Urban Design MA

Course summary

In an increasingly urbanised world, there is growing international demand for urban design graduates. This course will equip you with the knowledge and skills you need to participate in this rapidly expanding profession. Urban design involves shaping the physical setting for life in cities. The pace of urban change, and the challenge of making cities efficient, sustainable and meaningful, demands creative solutions to design and management. The urban design courses at Westminster provide a coherent approach to issues that face our cities, combining structured academic study with live design projects, allowing you to develop practical skills, a theoretical understanding and an informed approach to sustainable urban development.

Our Urban Design MA is one of the longest established in the UK. It enjoys an excellent reputation and our graduates are highly respected in the profession. Our students are from a variety of professions and backgrounds, including architecture, landscape architecture and planning, from the UK, Europe, and across the globe. They range from recent graduates seeking to expand their skill base before commencing their career or those considering a shift from an allied profession, to established professionals seeking to specialise or develop a more informed critical approach. Our central London location allows you to interact with a huge variety of practitioners and organisations, as well as drawing on the city's huge range of resources; you'll be at the heart of the debate over the future of cities.

The course places a strong emphasis on design, practical outputs and a multidisciplinary approach. While focusing on UK examples, the lessons are applicable to a wide range of international and economic contexts. This flexible and student-centred approach is highly valued by former graduates and their employers. The course is delivered by staff with many years' experience in practice, education, training, research, and consultancy in the UK and overseas. Outputs from the course combine into a portfolio demonstrating your ability to deal with the complexities of urban design in a practical and informed manner.

Top reasons to study with us

• Excellent course reputation – Our Urban Design MA is one of the longest established in the UK and has an excellent reputation in the industry
• Learn from experts – You’ll be taught by staff with many years' experience in practice, education, training, research, and consultancy in the UK and overseas
• Central London location – Our central London location allows you to interact with a huge variety of practitioners and organisations, as well as drawing on the city's huge range of resources; you’ll be at the heart of the debate over the future of cities
• Live-design projects – The course theory and design modules utilise London and the south east of England as an urban laboratory where projects are based on active development sites or set within current areas of change, typically experiencing development pressures or other development challenges, similar to work taking place in practice

Course climate action statement

In helping to address the climate crisis, the urban design course will focus on cities as centres of climate challenges and hubs for innovative solutions. The course will highlight the potential of urban design to shape sustainable development and resilient cities and communities through thoughtful approaches to urban form, public space, urban landscapes and urban ecologies.

Graduates of this course typically find employment as urban designers in private consultancy or local authorities. Many find the course useful when developing careers in architecture, planning or landscape architecture.

This course has a strong vocational focus with a good reputation within the industry. Employment prospects are excellent for full-time students graduating from this course. Part-time students are usually already employed and promotion and career enhancement usually follow soon after completion.

While it is more common for graduates in urban design to pursue careers in design practice, some do move on to higher study, and this course provides a good grounding for those students who have taken up research degrees.

This course will prepare you for roles such as:

• Urban designer
• Master planner
• Strategic planner
• Urban design officer
• Conservation officer
• Urban architect
• Urbanist
• Environmental planner
• Public realm designer