International Programmes 2024/2025

Spatial Planning for Regions in Growing Economies (SPRING) Spatial Planning for Regions in Growing Economies (SPRING)

TU Dortmund University • Dortmund

Degree
Master of Science in Regional Development Planning and Management
In cooperation with
  • Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana
  • Ardhi University (ARU), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
  • University of the Philippines (UP), Manila, Philippines
  • Universidad Austral de Chile (UACh), Valdivia, Chile
  • Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC), São Paulo, Brazil
Teaching language
  • English
Languages

All courses are taught in English (100%). Participants have to write all assignments, reports and their Master's theses in English.

(At UACh [Chile], the lan­guage of instruction is Spanish.)

Full-time / part-time
  • full-time
Programme duration
4 semesters
Beginning
Winter semester
Additional information on beginning, duration and mode of study

SPRING is a two-year Master's programme. The first year of the pro­gramme takes place at TU Dort­mund University, followed by a second year at one of the five partner universities in Ghana, Tanzania, the Philippines, Brazil or Chile.

The lecture period for the SPRING programme at TU Dortmund University starts in general at the beginning of October with the SPRING opening ceremony and a two-day orientation phase. Students are requested to arrive in Dortmund a week in advance to take care of administrative matters.

The start of the second year will be announced by each partner university well in advance.

All courses will be held in person.

Application deadline
  • 1 October including the DAAD scholarship application for intake in the following year
  • 1 May for intake in the same year for
    • students with their own funds or confirmed scholarships
    • German or European applicants
Tuition fees per semester in EUR
Varied
Additional information on tuition fees
  • TU Dortmund: no tuition fees, but charges a service fee of 550 EUR
  • Universidade Federal do ABC: no tuition fees
  • Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology: 3,355 EUR
  • Ardhi University: 3,150 USD
  • University of the Philippines: 1,622 EUR
  • Universidad Austral de Chile: no tuition fees, but charges a service fee of 2,500 EUR
Combined Master's degree / PhD programme
No
Joint degree / double degree programme
Yes
Description/content

SPRING combines intensive training in development theories and strategies, planning concepts and methods, and implementation and monitoring tools with practice-oriented field studies aimed at elaborating regional development plans and programmes in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The programme focuses on the specific cultural and socio-economic contexts in the developing world.
SPRING places its emphasis on development management at the level between macro-regional and community-based planning.
Development planning is seen as a problem-oriented management tool with the following objectives:

  • to identify development problems, trends, resources, constraints and potentials
  • to formulate development objectives, policies and strategies
  • to design plans and programmes
  • to assess environmental impacts of plans and programmes
  • to organise target group participation and decision making processes
  • to apply instruments for programme implementation and management
  • to evaluate and monitor plans and programmes
Course organisation

The SPRING curriculum consists of 10 modules. The corresponding courses of the modules are offered as lectures, seminars, exercises, workshops and excursions.

The first year of the SPRING programme at TU Dortmund University consists of the modules one to six. Whereas the modules seven to 10 are offered by the SPRING partner universities.

First year
Module 1 Planning Approaches and Key Skills for Planning (8 CP)
Module 2 Master's project (12 CP)
Module 3 Land, Housing and Infrastructure in a Global Perspective (20 CP)
Module 4 Planning Tools (6 CP)
Module 5 Planning Theory and Governance (7 CP)
Module 6 Socio-Economic Dimensions of Urban and Regional Planning (7 CP)

Second year
Module 7 Planning and Research Methods (8 CP)
Module 8a) Policy Planning and Implementation in Ghana (9 CP)
Module 8b) Policy Planning and Implementation in the Philippines (9 CP)
Module 8c) Urban Planning and Management in Tanzania (9 CP)
Module 8d) Planning, Governance and Public Policies for Sustainability in Brazil (9 CP)
Module 8e) Policy Planning and Implementation in Chile (9 CP)
Module 9 Development Planning Workshop (18 CP)
Module 10 Master's thesis (24 CP)

Detailed Information about courses and course contents can be taken from the SPRING Module Handbook.

PDF Download
A Diploma supplement will be issued
Yes
International elements
  • Training in intercultural skills
  • Courses are led with foreign partners
  • Content-related regional focus
Special promotion / funding of the programme
  • DAAD development-related postgraduate course
Course-specific, integrated German language courses
No
Course-specific, integrated English language courses
No
Tuition fees per semester in EUR
Varied
Additional information on tuition fees
  • TU Dortmund: no tuition fees, but charges a service fee of 550 EUR
  • Universidade Federal do ABC: no tuition fees
  • Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology: 3,355 EUR
  • Ardhi University: 3,150 USD
  • University of the Philippines: 1,622 EUR
  • Universidad Austral de Chile: no tuition fees, but charges a service fee of 2,500 EUR
Semester contribution
  • TU Dortmund: 300 EUR per semester, incl. "Deutschlandticket"
  • Universidade Federal do ABC: no semester contribution
  • Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology: 1,263 EUR (administrative charges)
  • Ardhi University: 95 USD (registration/examination)
  • University of the Philippines: 1,010 EUR (registration/examination)
  • Universidad Austral de Chile: 452 EUR (matriculation/degree fee)
Costs of living

Germany: approx. 950 EUR per month
Brazil: approx. 1,135 EUR per month
Ghana: approx. 650 EUR per month
Tanzania: approx. 860 EUR per month
Philippines: approx. 800 EUR per month
Chile: approx. 750 EUR per month

Funding opportunities within the university
No
Academic admission requirements
  • Bachelor's degree or its equivalent with significantly above-average grades in either spatial planning, regional planning, urban planning, or a discipline with a planning-relevant focus
  • professional experience in a planning-related field
  • a strong commitment to further work in regional development planning is desirable
Language requirements

High proficiency in English:

  • TOEFL (TOEFL iBT: minimum score of 95): Please have your TOEFL certificate sent to the following institutional code: 8523.
  • IELTS (6.5)
Application deadline
  • 1 October including the DAAD scholarship application for intake in the following year
  • 1 May for intake in the same year for
    • students with their own funds or confirmed scholarships
    • German or European applicants
Submit application to

TU Dortmund University
Department of Spatial Planning - SPRING
August-Schmidt-Straße 6
44227 Dortmund
Germany

Further information about the application can be found here.

Possibility of finding part-time employment

Part-time employment is not advisable because the SPRING programme is a full-time study programme.

Accommodation

At all SPRING universities (except for Brazil and Chile), accommodation in student hostels on campus is organised by SPRING for all participants who have formally expressed their desire to stay in these facilities. This is organised well in advance in order to provide students with an affordable place to stay the very moment they arrive in Dortmund, Kumasi, Dar es Salaam, and Manila. Rent for a single room in a student residence is approx. 50 to 340 EUR per month, depending on the country. The universities in São Paulo and Valdivia provide special support to find accommodation via the private housing market.

Support for international students and doctoral candidates
  • Welcome event
  • Tutors
  • Accompanying programme
  • Cultural and linguistic preparation
  • Visa matters
General services and support for international students and doctoral candidates

Additional extra-curricular trainings, seminars, online seminars and events are organised on a regular basis.

SPRING is member of the AGEP Network and students therefore benefit from the various course offers of other AGEP study programmes.

TU Dortmund University

Content Bild
View of the Math Tower © TU Dortmund University

A university with a unique profile: Since its founding in 1968, TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity has developed a special profile encompassing 17 departments ranging from science and engineering to social sciences and cultural studies. The uni­ver­si­ty has more than 30,000 students and 6,500 employees, in­clu­ding 300 professors.

TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity has a strong focus on re­search. The uni­ver­si­ty’s departments, e.g. mechanical engineering (with its emphasis on production and logistics), physics, biochemical and chemical engineering, statistics and computer science, and education re­search, are well known for their outstanding re­search achievements both nationally and internationally.

Students at TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity can choose from classical subjects and in­no­va­ti­ve courses of study such as medical physics or degree programmes in spatial planning, statistics, and journalism. A particular focus is on teacher train­ing. TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity is one of only a few universities in Germany that offers professional teaching qualifications for all types of schools.

University location

With around 6,500 employees, TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity is one of Dort­mund’s largest employers and has helped drive the transformation of the city and the Ruhr region from Europe’s largest coal mining and steel production area into a high-tech and service location as well as a cultural metropolis.

Dortmund is located in the heart of Europe. It is the largest city in the Ruhr region and is home to the Borussia Dortmund (BVB) soccer club. All of this contributes to the many advantages that will make studying in Dort­mund an unforgettable experience. Apart from destinations for football fans, there are many other places of interest to discover in Dort­mund and the Ruhr region.

Of particular importance for the development of the region is the Uni­ver­sity Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr), in which TU Dort­mund Uni­ver­sity, the Uni­ver­sity of Duis­burg-Essen, and Ruhr Uni­ver­sity Bo­chum joined forces more than a decade ago. Since the founding of the UA Ruhr, the Ruhr area has developed into one of the strongest science regions in Germany.

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