| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2023-09-01 | - |
Program Overview
Course overview
You'll learn about the social forces that shape our society and the spaces we live in and discover techniques for ‘reading’ cities and spaces.
Our renowned experts will guide you through the practices of public planning and design, and help you explore the political and democratic factors that influence it, setting foundations for your career.
The degree integrates core areas from our geography and urban planning degrees to equip you with strong analytical and practical skills.
Your first year is professionally accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute.
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Your course and study experience - disclaimers and terms and conditions
Please rest assured we make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the programmes, services and facilities described. However, it may be necessary to make changes due to significant disruption, for example in response to Covid-19.
View our Academic experience page, which gives information about your Newcastle University study experience for the academic year 2022-23.
See our terms and conditions and student complaints information, which gives details of circumstances that may lead to changes to programmes, modules or University services.
Program Outline
Modules and learning
Modules
The information below is intended to provide an example of what you will study.
Most degrees are divided into stages. Each stage lasts for one academic year, and you'll complete modules totalling 120 credits by the end of each stage.
Our teaching is informed by research. Course content may change periodically to reflect developments in the discipline, the requirements of external bodies and partners, and student feedback.
Optional module availability
Student demand for optional modules may affect availability. Full details of the modules on offer will be published through the Programme Regulations and Specifications ahead of each academic year. This usually happens in May. To find out more please see our terms and conditions.
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
We’ll introduce you to the study of planning and geography through subjects such as planning theory and systems, and urban, regional, social and environmental issues.
Modules
| Compulsory Modules | Credits |
|---|---|
| Interconnected World | 20 |
| Human Geographies of the UK | 20 |
| Geographical Analysis | 20 |
| Planning Processes | 10 |
| Economics of Development I | 10 |
| Shaping Towns and Cities | 20 |
| Disciplinary and professional perspectives on planning | 20 |
| Community Building | 0 |
How you'll learn
How you'll be assessed
You can specialise by choosing a range of topics from the geography and planning disciplines. You'll also undertake research training and will have the opportunity to develop employment skills.
Modules
| Compulsory Modules | Credits |
|---|---|
| Research Skills | 20 |
| Community Building | 0 |
| Optional Modules | Credits |
|---|---|
| Political Geography | 20 |
| Economic Geography | 20 |
| Development & Globalisation | 20 |
| Social Geographies | 20 |
| Career Development for second year students | 20 |
| Houses and Homes | 20 |
| Design & Neighbourhood | 20 |
| Researching Local Economies | 20 |
| Understanding Cities | 20 |
| Urban Poverty: A Global Perspective | 20 |
| Digital Civics | 20 |
| Urban Infrastructures: A Lens on the City | 20 |
| Study Visit | 20 |
| Global Course on Institutional Design for Spatial Planning | 20 |
How you'll learn
How you'll be assessed
You can continue to specialise by choosing in-depth modules on geography and planning topics, and you'll complete a dissertation on a topic of interest to you. You will also have a further opportunity to develop your employability skills.
Modules
| Compulsory Modules | Credits |
|---|---|
| Dissertation | 40 |
| Community Building | 0 |
| Optional Modules | Credits |
|---|---|
| Climate Literacy: From philosophies to practice | 20 |
| Geopolitics | 20 |
| Geographies of Money | 20 |
| Local and Regional Development | 20 |
| Mapping the City | 20 |
| Geographies of Race and Nation | 20 |
| Geographies of Sustainable Production and Consumption | 20 |
| Humanitarianism and Health Inequalities | 20 |
| Career Development for final year students | 20 |
| Strategies into Action: Planning | 20 |
| Development Management | 20 |
| Planning Theory and Politics | 20 |
| Erasmus Exchange | 40 |
| Disasters, Monsters and Mess | 20 |
| Strategies Into Action: Urban Design | 20 |
| Food: Space and Polity | 20 |
| Contemporary Planning Issues | 20 |
How you'll learn
How you'll be assessed
Information about these graphs
We base these figures and graphs on the most up-to-date information available to us. They combine data on the planned delivery and assessments of our courses in 2021-22 with data on the modules chosen by our students in 2020-21.
Teaching time is made up of:
Teaching and assessment
Teaching methods
Our courses have a high level of staff and student interaction, including:
All modules also require a considerable amount of independent study, culminating in a dissertation under expert supervision in stage 3.
Assessment methods
You'll be assessed through a combination of:
Coursework
Essays
Examinations – practical or online
Presentations
Reports
Skills and experience
Practical skills
You'll study a broad range of theoretical and practical skills, including building design, mapping science, global social and economic change, and local environmental initiatives.
In Stage 2 an optional international study visit provides first-hand experience of other geographical and planning contexts.
Business skills
You'll gain a wide range of skills that will enable you to work in urban or rural policy fields, in public or private practice and with a wide range of other professions.
Chat to a student
I love studying Geography and Planning at Newcastle because the combination of the two disciplines allows me to develop a wide range of skills I could use in a multitude of workplaces. The opportunities are endless.
Hannah, Geography and Planning
