15 credits in the Urban Studies programme

The course forms part of the main field of Urban Studies, second-cycle level.

The purpose of the course is that students should develop their ability through specialisation to independently relate to current research within the main field of Urban Studies.

The course consists of independent work with a research product under qualified supervision.

The course consists of several integrated elements:

• Introductory presentations of possible student projects within the main field of Urban Studies.
• Group supervision where students comment on each other's ongoing work.
• Seminars where students present and express criticism of each other's research products.

Following successful completion of the course students should demonstrate

1. a considerable degree of specialised knowledge in certain areas of the field as well as a deepened insight into current research and development work
2. specialised methodological knowledge in the main field of Urban Studies
3. such skills as are required to participate in research and development work or autonomous employment in some other qualified capacity within the Urban Studies field
4. a further developed ability to critically, independently and creatively identify and formulate issues within the main area of Urban Studies
5. a further developed ability to critically and systematically integrate knowledge and analyse, assess and deal with complex phenomena, issues and situations even with limited information
6. the ability to plan and implement and, using appropriate methods, undertake advanced tasks within predetermined time frames and thus contribute to the formation of knowledge as well as the ability to evaluate this work
7. a further developed ability to critically, autonomously and creatively, in cooperation with social actors, identify and formulate issues in relation to contemporary urban challenges
8. a further developed ability to clearly report and discuss their conclusions and the knowledge and the arguments on which they are based in dialogue with different audiences within the framework of the international context of the program
9. a further developed ability to make assessments in the main field of Urban Studies informed by relevant disciplinary, social and ethical issues and also to demonstrate awareness of ethical aspects of research and development work
10. the ability to critically discuss the possibilities and limitations of research, its role in society and the responsibility of the individual for how it is used
11. the ability to identify the personal need for further knowledge and take responsibility for their ongoing learning.

Work formats include, in addition to individual literature studies, essay writing and the assembling of presentation material, inspiration seminars of various types, the gathering of research material, group supervision and opposition seminars.

• Written and oral presentations of research work within Urban Studies, either in the form of an essay or in the form of a realized cooperation project (10 credits) (objectives 1 – 11) (grading scale A-E, U)
• Criticism of another student's equivalent work (2.5 credits) (objectives 1 – 11) (grading scale UG)
• Active participation in group supervision, including active participation in seminars (2.5 credits) (objectives 1 – 11) (grading scale UG)

• Booth, W.C., Colomb, G.G. & Williams, J.M. (2008). The craft of research. University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
• Hart, C. (1998). Doing a literature review: Releasing the social science research imagination. Sage.
• Martin, D. & Flowerdew, R. (2013). Methods in Human Geography. A guide for students doing a research project. Taylor and Francis (e-book).
• Ward, K. (2013). Researching the City: a guide for students. Sage Publications Ltd.
• Further articles may be added (max 120 pages) which will be made available electronically.

Students are expected to autonomously search, evaluate and use literature relevant to the chosen topic.

Malmö University provides students who participate in, or who have completed a course, with the opportunity to express their opinions and describe their experiences of the course by completing a course evaluation administered by the University. The University will compile and summarise the results of course evaluations. The University will also inform participants of the results and any decisions relating to measures taken in response to the course evaluations. The results will be made available to the students (HF 1:14).

If a course is no longer offered, or has undergone significant changes, the students must be offered two opportunities for re-examination based on the syllabus that applied at the time of registration, for a period of one year after the changes have been implemented.

If a student has a Learning support decision, the examiner has the right to provide the student with an adapted test, or to allow the student to take the exam in a different format.

The syllabus is a translation of a Swedish source text