Human Geography and Planning with a Professional Placement Year
Human geography and planning is a discipline that bridges the scientific study of how people, communities, and activities are distributed across space and the applied professional practice of shaping that distribution through planning policy and urban design. Human geography asks why places look the way they do, why inequalities persist between regions and communities, how globalisation reshapes urban and rural landscapes, and how social, economic, and environmental forces interact to produce the geography of everyday life. Planning translates that understanding into action, using policy tools, regulatory frameworks, and design processes to guide how land is used, infrastructure is provided, and communities develop.
At Cardiff University, this three-year full-time programme includes a professional placement year, giving you sustained experience working alongside practising planners in local authorities, consultancies, development agencies, or infrastructure organisations before completing your final year. The programme is accredited by the Royal Town Planning Institute, which is significant: it means the degree is a recognised qualification for entry into the planning profession and exempts graduates from the academic component of RTPI membership. You will study geographical theory, urban and regional planning, housing policy, environmental planning, development management, and research methods, developing the analytical and practical skills that professional planners use every day.
A typical entry tariff of 120 points makes the programme accessible.
Graduates move into roles as planners in local authorities, planning consultancies, housebuilders, transport authorities, and national government. RTPI accreditation provides a clear and direct professional pathway. Others move into adjacent roles in property development, urban regeneration, environmental consultancy, and community development.
Further study is available for those who want to develop research skills or specialise in areas such as housing policy, transport planning, or environmental assessment.