Project Management in the Built Environment - 2012 entry

Course content

The course will develop knowledge of current practice and issues in the construction industry as well as building real life skills including the exploration of interdisciplinary problems.

Among the issues covered are:

• technology and green construction
• sustainability and risk factors in design
• emerging procurement methods to meet new demands to collaborate and new competitive challenges
• behavioural aspects of managing projects such as negotiation and communication in all its guises
• handling uncertainty and paradox
• responding to risk and opportunity
• responding to constantly changing demands in areas such as law and regulation, and international flux of people and competition.

Course structure

The PGCert level modules are introductory in nature; they provide a breadth of understanding about project management and development in the built environment. To be eligible for the award of the Certificate, distance-learning students need to obtain 60 credits by passing the PGCert level modules identified below, while full-time students who gain 60 credits by passing any three of the PGCert or PGDip modules are also eligible.

The PGDip level modules focus upon further complexity in the development process and its legal and financial context, as well as providing a professional working context within which these issues are considered. Students need to obtain a further 60 credits in order to be awarded a PG Dip.

To achieve the MSc degree in the full-time mode, students who have reached the PGDip level need to complete the Research Methods and Dissertation modules. In the distance-learning mode, students must have also completed, or be exempt from, one year's experience of working at an appropriate level on one or more projects in the built environment.

Please note: as courses are reviewed regularly, the modules you take may vary from those shown here.

Course delivery

Normally, full-time students complete the MSc in one calendar year and distance-learning students in two. However, the course has built-in flexibility in order to help our students cope with changes to their personal or work circumstances. Such students could extend their studies to up to three years of full-time study or five years of distance-learning study after the initial registration date and still be eligible for the award of a PGCert, a PGDip or a MSc. The course starts in late September on campus for full-time study and by distance learning for distance-learning study and also for distance-learning study.

An on-campus induction week introduces full-time students to the university and Brookes Virtual (our virtual learning environment), while distance-learning students embark on the initial activities online.

PGCert level (Year 1 of distance-learning study)

The PGCert level modules are:

• Project Planning and Procurement
• Management Theory and Human Behaviour
• Technology and Design Management.

They are all designed to engage the students with problem-solving or analytical exercises. These activities start during the first three weeks of the semester. The fourth week is an intensive study period at Oxford Brookes which brings full-time and distance-learning students together. During this week, we aim to develop through lectures, workshops and exercises:

• interpersonal skills such as problem solving, team building, leadership, negotiation and assertive behaviour
• academic skills such as referencing and the use of the electronic library.

The first intensive study week also introduces the PBL method. Practitioner tutors normally take part in this week. The PGCert modules conclude during the second intensive study period for this level.

Project Planning and Procurement moves from project participants and their roles on diverse projects to procurement routes, forms of contract and current trends. It also covers planning techniques such as barcharts and critical path analysis. The latter is used to analyse and model the stages of project development including financing, procurement and construction.

Management Theory and Human Behaviour covers, with special reference to project environments:

• management theory and approaches
• organisational and human behaviour
• conflict theory and resolution
• learning from experience.

Technology and Design Management. Developments in technology have the potential to drive dramatic changes in construction practice, both in building design and in the ways buildings are constructed.  This module, through its lectures, workshops and laboratory practicals,  teaches you how buildings 'work' and gives you the necessary analytical skills to engage with those emerging technologies that will improve our buildings for the future.

Field trip abroad is a compulsory element of the PGCert level. Its aim is to integrate knowledge gained in the early part of the course and to develop team building and other relationships. Another aim is to expose you to European project management practices and to assess your ability to observe and report on the different approaches to project management in the UK and in a European country.

Second Intensive Study Week for PGCert level. The PGCert modules end in another intensive study week in March when distance-learning and full-time students come together in Oxford. You will be required to reflect on your learning during this week. The Applied Research Methods module for distance-learning study will start with a session where the full-time students, who will have completed this module, will share their experience with the distance-learning students in a workshop. The requirements of the dissertation will be explored with both groups. Distance-learning students will embark on research and developing research proposals for their dissertations. Finally, we will launch PG Dip Level modules for distance-learning study and start building the knowledge and skills involved.

PGDip level (Year 2 of distance-learning study)

PGDip level contains the following modules:

• Project Management and the Law
• Opportunity and Risk Management
• Project Evaluation and Finance.

They are all launched at the beginning of the academic year, on-campus for full-time students and online for distance-learning.

Project Management and the Law ranges across legal disciplines, but starts with the basic framework. Areas of law which impact particularly on development are the focus. These include:

• basic planning law, and the requirements of building regulation
• contract and tort with primary attention to development projects
• construction law, with special consideration of the standard forms of building and civil engineering contract
• health and safety, pollution and disability discrimination.

The module develops knowledge and awareness of appropriate legal requirements and interpretation. It also shows how good practice in project management may prevent problems from arising and allows risks and liabilities to be recognised and managed.

Opportunity and Risk Management provides an opportunity for you to explore how risk and uncertainty can be managed in both organisations and projects. Risks may be posed by:

• markets and competition
• technology, geotechnical, construction or production processes
• organisational, financial, legal or environmental concerns.

Project managers often have to achieve goals set before all the risks are known. This entails planning for and carrying out risk management - the identification, assessment, quantification, monitoring and control of risk, using appropriate response strategies.

Project Evaluation and Finance examines the assessment of projects in terms of environmental and social sustainability, life-cycle costs and finance. It considers the whole financial cycle associated with a project, building on topics included elsewhere. Techniques include environmental impact assessment, social cost-benefit analysis, the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) and the sustainability checklist developed by BRE/SEEDA. The module includes:

• company and project governance
• companies' financial structures
• sources of company and project finance
• cost estimating and managerial economics
• structures associated with private finance initiative (PFI) contracts.

First Intensive Study Week for PGDip level in November After two-thirds of Semester 1, distance-learning students and full-time students are brought together in  workshops and day trips to develop insights into project management practices in the UK and the cultural issues arising in multinational firms. You will undertake assessed tasks during this week.

Distance-learning students will also have the opportunity to discuss their dissertations with their supervisors, attend dissertation workshops and undertake independent research during this week.

MSc level

The Applied Research Methods and the Dissertation modules form the MSc level. Full-time students take the Applied Research Methods module during Semester 1 and 2, while the module runs in the summer of Year 1 for distance-learning students. You will work with the module leader to develop a  research proposal for your dissertation, describing a suitable research question, the context and appropriate research methods.

The Dissertation builds on Applied Research Methods. You are encouraged to undertake research in an area of interest to your employers. Suitable forms of dissertation could include:

• an investigation based on primary and secondary data of a project management or organisational practice
• testing or development of an existing project management model
• application of theories or concepts to the solving of a project management or organisational problem
• the comparison and evaluation of international practices or approaches to an aspect of project management.

The module aims not only to generate new knowledge and insights but also to develop your capacity to undertake rigorous research, to plan and execute an extended project and to communicate complex ideas effectively in words and graphics.

It is expected that full-time students will dedicate the summer during their year of study, and distance-learning students the summer during their second year of study, to working on their dissertations.

Faculty

Faculty of Technology, Design and Environment

Department

Department of Real Estate and Construction

Course length

Full-time: minimum MSc: 12 months, PGDip: 9 months, PGCert: 9 months, max. 3 years
Part-time: minimum MSc: 24 months, PGDip: 21 months, PGCert: 9 months, max. 5years

Teaching location

Headington Campus, Gipsy Lane / Distance learning

Start date

September 2012

UKPASS code

P034317

Entry requirements

The MSc in Project Management in the Built Environment is open to students who hold a good undergraduate honours degree (2.1 or above) in any discipline.

We will also consider applications from applicants with relevant experience (or an alternative qualification) and demonstrable abilities to study at master's level.

Normally, applicants for distance-learning study should also have at least six months' work experience in a sector of the construction industry and are normally required to be in full-time employment.

Scholarships and funding

UK/EU applicants who fulfil the academic entry requirements for postgraduate study in the university and the Faculty of Techonology, Design and Environment and who have been offered a distance-learning place on MSc PMBE are eligible to apply for the school's merit-based scholarships. Further information on the scholarships can be found at: www.brookes.ac.uk/schools/be/scholarships/index.html

For general sources of financial support, see:

• funding for students from the UK and EU
• funding for students from outside the EU

Why Oxford is a great place to study Project Management in the Built Environment

As a student in Oxford you'll be at the heart of the UK's most successful economic region and in a centre for leading industries which provides you with a host of learning opportunities.

Because Oxford is one of the world's great academic cities, it is a key centre of debate, with conferences, seminars and forums taking place across education, science, the arts and many other subjects.

In addition to our own excellent libraries and resource centres, our postgraduate students have access to the world-renowned Bodleian Library, the Bodleian Law Library and the Radcliffe Science Library.

Support for students studying Project Management in the Built Environment

We work closely with our International Centre for English Language Studies (ICELS) to help students whose first language is not English. All international students are registered on appropriate ICELS courses during the first semester so that they can develop their academic writing skills. They then take extra classes on dissertation writing in the second semester. 

Continuous assessment and feedback are other means through which we support our students. Especially the PGCert modules are designed such that our students have the opportunity to learn from the feedback that they receive in order to improve their academic performance.

How Brookes supports postgraduate students

Supporting your learning

From academic advisers and support co-ordinators to specialist subject librarians and other learning support staff, we want to ensure that you get the best out of your studies.

Personal support services

We want your time at Brookes to be as enjoyable and successful as possible. That's why we provide all the facilities you need to be relaxed, happy and healthy throughout your studies.

Departmental research highlights

Our teaching is backed by strong research activity.  Many of our academic staff are involved in academic research and/or professional/commercial consultancy work. Areas of interest include sustainability, adaptation and resilience to climate change; collaborative supply networks for procurement and delivery of project, building economics, forecasting techniques, risk management, social networks in project environments, managing complex projects, management of knowledge and innovation as a source of competitive advantage, adaptive re-use of existing buildings, facilities management, health and safety and many more.

Many members of staff are part of the Oxford Institute of Sustainable Development (OISD).  This research and promotional organisation is noted for its work on sustainable technology in buildings and sustainable urban form amongst many on-going projects. A recent HEFCE report into sustainable development in higher education in England suggests that the OISD is one of the key players in sustainable development research.

Research excellence

As a Department we are highly regarded in the field of property/technology research.  In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise (conducted by the Higher Education Funding Council for England), some 80% of our research, with our colleagues in other Built Environment departments, was judged to be of ‘international’ quality. Some 40% of our research activity was rated as ‘internationally excellent’ or ‘world leading’. Within our Unit of Assessment (UoA 31) the Research Fortnight Power Rankings, which are an independent and highly respected measure of both the quality and quantity of research, placed the School as 5^th overall in the UK, immediately after the University of Cambridge.