding of the administrative, legal and policy frameworks in which spatial planning operates and the social, political, economic and environmental challenges facing planning. In addition, students develop practical skills for plan and policy making, including environmental assessment, retail assessment, public participation methods, development and project management, and GIS. Students will also engage with understanding the role of planning in public policy and sustainability and can avail of independent research or internship opportunities which are assigned on a competitive basis. The UCD School of Architecture, Planning & Environmental Policy has an established international track record as a leading research centre in spatial planning and is in the Top 150 QS World University Rankings by subject area. The School is a member of the Association of European Schools of Planning.
Module Information:
Under the "What modules can I take?" section below you will see general module information, for a more detailed description including module selection rules click here.
The other 1 year version of this programme (W178) is only available to UCD internal students progressing from UCD's City Planning & Environmental Policy degree. All other eligible applicants should apply for the Master of Regional and Urban Planning programme (T399).
Curricular information is subject to change
Full Time option suitable for:
Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. Yes
The Master of Regional and Urban Planning programme is a one-year professional planning programme, providing graduates with the requisite skills and knowledge to begin a career as a professional planner.. The MRUP is aimed at providing an integrated and inclusive understanding of the challenges required to create places that combine environmental quality, with a vibrant economy, good quality of life and distributive justice. The programme is underpinned by a critical and questioning approach aimed at equipping our students with intellectual confidence and the professional and ethical judgement to make decisions, which promote and ensure sustainable spatial development and manage environmental change. The programme fosters a learning environment that draws on the research and expertise of our academic staff, combined with insights from innovative practitioners in the planning, development and environmental fields.
Uniquely, we can draw on our location in Dublin and Ireland to reflect on the challenges of a rapidly developing vibrant city and modern economy set in an unsurpassed natural environment. The MRUP utilises a mix of lectures, hands on computer lab based work, group projects in a studio setting, regular student presentations, independent research, competitive internship opportunities, and academic and professional writing, to provide graduates with the requisite skills and knowledge needed in the rapidly changing global environment facing planning.
On successful completion of the programme students should be able to
Graduates of the MRUP are to be found working as professional planners in the public and private sector, as GIS consultants, as policy advisors, property development consultants, and as community & rural development coordinators. Our graduates have found employment with: national and international planning agencies, government departments, local authorities including urban and rural authorities in Ireland, the UK, Australia and New Zealand; transportation agencies including the National Transport Authority; planning consultancy firms including Tom Philips and Associates, Brock McClure Planning and Development Consultants, and KPMG Future Analytics consulting; urban regeneration companies, large house builders including Glenveagh Properties; wind and solar energy companies including Eirgrid and ABO Wind, and environmental NGOs including An Taisce.
This section links to general module information, for a more detailed description including module selection rules click here.
Autumn Trimester and Spring Trimester
One of the following modules:
Summer Trimester
* Please note that internships are assigned on a competitive basis and the number of internships available in any given year may vary. Students who are not offered an internship will be required to undertake the Thesis module as an alternative.
* Please note this is a new programme structure for September 2024 entrants and the modules may be subject to change.
MRUP Regional & Urban Planning (T399) Full Time
EU fee per year - € 10300
nonEU fee per year - € 29100
***Fees are subject to change
Please note that UCD offers a number of graduate scholarships for full-time, self-funding international students, holding an offer of a place on a UCD graduate degree programme. For further information please see www.ucd.ie/global/scholarships/
We are seeking accreditation from the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Irish Planning Institute for Master of Regional and Urban Planning (MRUP)(T399) programme. It is anticipated that accreditation from the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) will be awarded in Spring 2024 and this qualification is recognised internationally.
The other 1 year version of this MRUP programme (W178) which is only available to UCD internal students progressing from UCD's City Planning & Environmental Policy degree is fully accredited by both the Royal Town Planning Institute and The Irish Planning Institute.
Ciara Shevlin MRUP Graduate
"I graduated from the Master of Regional and Urban Planning in UCD in 2022. Before undertaking the MRUP, I completed a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and History in Trinity College Dublin. Although I had no previous academic experience of planning, it was something I was always drawn to. During my undergraduate degree I took part in an Erasmus year in Utrecht. During this time, I realised the differences in how cities operate and their different housing and transportation systems. This led me to decide to apply for the Masters in UCD to pursue a future career in planning. The modules on the MRUP were a great way to introduce students who did not come from planning backgrounds to gain a rounded understanding of the planning system in Ireland. This knowledge really helped me to understand national, regional and local policies which were then utilised in modules such as Placemaking and Plan Making. I personally really enjoyed the Plan Making module as it allowed students to utilise their academic knowledge of planning policy to create new policies, objectives and ideas for the chosen case study sites. The MRUP provided students with opportunities to network throughout with guest speakers from the planning institutes and private and public sector planning organisations. These talks and events were really helpful to see the range of career possibilities which are available to you as a planner, of which there are plenty! I partook in a summer internship in a private planning consultancy and accepted a permanent position with the consultancy the following year. I now work as a planner in South Dublin County Council on the Development Management Team, making decisions on planning applications in the county. "
The following entry routes are available:
* Courses will remain open until such time as all places have been filled, therefore early application is advised