Urban Studies

Entry requirements

We normally require a minimum of an upper second class Honours degree or equivalent in geography or a related field. English language requirement IELTS 6.5 (with a minimum of 6.0 in each component) or Swansea University recognised equivalent.

Months of entry

January, April, July, October

Course content

The MSc by Research in Urban Studies allows you to undertake a year-long (full time) or two-year-long (part-time) individual programme of personally and professionally enriching research, supervised by our Human Geography academic staff.

Your urban studies research project will be shaped by participation in research activities such as seminars and reading groups, as well as your involvement in one of our established Human Geography research groups.

While this research programme usually finishes after a year (or two years for part-time students), it can be used to progress to the second year (full-time equivalent) of a PhD degree in Human Geography in the appropriate circumstances.

The range of our current human geographical research in urban studies includes:

Global cities
World cities
Global urban networks
Poststructuralism, actor-network theory, assemblage theory and the city
Psychoanalytic urban geographies
The political economy and cultural political economy of cities
Urban geographies of violence
Modernity, Postmodernity and the city
Alternative Urban theories
In the latest Research Excellence Framework (REF 2014) assessment of research in the UK, 95% of Geography research at Swansea was judged to be of international quality, and 60% was rated as world-leading or internationally excellent.

Geography at Swansea achieved UK Top Ten for research impact [REF 2014]
UK Top 20 for research quality [Times & Sunday Times University Guide 2019]
Top 75 in the world [51-75 (out of 200) in the new Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (GRAS) 2017]
World ranked in the top 250 [QS World University Rankings 2017]

Information for international students

Since its foundation in 1920, Swansea University has embraced opportunities to think globally. The vibrant mix of nationalities and cultures on campus greatly enriches our learning and teaching environment. We understand the type of support our international students need to help them settle into student life in a new country.

Fees and funding