Human Geography and Planning

Human geography and planning is a degree that combines the analysis of how societies shape and are shaped by the places they inhabit with the practical discipline of planning those places for the future. Human geography examines urbanisation, migration, economic development, environmental change, and the geographies of inequality and identity, asking how the organisation of space reflects and reinforces the structure of society. Planning is the applied counterpart to that analysis, concerned with the policies, decisions, and processes through which land use, transport, housing, economic development, and the built environment are governed and shaped.

At Leeds Beckett University, this three-year full-time programme maintains strong professional links to planning practice, with many academics who have direct experience of professional planning work and guest lecturers from across the profession. A year abroad is available, giving you the opportunity to study in a different planning context and to see how other countries approach the challenges of managing land and urban development. The professional connections the programme maintains lead to opportunities for hands-on experience through participation in real-world projects and consultations, giving you practical exposure to planning issues and processes during your studies.

You will study urban and regional theory, housing and land use, transport and infrastructure, environmental planning, and the legal and policy frameworks within which planning practice operates.

Graduates are well-placed for careers in town and country planning, urban development, housing, environmental management, transport, and the public and private sectors that shape the built environment. Many pursue postgraduate study or professional accreditation to qualify as chartered planners, and the combination of social science analysis and practical planning knowledge the degree develops opens doors across a range of public policy and development roles.