Location:

Stockholm, Sweden

Program Type:

Full Degree

Degree Level:

Master

Specialty:

Urban & Landscape Design

Program Overview

Program Description:

Our approach involves in-depth explorations of urban design issues by combining five topic-based modules situated within the three studio courses. Ongoing seminar reading series and urban film studies are included in the studios. The integrated final project builds upon the previous three studios, leading to a thesis portfolio that reflects the main achievements and thinking of each student as an outcome and product of their intense, focused learning throughout the year. Furthermore, students are offered the opportunity to collaborate with some of the leading Built Environment (Urbanism) programmes in the world: ETH Zürich, CED at UC Berkeley, UCL Bartlett in London and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston. This affords students fantastic global collaborative opportunities on a wide range of real world cases. Urbanism Studies is externally supported and financed by Ax:son Johnson Foundation, as well as by KTH – Royal Institute of Technology. First semester of studies starts with the Nordic perspective in Studios work combined with the big picture on urban challenges and transformations on different scales and levels. The studio work continues with the advanced urban design studio in Sweden and Europe as well as a module extending knowledge in history and theory of urban form. The year ends up with extended training and in contemporary tools and techniques used for advanced public life studies. All courses are mandatory Study Period 1: September 1 – October 31 Studio 1: AG2186 Nordic Studio – Designing Urban Public Places 7.5 credits Module 1 – AG2135 Challenges for Metropolitan Urban Regions 7.5 credits Study Period 2: November 3 – January 19 Studio 2: AG2187 Advanced Urbanism Studio – Urban Spaces of the City - 6 credits Module 2 – AG2182 Histories and Contemporary Theories of Urban Form - Fundamentals of Urbanism 6 credits Module 3 – AG2183 Public Life Studies and Tools for Urban Analysis 3 credits Year 1 - Spring Semester The second semester starts with a mandatory International Design Studio worldwide where designing a new public realm is the focus. This is combined with modules on urban sociology and environmental psychology as well as a higher seminar course where complex issues of the public realm will be discusses. The last period of the second semester, finally, consists of individual master degree thesis project. All courses are mandatory with the possibility to take one elective course in the last term. Study Period 3: January 20 – March 20 Studio 3: AG2188 International Placemaking Studio – Rethinking the Public Realm 6 credits Module 4 – AG2184 New Urban Sociology and Environmental Psychology for Urban Design 6 credits Module 5 – AG2185 Higher Seminar in Public Places and Urban Spaces Studies 3 credits Study Period 4: March 23 – June 9 Studio 4: AG218X – Degree Project in Urban Studies, Advanced Level, 15 credits Reading Urbanisms Colloquium and Urban Film Series are fully integrated into the program studios and course modules. The final master’s thesis project work Studio (AG218X - Degree Project in Urban Studies, Advanced Level, 15 credits) is a unique composite project work synthesizing all of the results of previous course work into a final product that students can utilize as a complete portfolio of their studies in urbanism at KTH. The Capstone Project is the final Master’s thesis project. This is a unique composite work synthesising all of the results of previous studio and module course works into a final product that students can utilise as a portfolio of their one-year studies at KTH. This is a “living book” of accumulated knowledge from the beginning that will act as an advanced postgraduate theoretical, strategic and design portfolio. The thesis project also includes methodologies in urban design research, public life studies and researching the city, plus a research seminar focused on thesis preparation. The prospects on the labour market for graduates from the programme are exceptional. Employers can be found in the public sector, municipal, regional, national as well as in the private sector (architects, residential, construction and consulting) where graduates receive design, planning, formative, coordinating, investigating and acting competition tasks. Our graduates can expect to go to work for planning and design consultancies; city agencies; business and development groups; regional planning agencies; state planning agencies; private developers; non-profit community and affordable housing developers and within academia.

Additional Program Information

Accreditation:

The Program is accredited by the Swedish Council for Higher Education as all other Masters Programs at KTH - Royal Institute of Technology. Higher education in Europe is not accredited in the same way as at e.g. American universities. In Finland, Norway, and Sweden, programmes are accredited through institutional accreditation, which means that the university has the competence to start new programmes according to: the national legal framework pertaining to the type of programme offered (MA, MSc, Bsc, MSc Eng. etc.) and the university’s internal regulations and procedures. KTH Royal Institute of Technology: In accordance with the Swedish Higher Education Ordinance (Svenska Högskoleförordningen – 1993:100, chapter 6, paragraph 11a and 11b (alt by ordinance 2009:1068 and 2000:1057).

Financial Aid:

Yes

Requirements:

Specific admission requirements: A Bachelor’s degree, or equivalent, in the field of architecture (B.Arch. or M.Arch.), landscape architecture (B.L.A. or M.L.A.) and urban design and/or city planning (M.C.P., M.U.P.). In addition coursework corresponding to 20 ECTS are required either in Architecture, Physical Planning or Urban Design, and/or Landscape Architecture.