BPlan - Bachelor of Planning

BPlan

Program details

Educational Objectives

The objectives of the BPlan Program include:

Student requirements and accountabilities

Planning students' rights and responsibilities are those of all UNSW students. There are certain aspects which are particularly relevant to planning students, these include student email communication, avoidance of plagiarism, ethical research practices, on-line management of student enrolment, fieldtrips, etc.
SEE Student Requirements and Accountabilities (PDF: 61Kb) FOR DETAILS. This is not a comprehensive dossier of UNSW student rules and regulations. See the myUNSW for more comprehensive information.

Planning Courses

The Planning program is 4 years full time academic study plus 1 year full time work experience. Students have approximately 15 - 20 hours per week of formal student/staff contact with an expectation that an additional 20-30 hours each week will be devoted to classroom-generated project work, report research and preparation, and private study. Assessment varies across particular courses and is by a mix of assignments such as essays, examinations, and group projects.

Coursework done by students is often based on real issues within the community.

The program comprises a mix of different types of courses: core planning courses (at least two in any semester of any year), specialist service courses taught outside the Planning and Urban Development Program, General Education courses, and Open Electives.

Electives in the Planning Program

In addition to the General Education requirement which applies to all single degree programs across UNSW, planning students have to complete a significant number of 'elective' courses, in accordance with Faculty regulations and Program guidelines. There is considerable flexibility in your choice of electives. You can choose from the range of Faculty Electives, from courses offered in other Faculties, and even from relevant courses offered outside the University. Planning Program staff will also offer special electives from time to time, and other special projects are feasible within the elective framework. The main constraints will be timetabling, available places, pre-requisites, and approval for, and the possible costs of, options 'external' to UNSW.

With nearly 20% of academic credit to be earned in open electives, students are strongly encouraged to use elective courses to develop a minor program of study - a specialization in addition to their core planning studies. The system also allows students to undertake a wide range of educational experiences from across the University. Guidelines for elective study from 2007 are attached here (Word: 222KB). The purpose of this document is to systematically document a range of options for planning students and provide a statement of course pathways to specialist expertise in related areas, such as design, policy, environmental, and heritage studies.

Degree Rules

The degree of Bachelor of Planning is awarded at either pass or honours level after the successful completion of a minimum of 240 units of credit.

  1. To fulfill these requirements, students must complete, in accordance with the regulations for undergraduate study in the Faculty of the Built Environment:
    • 150 units of core courses
    • 48 units of work experience
    • 30 units of open electives
    • 12 units of General Education.
    The number of required units in core (and therefore elective) courses can vary from year to year if additional core courses are added to the program.
  2. The standard duration of the program is 5 years, consisting of 8 semesters of full-time study plus 2 semesters of required work experience, with each semester worth 24 units of credit.
  3. General Education courses may not be taken before a student enters Year 2 of the program.

General Education Requirement

All students are required to satisfy the University's General Education requirements by completing 12UoC. Students are only able to do a maximum of 6 UoC General Education from any one Faculty and only of 3UoC General Education from their own Faculty. Where students have received advanced standing/exemptions for General Education any remaining general education requirements must be done outside their own Faculty.

Honours

Honours are awarded in the Bachelor of Planning degree on the basis of quality of performance throughout the whole program and in accordance with current program policy. For the purpose of calculating Honours at graduation, the honours value of each course is indicated by the units of credit associated with that course. Units of Credit generally reflect the workload required of students in courses in which grades are awarded. Honours grades are Class 1, Class 2 Division 1, or Class 2 Division 2.

International Student Exchange

UNSW has established an extensive and growing number of exchange programs with universities around the world. The Faculty of the Built Environment encourages all students to consider participating in the program. Students in the BPlan program can go on exchange at any time from the end of Year 1 and earn partial or total credit for courses relevant to their planning studies. A number of American and British universities in UNSW's world wide partner network offer undergraduate planning degrees, programs and minors comparable to the BPlan. These include:

In addition to the above programs, there are many other institutions offering courses in disciplines like geography, environmental and urban studies that are comparable to those offered in the planning program or appropriate to count as electives.

Carolyn Whitten (final year 2003) did her exchange at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada and found it a rewarding cultural learning experience. Read her account... (15k pdf format)

For detailed information on course options contact the UNSWstudent International Office.