Professional and International Recognition

Since 2008, the M.Plan course has had continuous professional accreditation from the Royal Town Planning Institute (London) and the Irish Planning Institute (Dublin). These rigorous validation exercises ensure that the course meets the highest international standards and that it is well aligned with the needs of the profession – and of employers – and with the contemporary challenges of place-making and sustainable development.

Accreditation from the Irish Planning Institute (IPI) is achieved through a detailed inspection process of the school (including input from students) every five years. The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) accreditation process is based on a partnership model which involves a Partnership Board appraisal (which also includes students) every Spring.
Accreditation from the RTPI allows graduates to achieve the title ‘Chartered Town Planner’ which is widely recognised internationally as a professional standard and many of our graduates have found work across the globe. Corporate membership of the IPI conveys similar status particularly as the Institute is part of the ECTP- CEU (the Conseil europeén des urbanistes / European Council of Spatial Planners)

M.Plan students are regular winners of educational prizes sponsored by the Irish Planning Institute, The Royal Town Planning Institute, the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA), the Association of European Schools of Planning (AESOP) and, at special presentations in Brussels, the ECTP.

Through the M.Plan programme UCC is also a member of the Association of European Schools of Planning (AESOP), the International Society of City and Regional Planners (ISOCARP) and the Planning Schools Forum (PSF).