Master of Planning and Management of Natural Hazards
Online
DURATION
1 up to 6 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline
EARLIEST START DATE
Oct 2024
TUITION FEES
AUD 30,200 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
Distance Learning, On-Campus
* international students fees. contact the university for domestic students tuition fees
Introduction
Natural hazards like bushfires, floods, cyclones and pandemics can cause social and economic disaster in any city or region across the globe. UNE’s Master of Planning and Management of Natural Hazards offers a multidisciplinary, high-level exploration of natural hazards — through coursework and your supervised dissertation — to prepare leaders in the field of hazard mitigation and disaster reduction. You will learn advanced skills for researching and responding to natural hazards, the disasters they cause, the contexts in which they occur, and methods of disaster reduction. You will build critical-thinking and problem-solving capacities through robust coursework and guided, independent research. These skills are in demand across a range of professions and will help you become future fit for a career in planning and hazard management.
Why study the Master of Planning and Management of Natural Hazards with UNE?
Gain expertise in the field of natural hazard mitigation, in Australian and international contexts, at a time when skills in disaster reduction are particularly vital. Through a comprehensive coursework program plus your supervised dissertation, you will gain practical, critical-thinking and problem-solving skills to succeed as leader in the field of natural hazard mitigation.
The coursework program within the Master of Planning and Management of Natural Hazards includes four core units plus four elective units in special interest areas.
The core units cover topic areas that are fundamental to planning and managing natural hazards:
- environmental factors that combine to produce natural hazards
- the ecological, social and economic consequences of natural hazards and disasters
- methods relevant to studying aspects of natural hazards and disasters
- mitigation strategies
- challenges and opportunities for policy development in the natural hazards field
- future trends in planning for and managing natural hazards.
Choose four electives from a comprehensive, multidisciplinary suite of units. This is your opportunity to focus special interest areas from options that include (but are not limited to) the environment, economics, population, public policy, globalisation and sustainability.
Your research dissertation, on a topic that you choose in consultation with your supervisor, will enable your professional expertise. Plus, this is an opportunity to gain advanced skills in academic research.
What makes our course different?
UNE's Master of Planning and Management of Natural Hazards is designed to enable high-level understanding of natural hazards and disasters and their mitigation through planning and policy. Through this course you have the opportunity to:
- gain a postgraduate qualification to enable you as an industry leader with expert knowledge and skills in natural hazard mitigation
- build critical-thinking and problem-solving capacities through robust coursework and guided, independent research
- enable specialised knowledge via your supervised dissertation, and by choosing specialist elective units from the extensive range of multidisciplinary options
- study flexibly either on campus or online and complete your course in either 1.5 years (full time) or up to six years (part time).
UNE has been the leading innovator of flexible study for over 60 years. We are committed to helping busy adults to study from anywhere. In fact, we're rated 5-star by our students for Overall Experience in The Good Universities Guide, year after year.
Study online
Most of our students choose to study online across three study periods with 24/7 tutor support* and fit study around work and family commitments. Uniquely, our online students are mostly over 30 and bring valuable experience with them. They form a community of adults juggling the same challenges and priorities and who bring their life and work experience together at UNE in order to become future-fit and better respond to a rapidly changing world.
Study on campus
Many of our students choose to take advantage of the on-campus lifestyle in Armidale, in the beautiful New England region, with access to unparalleled support, accommodation and sporting facilities. These students are often starting their first degree and have left school recently. Through access to academic and career support they get a fantastic start to their careers.
24/7 tutor support includes: essay feedback (within 24 hours); live chat 24/7 for generic feedback on academic writing; and subject-specific help at a foundation or first-year level for subjects including mathematics, chemistry, biology, physics, business, accounting, microeconomics, macroeconomics and statistics. There are also a wide range of workshops, resources and courses available in academic skills support to assist you and help you to succeed.
Admissions
Scholarships and Funding
UNE offers bursaries and scholarships that can help you with the costs of studying and living in Australia.
The UNE International Bursary reduces the published annual tuition fees for international students by up to 30%. These bursaries are available for international students commencing coursework studies at UNE in 2023.
We currently are offering a 20% Bursary for the 2024 intake.
UNE also offers a number of substantial research scholarships to postgraduate students studying for research-based degrees.
View detailed Bursary information.
Curriculum
Course structure
To qualify for the award a candidate must pass units to the value of 72 credit points, including 24 credit points at 400 level, not more than 12 credit points at 300 level and 36 credit points at 500 level.
Rule A
72 credit points
For candidates admitted under Rule (a)
- Core Units
- Listed Units
Rule B
72 credit points
For candidates admitted under Rule (b)
- Advanced Standing
- Core Units
- Listed Units
Rule C
72 credit points
For candidates admitted under Rule (c)
- Advanced Standing
- Core Units
Program Outcome
- Demonstrate a body of knowledge in relation to natural hazards and their planning contexts, including historical backgrounds and contemporary perspectives, in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region;
- Demonstrate a body of knowledge concerning the role of planning systems and policy in the mitigation of natural hazards, including a critical appreciation of contemporary developments in the field;
- Demonstrate a body of knowledge relating to the environmental, economic and social contexts of natural hazards, including different disciplinary perspectives; and
- Demonstrate the ability to independently undertake original research in the field of natural hazards; to answer a research question competently and ethically using appropriate research principles and methods; present a critically coherent argument based on current research; and to communicate the problem, approach, results and conclusions effectively.
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
By completing the Master of Planning and Management of Natural Hazards, you will be on track to being an industry leader and expert to work in:
- environmental and town planning
- urban and regional planning
- natural resource management
- emergency management
- disaster mitigation.