Geography and Planning BA
Combining human geography with planning, this course allows you to tackle issues of environmental and social justice within the context of urban development.
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A Levels
ABB -
UCAS code
LK74 -
Duration
3 years -
Start date
September
- Course fee
- Funding available
- Optional placement year
- Study abroad
- Dual honours
Explore this course:
Course description
Why study this course?
We're the UK’s top accredited planning school for research and impact, with more than 95% of our research considered world leading or internationally excellent, according to the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.
Complete University Guide 2026

Apply the theoretical understanding of geography to the urban environment, and explore how people and places interact.
Conveniently located in the same building, the departments of Geography and Urban Studies and Planning blend their expertise to offer you a flexible, wide-ranging dual honours degree.
Combine the social, cultural and political elements of human geography with the applied, practical edge of a planning education.
Your first year will establish the foundations of your knowledge of human geography and planning. In your second year, you'll develop your understanding of economic, social and political geographies, along with the planning policies and market processes that shape our towns and countryside.
The third year will see you specialise in the modules that interest you most, culminating in your own dissertation research project.
Dual and combined honours degrees

Modules
UCAS code: LK74
Years: 2026
Core modules:
- Development, Planning and the State
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The module provides an introduction to spatial planning in theory and practice, exploring arguments for and against spatial planning and the rationale for state intervention into land and property development. You will cover key debates on the purposes of planning, the historical development of planning as a state activity and the current structure of national, regional and local government. A core function of the module is to introduce key aspects of the English planning system and key debates about its role and purpose, with reference to a range of international comparators. The module builds on these foundations to explore how spatial planning responds to a number of major societal challenges.
20 credits - Exploring Human Geographies
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The module provides an introduction to key principles, relations and processes that contribute to a diverse array of social, cultural, economic and environmental aspects of human geography. It looks at spatial patterns of power, inequality and interdependence produced by economic and cultural globalisation, how we experience these at the local scale and and how they have changed over time. It outlines key concepts and current debates shaping how human geographers approach these issues by drawing on examples from around the world and at a variety of geographical scales. It highlights the value of a geographical perspective on the world we live in.
20 credits - Cities, People and Urban Design
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Exploring and gaining an understanding of place, space and urban design at the outset of your studies will provide you with the foundation needed to interpret, analyse and practically understand cities - focusing on the city of Sheffield, its communities and its people. The module explores the fundamentals of urban design and its role in the analysis and design of space. You are introduced to some of the theories, techniques and data that planners use in their efforts to understand and create better places for people. The module will support you to develop your skills of analysis and help to equip you with applied skills to explore, make sense of, and develop spatial data/foundational drawing skills. You will be able to learn how to assess the physical, social, economic and environmental qualities of urban places as well as how to interpret and represent these spatially. You will also be able to learn the fundamentals of visual/graphical communication via professional software and posters. Teaching draws on practical examples via lectures, studio workshops, computer workshops, context-based study and site visits to gain a basic understanding and appreciation of cities and develop skills in the applied analysis of urban spaces and their design.
20 credits - The Making of Urban Places
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This module will introduce you to cities and urbanisation, from the very first settlements to contemporary metropolises, using examples throughout history from across the world. The module focuses on thinking about the role of cities within societies and civilisations throughout history, and how planning ideas and practice have developed in response. It explores the histories of urbanisation, from the earliest urban settlements to the megacities of the twentieth century, looking at how various forces have shaped cities, and the outcomes of urbanisation for cities and their populations. It highlights influential ideas which have changed our thinking about cities, looks at how urban governments and planners have sought to respond to the challenges of urbanisation, and discusses critical debates around these. The module takes a global focus, drawing on different cases and examples from around the world.
20 credits - Global Challenges
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The complex nature of global challenges illuminates the intricate connections between social justice and environmental change, revealing how these forces shape our world. This module goes beyond identifying problems, delving into how different stakeholders are actively developing solutions and driving positive transformation. The wider impact of our research varies from the local to the global, with benefits to the economy, society, culture, policy, health, the environment and quality of life. From revitalizing local communities to reducing risk to life, you will gain insights into how research can help shape more sustainable and equitable futures. This module takes a case study approach to explore different opportunities aimed at addressing complex global challenges across research and practice.
20 credits - Environment in Action
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This module will introduce you to a wide range of critical environmental issues facing the world today from physical science and social science perspectives. Drawing on a range of examples, you will critically explore the physical causes, consequences, management and solutions to environmental issues and learn how to question assumptions about environmental processes.
20 credits
Core modules:
- Urban Analytics
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This module will serve as an introduction to quantitative and spatial analytical methods, with a specific focus on understanding, interpreting and presenting secondary data in urban contexts. It will expose students to a variety of substantive issues surrounding the use of data in practice and enhance their understanding of methods used in real world policy settings. Students will access and use a range of different datasets, covering demographics, property, and land use and will analyse them using both spatial and aspatial methods. They will be required to demonstrate competence in accessing, analysing and presenting such data using both aspatial and spatial methods in order to gain a deeper understanding of key issues facing urban settings.
20 credits - Urban Theory
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At the heart of every discipline lie the ideas, concepts and frameworks that help its students and researchers to make sense of its object of study. In planning, geography and urban studies there are numerous perspectives, concepts and key thinkers who have shaped the development of these disciplines. This course introduces you to a series of key concepts and thinkers and helps them to make sense of urban life as a result.
20 credits
Urban Theory aims to develop your imaginative engagement with the nature of urban life and human settlement. Urban theory refers to writing and thinking devoted to 'seeing' and understanding urban life. Concepts and ideas are critical to how we engage with the key features and problems of the urban world, shape the process of conducting research and help us to make sense of and understand many of the key challenges in cities today. Theory is therefore critical to our understanding of how cities work in practice and how we understand and view urban life subsequently informs the development of cities and efforts to make them more socially just, sustainable and better places to live. Urban Theory introduces a range of ideas and key concepts in urban studies with a view to understanding how cities have developed and how they 'work' in broad terms. The module considers a range of thinkers, concepts and perspectives. The aims of the module are:
1. To introduce and extend your knowledge of different ways of seeing city life. This includes a wide range of perspectives, thinkers and concepts relating to urban social and political life, the economies of cities, the range of communities and groups living in cities and, their built and natural environments
2. To provide you with an armoury of critical ideas and concepts that will deepen their understanding of the fundamental power relations, inequalities and divisions that characterise cities and which structure localities, particularly in relation to questions of class, race and gender. - Planning, Viability and Development
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This module explores the real estate development process and the various influences on the viability of successful development projects. It examines the structure of real estate markets, the roles and objectives of the various stakeholders involved in real estate development, the main aspects of real estate development appraisal and the ways which planning, risk and design influence profitability. Students will work towards recommending a development proposal that offers the greatest likelihood of a successful outcome and in doing so, learn to balance the competing demands of planning, viability and real estate development.
20 credits - Human Geography Research Design and Fieldwork
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The ability to design, conduct, analyse and present meaningful findings from fieldwork is an essential part of the discipline of degree-level Human Geography These skills, as well as experience of conducting fieldwork enhance employability across diverse career choices. This module builds on your learning from 'Human Geography in the Field' in the first year, addressing the philosophical and methodological background to, and the process of, designing and conducting fieldwork. You will hear about the principles of research design and be able to develop key skills through engaging in practical experience of fieldwork. This approach facilitates your immersive learning and engagement with ethical research. The module is delivered through lectures, tutorials, problem solving sessions and a residential field class. Assessments provide ongoing feedback linked to the experience of designing, conducting and reflecting upon the research journey, culminating in a dissertation proposal.
20 credits
Optional modules:
- Urban Design and Place-Making
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Gaining an enhanced ability to understand the sequential stages of placemaking and urban design processes and their interface with planning, policy and development are crucial for any contemporary planning professional - representing core competencies in practice. The overall aim of the module is to enhance your understanding and critical appreciation of the contemporary context of urban design thought, policy and practice - focusing particularly on the role of place-making in cities. The module, through an enhanced and applied understanding of the language and techniques of urban design will explore and evaluate the contribution of design to effective place-making. The module will equip you with enhanced skills to analyse, appraise and design for urban contexts supported by professional software and drawing techniques. You will also develop awareness of the sequential stages of the design process, and develop the ability to deliver a comprehensive design/placemaking proposal supported by enhanced graphical skills for effective communication. Teaching will draw on practical examples via studio workshops, lectures, context-based study and student-led site visits to develop enhanced skills in the analysis and design of urban space.
20 credits - Culture, Space and Difference
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This research-led module introduces students to the cutting edge of Social and Cultural Geography and dovetails with the Sheffield Geography Department's Culture, Space and Difference research group. The module illustrates the diversity and vitality of contemporary social and cultural geography including some of the philosophical concepts and theoretical debates that have shaped the subject. The module aims to deepen and enrich the ways in which students are able to think about geographical issues, through a critical understanding of concepts and approaches that underpin the substance and methods of contemporary human geography. The module team work with students to develop their own 'photo essays' - which bring the ideas of the module to students' experiences from everyday life.
20 credits - Sustainable Development and Global Justice
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Development in the Global South is a major issue of international concern in the 21st century. This module explores contemporary development issues and examines the contribution that geographers, and geographical thought, can make towards understanding inequality, poverty and socio-economic change. Definitions of 'development', 'poverty' and 'the poor' shift and are invested with political meaning which reflect specific geographies and ways of seeing the world: students develop critical understandings of such terminology and the power dynamics implicit within them. This module addresses diverse theories, paradigms and contemporary critiques of development, and explores some of the central issues affecting processes of development. Case examples are drawn from Latin America, Africa and South-East Asia.
20 credits - Housing and Home
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Housing and homes are the foundation on which we build our lives. Housing is a unique good which enables access to other services, opportunities, and the pursuit of a whole range of aspirations. It affects access to employment, the quality of air you breathe, proximity to green space, and family formation, as well as often playing an important role in the formation and expression of identities. Housing is deeply spatial and access is spatially uneven.
20 credits
Housing is also fundamentally linked to the idea of home. In our daily lives - in particular places and alongside other people - we can develop a sense of home or feeling comfortable. Just as home can be made or constructed through particular practices, it can also be unmade or undone. Home can become harmful, threatened, associated with unsafety, or lost via insecurity and eviction. In this module we will develop a critical appreciation of housing and home, questioning some of the taken for granted assumptions that are often prominent in public debates.
The module focuses on contemporary issues related to housing and home, whilst enabling you to develop an historicised and spatialised understanding which recognises complexity and nuance. You will be able to learn from a wide range of case studies, from the UK and globally, to think about provision and access to housing, everyday experiences of home in a changing world, and alternatives. This will be situated within a broader understanding of the role of social, economic and political processes in housing systems, and the ways in which the housing system renders spatial patterns of social difference within society. You will have opportunities to engage with the logics and rationales that underpin the operation of contemporary housing systems, considering the processes underpinning increasing inequalities in people's ability to access housing and make a home. We will engage widely with housing studies, an interdisciplinary area which spans fields such as geography, sociology, history, and urban studies.
Core ideas and cases - of people and places - will be discussed in lectures, further developed through interactive workshops and supported group discussions. In the module you will have the opportunity to critically reflect on what home means to you, and apply learning from academic and policy debates to your own life and the world around you. The module will enable you to understand housing in different contexts, as well as identify the commonalities in experiences that are sometimes more hidden. As part of the assessment, you will have an opportunity to focus on an area which is of most interest to you, developing your independence and self-directed learning. - Who Gets What? Social Justice and the Environment
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Environmental issues continue to be a key area of contemporary public concern and current political debate. They raise fundamental questions about the relationship between society and environment, and the politics and equity of that relationship. This module provides a geographical introduction to these issues and debates with examples from a range of scales from the global to the local. It also considers the role of stakeholders and how they benefit or are disadvantaged by policy that seeks to address issues to do with the environment-society relationship. The module then develops these core ideas through inter-related sections covering debates focused on different empirical themes.
20 credits
Particular skills will be achieved including: policy analysis, ethical awareness, positive mindset, global awareness and self-awareness. - Urban Culture and Conflict: The Making of Modern Cities
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Cities are sites of social conflict and cultural production. The links between these two facets of modern urban experience have long fascinated scholars seeking to understand the cultural history of the urban imagination. In this module you will explore different ways artists, intellectuals, political activists, ordinary people and other thinkers have sought to understand and explain various experiences of and conflicts over urban life. You will learn to situate the relationships between sensory perceptions, aesthetic judgments and power relations in their own place and time. This module will draw from historical, cultural, social, and political geographies as well as other disciplines to engage with the shifting nature and spatiality of these relationships through case studies of selected cities, the particular changes in urban culture they occasioned, contemporary responses to those changes, and the theoretical debates they inspired. Key topics will include urban form and architecture, cultural difference and social inequality, representational practices and bodily experiences, and the overall consciousness of change in cities over the past two centuries.
20 credits - Cities, Violence and Security
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Urban violence, insecurity and crime are features of the everyday and crisis moments of city life in many nations around the world. Warfare touches life in many cities today, questions of narco-terror and violence affect many others. Meanwhile, the role of the climate emergency in driving migration and instability, forms of economic crisis and precarity, alongside other forms of disturbance lead to forms of injustice, violence and victimisation. The course seeks to develop student understanding of the political, economic and social drivers of human insecurity in urban settings.
20 credits
This course has been designed to develop student's engagement with and responses to multiple forms of urban insecurity. It discusses the diverse kinds of responses to insecurity by states, armies, police and citizens, many of which bring further rounds of insecurity and violence to marginalised and excluded populations.
The primary aim of the course is to find answers to the question: how can peace and security be enjoyed by all citizens in cities around the world today?
Cities, Violence and Security introduces students to a range of examples of violence, conflict and insecurity in urban contexts around the world. The course develops awareness of the programs and policies being pursued to make better and safer places. Examples of urban violence and crime, policing, forced evictions, domestic violence, terrorism, gangs and the rise of gated communities and other modes of design and control to produce securitised urban spaces are discussed and analysed in their effectiveness.
The aims of the course are:
1. To develop students' awareness of the political, social and economic context in which urban violence and insecurity are embedded in different global contexts
2. To develop students' understanding of core debates relating to urban insecurity in both the global North and South
3. To develop students' critical understanding of the role of these debates in informing policies and initiatives to try and reduce violence and insecurity in cities - Territory, Power and Policy
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The module introduces you to contemporary debates within political geography. You will develop a detailed understanding of political processes at a variety of spatial scales, from the international, national to the local, from collective politics to individual political behaviour. You will explore questions of power, efficacy and conflict with an emphasis on the spatial and place-specific aspects of politics in relation to issues including: geopolitics and international relations; the state and territoriality; the politics of nationalism and citizenship; civic activism; and individual political participation.
20 credits
Core modules:
- Dissertation for Geography and Environmental Science
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This module requires the student to prepare, organise, research and report a piece of original work on a geographical topic under guidance by a staff mentor. The student will decide on the topic and will either be expected to collect original material in order to investigate it, or to perform secondary analysis on information drawn from existing sources. The finished product is presented in the style, and at the length, associated with academic journal articles.
40 credits - Future Cities
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This module will introduce students to conceptual and policy debates that frame possible urban futures. It will develop students' understanding of the emerging contemporary practices and challenges that are transforming cities, such as smart cities, fantasy urban planning, eco-cities, cities and technology and cities and the super rich. It will also expose students to a range of case studies that present urban issues and processes from both the Global North and the Global South.
20 credits - Environmental Justice at a Time of Crisis
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This module works with critical debates and approaches in Environmental Geographies to help understand a range of environmental crises (climate change, sustainability, waste and pollution, biodiversity loss/conservation, extinction) in front of us. The module will examine histories, causes and solutions for these environmental crises while drawing connections between global South and North.
20 credits
We will cover a range of scales and actors from individual behaviours to community actions, and work of local bodies and global organisations and negotiations.
The module will leverage conceptual and political tools provided by environmental geographies to ask how we could tackle these multiple and co-constituted crises in socially just ways.
Optional modules:
- Planning Law
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The nature of planning activity and its outcomes are underpinned by legal frameworks, procedures and case law decisions. These legal frameworks are intended to ensure clarity and fairness in the exercise of planning powers. They also change over time to reflect changing circumstances and government priorities.
20 credits
The following module explores the role and underlying values of law and policy in the English planning system within an international context. Core themes include:
- the discretionary basis of UK planning
- the definition of development
- the legal process for undertaking planning decisions,
- processes of planning appeal
- the changing status of development plans
- the role of enforcement.
The module will also explore examples where contemporary policy is shaped by legal decisions and the scope for flexibility in working within established legal frameworks.
Overall the module will provide students with a thorough understanding of the procedures for controlling development through planning. - Housing and Urban Inequalities
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The aims of this module are to build on substantive knowledge, theory and skills about housing. Emphasis is placed on policy, practice, strategy analysis and understanding the links between housing, planning, social policies and outcomes at national, regional and local levels. The module further aims to: increase understanding of contemporary issues and debates in housing and housing policy and strategies; understand the causes and manifestations of problems, dilemmas and conflicts in housing systems and policy processes; and to develop abilities to synthesise and apply knowledge by understanding and critically assessing potential policy approaches to addressing housing problems.
20 credits - Urban Infrastructures and Place-Making
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Infrastructure is a core component of cities, enabling economic, social and environmental elements of urban life to circulate and be drawn together or separated. In this module, you will learn about the importance of infrastructure to cities. The focus will be global, with an emphasis on understanding the politics of infrastructure development, how infrastructure projects can exacerbate or address inequalities, and the role of planners in envisioning, delivering and managing infrastructure. The module will start with a wide definition of infrastructures, which will include physical transport, energy, and water networks, but also focus on social and more localised infrastructures and their impacts on urban communities.
20 credits
The module will enable you to critically appraise technical approaches to infrastructure as well as developing knowledge of their social bases and cultural meanings. Through the module you will be able to develop knowledge of the ways in which planning deals with infrastructure and examine alternative means of conceiving and delivering infrastructure through planning policies and decisions.
Through a series of case studies, you will have opportunities to engage with a range of infrastructure projects and programmes enabling you to understand how they came about, the underlying planning processes that shaped them, their outcomes and who wins and loses from them. - Challenging Development
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The aim of this module is to critically examine the development process within a global context, drawing on examples from developed and developing nations, to understand the local global nexus. Attention is given to the different ways in which sustainable 'development' is defined, and how we can decolonise development reflecting more critically on our position, and the power relations within this process. Drawing on debates within development geography, and other disciplines, the course is structured around two themes: current global crises and how these affect us all but differently across the globe; and development interventions which aim to tackle global crises globally and locally. Topics covered may include: neoliberalism and its relation to the financial crises, the environmental crises, and its root causes, populism and the rise of inequalities, sustainable development goals, alternatives to development, the pros and cons of the use of technology.
20 credits - Urban Exploration
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This module offers students a chance to explore urban geographies from new angles, which emphasise creative, experimental and subversive ways of seeing and doing geography. Through readings and seminars, students will be exposed to experimental fieldwork ideas and methods. This module will include a residential fieldclass in a UK city, during which time students will conduct individual fieldwork projects, whilst also engaging with fieldwork collectively.
20 credits
To attend this field class you will need to select this module by the end of the first Add/Drop period in Semester 1 (i.e., by the end of Week 2). After this point we will close the module to new students, and if you Drop this module at a later date, you might be subject to any cancellation fee we incur. - Creative Geographies: Media, Imaginaries and Politics
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Place, in all its forms, has long inspired creativity, while the works that result are themselves inherently spatial. This module will explore work from several historical and contemporary creative movements and associated cultural producers in context. Why did their work arise where it did? What difference did that place (or places) make to their aesthetic thought and expression? How was space itself integral to their creative work? This module will guide students through the intricate relationship between art across various media, geography, and the political. Emphasis will be put on specific types of space and place as sites and mediums of aesthetic thought and creative practice. Core themes will include identity, place and displacement, historical imaginations and the built environment, and creativity and socio-spatial transformation.
20 credits - Democracy and Citizenship: Dilemmas and Tensions
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This module explores how a geographical approach helps us to analyse issues such as controversial election results, divisive immigration policies, and contentious social activism. The two key concepts of democracy and citizenship are used to engage with contemporary debates and theories to draw out the links between geography, policy and society, and the ways in which these are shaped and responded to by citizens, communities, civil society, and political parties. The module emphasises the critical appraisal and interpretation of a variety of perspectives - including our own. Particular attention is paid to the ways in which these interactions are played out across and through multiple scales, from the global to our everyday lives.
20 credits
The content of our courses is reviewed annually to make sure it's up-to-date and relevant. Individual modules are occasionally updated or withdrawn. This is in response to discoveries through our world-leading research; funding changes; professional accreditation requirements; student or employer feedback; outcomes of reviews; and variations in staff or student numbers. In the event of any change we will inform students and take reasonable steps to minimise disruption.
Learning and assessment
Learning
You'll learn through a combination of lectures, seminars, and practice-based and fieldwork activities.
In order to help you develop the practical skills you will need as an urban professional, we typically offer a core field class in your second year. You will also have the option to spend a part of your degree studying at one of our overseas partner universities.
All our teaching is research-led. Our teaching staff are world-leading researchers and experts in their field: in the latest Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021), the Department of Urban Studies and Planning was ranked as the #1 RTPI-accredited planning school in the UK.
Our expertise ranges from UK and international planning to real estate, geographical information systems (GIS) and global urban development.
Assessment
You will be assessed through a combination of coursework and exams. The proportions of these will vary depending on the modules you choose.
Coursework may include essays and reports, policy briefs, case studies, proposed planning interventions and visual media such as academic posters and design portfolios.
Our diverse range of assessments ensures that you develop transferable skills and attributes that are prized by employers.
As a graduate you will be able to confidently and creatively interpret, present and communicate complex information to a variety of audiences.
Entry requirements
With Access Sheffield, you could qualify for additional consideration or an alternative offer - find out if you're eligible.
The A Level entry requirements for this course are:
ABB
- A Levels + a fourth Level 3 qualification
- BBB + B in a social science related EPQ; BBB + B in Core Maths
- International Baccalaureate
- 33; 32, with B in a social-science based extended essay
- BTEC Extended Diploma
- DDD in a relevant subject
- BTEC Diploma
- DD + B at A Level
- Scottish Highers
- AAABB
- Welsh Baccalaureate + 2 A Levels
- B + AB
- Access to HE Diploma
- The award of the Access to HE Diploma in a relevant subject, with 45 credits at Level 3, including 30 at Distinction and 15 at Merit
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GCSE Maths grade 4/C
The A Level entry requirements for this course are:
BBB
- A Levels + a fourth Level 3 qualification
- BBB + B in a social science related EPQ; BBB + B in Core Maths
- International Baccalaureate
- 32
- BTEC Extended Diploma
- DDM in a relevant subject
- BTEC Diploma
- DD + B at A Level
- Scottish Highers
- AABBB
- Welsh Baccalaureate + 2 A Levels
- B + BB
- Access to HE Diploma
- The award of the Access to HE Diploma in a relevant subject, with 45 credits at Level 3, including 24 at Distinction and 21 at Merit
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GCSE Maths grade 4/C
You must demonstrate that your English is good enough for you to successfully complete your course. For this course we require: GCSE English Language at grade 4/C; IELTS grade of 6.5 with a minimum of 6.0 in each component; or an alternative acceptable English language qualification
Equivalent English language qualifications
Visa and immigration requirements
Other qualifications | UK and EU/international
If you have any questions about entry requirements, please contact the school/department.
Graduate careers
School of Geography and Planning
A dedicated Professional Skills module will help develop your career plans and can support you in finding work experience and completing a placement year, which will help you gain practical experience in the workplace.
Most of our graduates go on to work in planning or a related career in the built environment professions, including housing, transport planning, real estate, development control, forward planning, regeneration, urban design, heritage and conservation.
Recent graduates have gone on to work for public and private sector organisations such as AECOM, Arup, CBRE, Deloitte, Harrow London Borough Council, Sheffield City Council, Leicester City Council, North Somerset Council, and the Peak District National Park Authority. More than half of our graduate planners take up posts with planning consultancies and several are employed by major global built environment firms.
Our alumni frequently return to the school to give talks on cutting-edge planning topics. Several alumni sit on our Liaison Board, ensuring our courses are in tune with the needs of employers. Many alumni work at organisations which can offer work placements, or deliver guest lectures within our modules and attend other events.
School of Geography and Planning

We have an intellectual reputation for theoretical strength, especially in the fields of urban inequalities and social justice. Study with us and become part of a new and exciting group of urban professionals and change makers.
As a student at Sheffield, you'll develop the knowledge and skills to build a successful career in planning and related urban and environmental professions. You'll be taught by world-leading academics whose cutting-edge research feeds directly into the seminar room. You'll learn using the latest technology in our dedicated teaching spaces; visualising complex data through Geographical Information Systems (GIS) software and using virtual and augmented reality to explore how people interact with urban spaces.
You'll be at the heart of a vibrant academic community and will benefit from an excellent staff-student ratio, resulting in a genuinely friendly and inclusive academic environment. Our open-door policy means you can drop in on your lecturers at any time during their office hours, without an appointment. We believe this will help with your wellbeing and encourage your intellectual curiosity.
We work with national governments, international bodies such as the UN, research councils, private business, the voluntary sector, and local communities to shape policy and inspire change in urban environments. Join us to explore the pathways to creating fair, just and sustainable places.
While studying with us, your home will be our award-winning building which sits in the beautiful surroundings of Weston Park, alongside one of the main University libraries.
Facilities
Urban studies and planning students at Sheffield enjoy exclusive access to their own flexible study space, including high-spec networked computers with the latest specialist design and mapping software.
You'll be able to access course-related software such as geographic information systems (GIS), as well as cutting edge facilities including our virtual reality (VR) studio.
University rankings
( A world top-100 university
QS World University Rankings 2026 (92nd) and Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2025 (98th)
Number one in the Russell Group (based on aggregate responses)
National Student Survey 2025
92 per cent of our research is rated as world-leading or internationally excellent
Research Excellence Framework 2021
University of the Year and best for Student Life
Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2024
Number one Students' Union in the UK
Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2024, 2023, 2022, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017
Number one for Students' Union
StudentCrowd 2024 University Awards
A top 20 university targeted by employers
The Graduate Market in 2024, High Fliers report
Student profiles
Fees and funding
Fees
Additional costs
The annual fee for your course includes a number of items in addition to your tuition. If an item or activity is classed as a compulsory element for your course, it will normally be included in your tuition fee. There are also other costs which you may need to consider.
Funding your study
Depending on your circumstances, you may qualify for a bursary, scholarship or loan to help fund your study and enhance your learning experience.
Use our Student Funding Calculator to work out what you’re eligible for.
Placements and study abroad
Placement
Study abroad
Visit
University open days
We host five open days each year, usually in June, July, September, October and November. You can talk to staff and students, tour the campus and see inside the accommodation.
Subject tasters
If you’re considering your post-16 options, our interactive subject tasters are for you. There are a wide range of subjects to choose from and you can attend sessions online or on campus.
Offer holder days
If you've received an offer to study with us, we'll invite you to one of our offer holder days, which take place between February and April. These open days have a strong school focus and give you the chance to really explore student life here, even if you've visited us before.
Campus tours
Our weekly guided tours show you what Sheffield has to offer - both on campus and beyond. You can extend your visit with tours of our city, accommodation or sport facilities.
Events for mature students
Mature students can apply directly to our courses. We also offer degrees with a foundation year for mature students who are returning to education. We'd love to meet you at one of our events, open days, taster workshops or other events.
Apply
The awarding body for this course is the University of Sheffield.
Recognition of professional qualifications: from 1 January 2021, in order to have any UK professional qualifications recognised for work in an EU country across a number of regulated and other professions you need to apply to the host country for recognition. Read information from the UK government and the EU Regulated Professions Database.
Any supervisors and research areas listed are indicative and may change before the start of the course.