Master in Urban Studies
Malmö, Sweden
Master degree
DURATION
2 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Jan 2027
TUITION FEES
SEK 255,000
STUDY FORMAT
* this is the deadline for national round. Non-EU/EEA students who require a residence permit should apply during international admissions round opening mid-October 2026.
Key Summary
About: Malmö University's Master in Urban Studies examines urbanization and urban spaces from interdisciplinary perspectives. The two-year programme has a research basis and courses on social and spatial processes, participatory methods and planning. Year one covers the field, global urban challenges, everyday life–city relations, and an independent project. Year two includes 30 credits of electives or exchange, ending with a 30-credit master's thesis.
Career Outcomes: It prepares you to work across organization boundaries. Expect career opportunities as researcher, coordinator, or project leader in public authorities, companies, and organizations focused on cities and regions. It also supports progression to PhD study.
The programme engages with current intellectual and political concerns about urbanisation and urban spaces from international and interdisciplinary perspectives. Situated in core debates around these issues, the programme responds to current demands for training informed urban researchers and practitioners able to address urban challenges and potentials. It has a strong research basis, and courses provide several novel and exciting dimensions.
In the first year, students will acquire an overview of the field of urban studies and its development. Students will then deepen their knowledge of current urban challenges from a global perspective as well as the growth of different urban conditions and forms. After this, students will hone their ability to investigate the relation between people's everyday lives and the physical forms of the city. At the end of the first year, an independent project is conducted.
During the second year, students will take elective courses amounting to 30 credits. To complete this part of the programme, students can choose to do an international exchange at one of Malmö University's partner universities or take elective courses at the Department of Urban Studies. The second year concludes with a master's thesis (30 credits).
The programme aims to deepen students' knowledge of urban studies, preparing them to participate in research or qualified urban development investigations. It is aimed at those genuinely interested in cities, urban life, and all expressions of urbanity. The way that methods and skills are taught in the programme makes the curriculum particularly suited for students who dare to explore and experiment.
The necessity of urban studies
Working with urban development has increasingly come to require an understanding of social and spatial processes, rather than viewing the city as a static physical entity. Urban studies provide an understanding of contemporary urban development, planning, and management strategies, based on broad and advanced expertise. This is important since projects that consciously deal with time, experiments, and development processes question the results of planning in the form of specific products and thus leave more space for spontaneity and creativity. Furthermore, participatory processes involving wider and alternate groups in society open up possibilities for deepening democracy and increasing equality, not least by making use of everyday users' experiences.
Forms of teaching and academic structure
Theoretical studies are alternated with empirical field studies, conducted independently or in groups.
The programme is based on active student learning, and students are expected to contribute creatively and enthusiastically. Your urbanity experience, from everyday use to academic studies, forms an important starting point for the programme. You will present, comment, and discuss your work and be the critic of your fellow students' work. You will — both independently and in groups — carry out studies of environments and contexts in the city and the region. You will present results in the form of texts, illustrations, oral presentations, sketches, maps, and suggestions for concrete designs.
The programme is structured around core training in theory, methods, and urban issues through common courses during the first year. Options in the third semester then allow students to choose either a route that connects more with practitioners, through relevant courses that address forms of practice, or one that provides experience of academic research through acting as an intern with a current project at the university. The fourth term will be devoted to essay writing and seminars on essay topics chosen by students.
Organisation
The aim of the programme is for students to deepen their knowledge of urban studies, preparing them to participate in research or qualified urban development investigations.
In the first year, students will acquire an overview of the field of urban studies and its development. Students will then deepen their knowledge about current urban challenges from a global perspective and the growth of different urban conditions and forms. After this, students will hone their ability to critically examine and describe encounters between people's everyday lives and the physical forms of the city. At the end of the first year, an independent project is conducted.
During the second year, students take elective courses amounting to 30 credits. To complete this part of the programme, students can choose to do exchange studies at one of Malmö University's partner universities or take elective courses at the Department of Urban Studies at Malmö University. The second year concludes with a master's thesis (30 credits).
Contents
Autumn 2025 - Semester 1
- Urban Studies: The Field of Urban Studies (US610E), 15 credits, compulsory
- Urban Studies: The Urban Question (US620E), 15 credits, compulsory
Spring 2026 - Semester 2
- Urban Studies: Catching Urbanity (US630E), 15 credits, compulsory
- Urban Studies: Making Urban Studies (US640E), 15 credits, compulsory
Spring 2027 - Semester 4
- Urban Studies: Master's (Two-Year) Thesis (US660E), 30 credits, compulsory
Comment
Semester 3: Students may choose to take courses at Malmö University or another university in Sweden or abroad (i.e. exchange studies). The Department of Urban Studies will offer a few elective courses. These will be made available during semester 2 in time for application. There will be a possibility for a research internship.
Knowledge and understanding
To receive a master's degree in Urban Studies, the student shall:
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding in the main field of study (urban studies), including both broad knowledge of the field and a considerable degree of specialised knowledge in certain areas of the field, as well as insight into current research and development work.
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the global challenges associated with urban development.
- Demonstrate specialised methodological knowledge in the main field of study (urban studies).
Competence and skills
To receive a master's degree in Urban Studies, the student shall:
- Demonstrate the ability to critically, autonomously, and creatively identify and formulate research questions in the main field of study (urban studies).
- Demonstrate the ability to critically and systematically integrate knowledge, and analyse, assess, and deal with complex phenomena, issues, and situations even with limited information.
- Demonstrate the ability to identify and formulate issues critically, autonomously, and creatively as well as to plan and, using appropriate methods, undertake advanced tasks within predetermined time frames, thereby contributing to the formation of knowledge as well as developing the ability to evaluate this work.
- Demonstrate the ability to critically, autonomously, and creatively, together with others, identify and formulate issues about current urban challenges.
- Demonstrate the ability, both nationally and internationally, to report and discuss their conclusions and the knowledge and arguments on which these conclusions are based, in dialogue with different audiences both orally and in writing.
- Demonstrate the skills required for participation in research and development work or autonomous employment in another qualified capacity.
Judgment and approach
To receive a master's degree in Urban Studies, the student shall:
- Demonstrate the ability to make assessments in the main field of study (urban studies) informed by relevant disciplinary, social, and ethical issues, and demonstrate awareness of ethical aspects of research and development work.
- Demonstrate insight into the possibilities and limitations of research, its role in society, and the responsibility of the individual for how it is used.
- Demonstrate the ability to identify personal needs for further knowledge and take responsibility for their ongoing learning.
After completing your education, you can work across organization boundaries with management and coordination of city development. This may involve working on projects and processes with tasks spanning across different sectors in public authorities and companies, for instance, as a researcher, coordinator, and project leader. Your future employers may be found in businesses, public authorities, and organisations working with aspects of buildings, cities, and regions.
The master’s programme also provides a solid basis for PhD studies.