Program
The master’s program combines the long tradition of integrative consideration of open space and landscape planning with innovative design and development approaches for urban and rural areas. The program focuses on the challenges of the 21st century, such as climate change, water-sensitive urban development, biodiversity, gender equal cities, energy landscapes, healthy cities, food security, urban shrinkage processes and increasing urbanization and migration. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and their principles provide the framework for the content of this master’s program.
The program of the first two semesters consists of a series of compulsory (1st semester) and elective (2nd semester) courses taught separately, as well as one urban landscape and one landscape planning and development project that address realistic project assignments. In the 3rd semester students will undertake an internship and the 4th semester is dedicated to the master’s thesis.
The first two semesters (“residency”) usually take place at the “Sustainable Campus” of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Ostwestfalen-Lippe in Höxter. Although the study plan is originally designed for students to study on campus at the Sustainable Campus in Höxter / Germany, due to SARS-Covid-19, the faculty transformed the program into hybrid teaching courses which can take place on campus and online. This allows students to begin the 1st semester of the master’s program without having to leave their countries of residency and therefor may help to avoid potential difficulties in visa processes that may arise.
The third semester is dedicated to completing an internship. During the fourth semester students work on their Master’s thesis.
The curriculum of the first semester consists of four compulsory courses, 5 CP each:
- Human-centered Open Space Planning and Design (Prof. Dr. Stefan Bochnig, Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Rohler)
- Sustainable Planting Design (Junior Prof. Nora Huxmann)
- Landscape and Regional Planning in Germany (Prof. Dr. Boris Stemmer, Lucas Kaußen M.Sc.)
- Quality in Detailed Design (Prof. Dr. Hendrik Laue)
Along with these four compulsory courses students work together on a compulsory
- Urban Landscape Project (Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Elizabeth Sikiaridi, Prof. Dr. Stefan Bochnig, Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Rohler) (6 CP)
With Extra Muros 1st Semester (4 CP) and “Extra Muros 2nd Semester” (4 Credits) both first and second semester study incude a series of study trips in Germany and international excursions to landscape architecture and landscape planning projects, and meetings and discussions with the experts involved, as well as intensive field-trip workshop sessions. The relatively low living costs in Höxter more than compensate for the expense of the field trips.
Further information:
- Studyplan Overview
- Modul Manual/Course Descriptions (German & English)
- Studyplan Overview Table