Transport and Urban Planning The University of Manchester

Overview

The Transport and Urban Planning programme offered by The University of Manchester takes an integrated and cross-disciplinary approach to critically examine, understand and address the grand challenges cities and their transport systems face today and in the future. 

The programme is research-led and practice-oriented and designed to equip you with knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to make a significant contribution to tackling the global challenge of creating towns and cities with better and fairer accessibility and more equitable and sustainable mobility.

You will be exposed to the latest thinking and debates in sustainable place-making, sustainable transport and mobility and complex systems analysis, and build a solid foundation to effectively function as transport and planning practitioners in various international contexts, for public, private and third sector organisations. 

With the transdisciplinary view of transport and spatial planning, and the strong global perspective you will develop, you will be able to work in project teams dealing with complex urban systems interventions in different planning and socio-economic contexts, and at multiple scales (neighbourhood, city, regional and global). 

You will develop the ability to think critically and enact solutions to help create more sustainable, efficient, and liveable urban environments with equitable transport systems.

Career opportunities

The course prepares you for employment in professional practice in the fields of transport planning and urban planning in the UK or overseas and will provide you with the academic knowledge and professional skills for employment in the private (consultancy, development industry) and public (local authorities, development agencies) sectors.

More generally, graduates are popular with employers, particularly in consultancy, where the ability to analyse and propose policies and implement strategies is vital.

After London, Manchester hosts the largest number of planning, transport and development consultancies in the UK.

The graduates have gone on to successful careers in areas including transport planning, urban planning and design, urban and regional development policy, central and local government, real estate development, environmental management and consultancy, international development, energy and water, non-governmental organisations.

Graduate employers include:

• AECOM;

• Arup;

• Atkins;

• WSP;

• BP;

• EDF Energy;

• The Environment Agency;

• Jacobs;

• Rolls-Royce;

• Transport for Greater Manchester;

• Greater Manchester Combined Authority;

• Local Authorities across the UK;

• several other international consultancy companies and agencies.