Master in Urban planning and design

Master in Urban planning and design

Transformative urban studies

Presentation and goals

The TRUST programme aims to prepare for the profession of urban planner in France and internationally and to provide students interested in urban issues with both the theoretical and the empirical tools necessary for understanding and implementing transformative urban strategies.
Transformative approaches ambition to trigger and support, in the territories, the processes of change with which the systemic economic, social, political, and ecological crises of our planet confront us. These transformations imply a change in practices in urban planning and public policies, as well as a renewal of the roles of public, private, associative, and citizen actors.
Benefiting from a large network of partners, the Master allows you to work in immersion in different geographical contexts: in France, in cities of Western Europe and Central and Eastern Europe, in Tunisia, or other non-European contexts. This cooperation with the actors involved in the making of the cities and the territories allows students to confront current issues from a professional situation and to follow the permanent adaptation of urban professions to international economic, ecological, and political major changes.

The TRUST Master's programme aims to:
- provide students with tools to understand urban transitions and transformations on a global scale and to implement transformative urban strategies in different geographic contexts,
- enable students to acquire a solid culture of the city and to master the technical tools necessary for the analysis of local contexts and the management of complex projects,
- train students to be capable of transcending urban-rural and North-South divides to better understand and act in the face of the complexity of contemporary urban production,
- promote autonomy and adaptation to different international contexts, through immersive learning experiences and the promotion of bilingualism and multilingualism,
- train students to develop and articulate theoretical and practical skills, oriented at the same time towards professional practice in the fields of urban planning, towards development and international cooperation, and also towards research.

Organization

The first year (M1) can be done only in initial training (FI).
For the second year (M2), two options are planned: FI (around 20 students) and block release training (around 15 students). The block release training program provides for one week of courses at the IUGA followed by three weeks within the framework of a company or a public authority. The block release training program can be organized in the form of a work-study internship, an apprenticeship, or a professionalization contract. The M2 is also open to students in continuing education (FC).

Presentation

Presentation

Further information

The TRUST course is an international course that benefits from a large network of partners in the professional world of urban and territorial development, as well as in the academic and research world. Among its partners are public and institutional actors, international organizations, associations, NGOs, and citizen groups who are involved in the choice of themes and areas of study, particularly within the framework of project workshops: in France, Western Europe (Barcelona, Rome), Central and Eastern Europe (Poland, Romania), Maghreb (Tunisia), etc.

International dimension :

Internationally-oriented programmes

The TRUST programme is international both in its content and in its organization. It is taught in French and English and promotes reflection around multilingualism, focuses on international themes, and aims to offer students openness to the international scale: international workshops, mix of French and foreign audiences, possibility of carrying out an internship in a country other than the student’s home country for the Master 2 (FI). In the second year, the course integrates students who have completed a first year of the MSc "International Cooperation in urban development" at TU Darmstadt, as part of the Mundus Urbano consortium, which allows them to obtain a double degree.

Partnerships:
Partner schools
Partner laboratories

Programme

Programme

 

The TRUST course is bilingual (French - English). The first year is almost exclusively taught in French, while the second year, labelled "International Master" by the UGA, is mainly taught in English.

Master 1st year

Master 2nd year

Practica, projects, and missions

An internship of at least 3 to 5 months is compulsory in the second year of the Master for the initial training (FI).

Open to apprenticeship

Registration and scholarships

Registration and scholarships

Access condition

To those interested in initial training:
- Access to the 1st year: open, subject to consideration of the student’s academic record, to candidates holding a national diploma conferring the degree of license in a field compatible with that of the master
- Access to the 2nd year: open, subject to consideration of the student’s academic record, to candidates holding a first year of a master's degree in a compatible field

To those interested in continuing education: You are part of continuing education
- if you resume your studies after 2 years of interruption of studies
- or if you were following training under the continuing education regime in one of the previous 2 years
- or if you are an employee, job seeker, self-employed person.

If you do not have the diploma required to integrate the training, you can undertake a validation of personal and professional achievements (VAPP)

For more information, see the web page of the Continuing Education and Apprenticeship Department.

Consult the rates that apply to the continuing education public (lien : https://www.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr/consulter-nos-tarifs/)

Candidature / Application

If you wish to apply for one of our training courses, please consult the admission procedures according to your profile:

  • Candidates from outside the European Union whose country of residence falls under the "Studies in France (PEF)" system must apply on the "Studies in France" application only.

Prerequisites

Language prerequisites:
- M1: C1 in French and B2 in English
- M2 in initial training (internship): B1 in French and C1 in English
- M2 in block release training: C1 in French and B2 in English

Target group

Students who have obtained a Bachelor's degree (bac + 3 min.) in a discipline of social sciences (urban planning, planning, geography, sociology, economy, history, law, political science) or even, in architecture, with an interest in social sciences.
Applicants must demonstrate an interest in urban issues and international urban planning, urban transitions, and urban transformations.

And after

And after

Further studies

Students interested in pursuing research will be supported in the construction of a doctoral thesis project during the 2nd year of the Master and will be able to participate in research activities of the Master’s partner laboratories. These students will be oriented to an internship and a research thesis.

Sectors of activity

The diploma is recognized by APEREAU (Association pour la Promotion de l'Enseignement et de la Recherche en Aménagement et Urbanisme) and it gives the right of registration on the list of the OPQU (Professional Office of Qualification of Urban Planners), which brings qualification after two years of practice. In addition to jobs in the field of urban planning within design offices, local authorities, development, consultancy and expertise companies, social housing organizations, etc., graduates can find their way towards the professions of international cooperation and development, in government structures and agencies, international organizations, NGOs, etc. Finally, some of the graduates can find their way into research and teaching.

Professions

The jobs ultimately targeted are those of studies manager, project manager, consultant, responsible for the implementation of international cooperation actions, project management assistant, researcher, etc.

Vocational placement

Find all the information concerning the success rate and the future of our graduates (lien : https://www.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr/formation/devenir-de-nos-diplomes/)

 

It is also possible to consult our resource documents from education to employment classified by training field (lien : https://prose.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr/metiers-secteurs/)