M.A in Urban Management (Njoro & Town Campus).

Philosophy of the Programme

The programme seeks to develop adequate human resource in urban management through holistic education, generation and dissemination of knowledge and skills, with emphasis on the current innovative methods such as Geographic Information System/remote Sensing and participatory approaches. The Department provides equal opportunity in producing competitive and hands-on post-graduates that contribute to urban management at the national and global levels.

Rationale

Urbanization is an irreversible trend worldwide with close to 50% of the world population living in urban areas and involves a multitude of social, economic, demographic, environmental and spatial aspects. Many developing countries, including Kenya have recorded unprecedented rates of urbanization that has challenged the capacity of many local authorities to tackle the attendant challenges. The pace of urbanization in developing countries has posed several challenges to planners, managers, policy makers and researchers and thus need to develop innovative programmes that would train human resources to effectively manage emerging challenges in our urban societies.

The increase in urban population in many developing countries has posed many challenges to management of these cities, challenges that tend to transcend traditional urban management fields/professions. The Masters of Arts in Urban Management programme at Egerton University intends to fill a gap in the training of urban managers for our urban systems that has traditionally been undertaken by professionals trained either in the field of planning, legal studies, financial management etc. This has proved inadequate in tackling the emerging challenges of urban societies. The complexities of problems in our urban societies call for managers who will not only be prudent resource managers but also be able to mobilize resources for growth and development of urban centres. These are managers who are able to look for and create opportunities that can help expand the urban economic base and make linkages with the surrounding region. The programme intends to generate managers not only with skills to effectively manage our urban centres but also be keen team players and coordinators of various actors. The practicum aspect in the program is meant to enhance the practicability of the solutions that students may propose and strengthen their hands-on approach to tackling urban problems.

Goal of the Programme

The Master of Arts programme in Urban Management at Egerton University will provide both basic management techniques and analytic skills necessary for sustainable and effective management of rapidly evolving urban environments. The curriculum provides every candidate with the opportunity and responsibility to develop a preferred specialty in one or more key areas of practice, such as environmental management; health systems planning; environment impact assessment; urban land use planning; and environmental hazard management.

The curriculum seeks to build students’ professional judgment skills through applied course work and field experience, while instilling awareness of, and appreciation for, research and theory from many contributing disciplines. In this way, it will contribute to training and building capacity/skills for our urban managers who will appreciate a multidisciplinary approach in sustainably managing the major challenges that our urban societies face. The graduate of the programme will be expected to develop skills that would enable them undertake situational analysis of the urban areas in regard to human settlements, planning and management issues, develop monitoring and evaluation tools for urban projects and generally be managers who are able to co-ordinate various actors in the urban management.

Programme Learning Outcomes

By the end of an MA in Urban Management Program, graduates should:

i) Demonstrate both management techniques and analytical skills in effective and sustainable management of evolving urban environment.

ii) Develop a preferred specialty in one or more key areas of practice, such as environmental management; health systems planning; environment impact assessment; urban land use planning; and environmental hazard management.

iii) Demonstrate professional judgment and awareness through field experience, and appreciation research and theory from many contributing disciplines.

iv) Demonstrate ability and competency to undertake situational analysis in dealing with emerging urban challenges/issues.

Mode of Delivery

M.A in Urban Management shall be delivered on a full-time face-to-face and part-time (school-based) face-to-face basis at Egerton University main campus (Njoro) and part-time face-to-face evening and weekend modules in Nakuru Town Campus. The teaching of the programme shall also entail use of e-learning approach as may be applicable.

Academic Regulations for the Programme

2.7.1 Admission Requirements

For admission to this programme, applicants should have at least an Upper Second class division or its equivalent in a field related to urban management from a university recognized by Egerton University Senate. Candidates with a Second Class Degree Lower Division with at least two years’ work experience in urban management related fields will be considered for admission. The department may recommend the admission of students who do not meet the above requirements but show strength in their practical fields that may warrant such admissions.

2.7.2 Regulation on Credit Transfer in a Programme

Egerton University statute 39 (4) governing credit transfers shall apply.

2.7.3 Student Assessment Policy /Criteria

Student assessment for the MA in Urban Geography shall be conducted in accordance with the assessment criteria as stipulated in Egerton University Statute 39 (7) of 2013.

2.7.4 Grading

The grading of examination for MA in Urban Management shall be in accordance with Egerton University Statute 39 (f) of 2013.

Course Requirements

Students taking MA in Urban Management shall be required to:

i) Attend classes and participate in field trips as shall apply

ii) Undertake a dissertation in a topic of interest

iii) Have equipment for teaching of practical courses. These shall include laptops and cartographic kit. Students may also be required to have a white aprons and camera.

For both lecturers and students, ISO procedures for teaching (EU/AA/OP/06 rev 3) Teaching Practice /Field /Industrial Attachment (DOC NO. EU/AA/WI/09) and Field Trips (DOC NO.: EU/AA/WI/08) among other documents, apply.

2.7.5 Examination Regulations

All examinations for the MA in Urban Management shall be conducted in accordance with examination regulations as stipulated in Egerton University Statute 39 (7) of 2013 and ISO Procedure (Coursework examination - DOC No EU/AA/OP/07)

2.7.6 Moderation of Examination

Moderation of examination shall be conducted in accordance with examination regulations as stipulated in Egerton University Statute 36 (5) of 2013 and ISO Procedure (DOC No EU/AA/OP/07). In addition, the examination shall be subjected to internal and external moderation as shall be guided by the Directorate of Examination and Time Tabling, and Graduate School of the University.

2.7.7 Course Requirements

The MA in Urban Management consist of course work, examination and project. The programme shall consist of a minimum of 54 CF of course work which will be distributed over three semesters (or four blocks for the school-based module). Students must take all the compulsory courses in each semester/block and select electives as provided in the course schedule. In the In semester 2 of year 2, the candidates will be required to carry out a research project.

The topic of project shall be chosen following consultation with the supervisor/advisor and with the approval of the Department. The programme shall extend for a period of not less than 18 months and not more than 36 months.

2.7.8 Graduation Requirements

To graduate with MA/MSc in Geography, a student shall be required to take and pass all required courses within the stipulated time.

2.7.9 Degree Classification

The MA/MSc in Geography is not classified

2.7.10 Description of Thesis and Project

The MA in Urban Management project dissertation shall consist of the following sections; preliminaries, main text, references and appendices. The project dissertation should contain five to six chapters.

2.8 Course Evaluation

All courses will be evaluated using a course evaluation tool as shall be provided by the University in accordance with the Teaching Effectiveness Evaluation Procedure (DOC No. EU/VC/OP/04).

2.9 Management and Administration of the Programme

2.9.1 Host department and program leader

MA in Urban Management programme is host by the Department of Geography, Faculty of Environment and Resources Development. The appointed program Leader for MA in Urban Management is of the rank of Senior Lecturer and above.

2.9.2 Program evaluation

MA in Urban Management programme shall undergo an internal program evaluation (self-assessment) and review at the end of each program’s academic cycle. The university ISO procedure EU/AA/OP/01 shall apply.

2.9.3 Course coding

Coding of the courses offered in the MA Urban Management programme shall follow the Egerton University Course Coding Policy of 2012. Coding of the courses offered in MA Urban Management is represented by URMT, followed by a three-digit figure.

2.10 Courses/ Units offered for the Programme

2.10.1 Schedule of Courses

a) Common Core Courses

YEAR 1 SEMESTER 1

Course Code	Course Title	L	P	Total	CF
GEOG 702	Geographic Information System	30	30	60	3.0
URMT 703	Research Methods in Urban Studies	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 701	Global Trends in Urbanization	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 702	Strategic Planning and Management of Urban Centres	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 710	Urban Policy and Laws in Kenya	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 718	Local and Regional Urban Economies	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 707	Local Authorities and Urban Governance	45	0	45	3.0
TOTAL		=SUM(ABOVE) 24 0	=SUM(ABOVE) 60	=SUM(ABOVE) 300	18

b) Specialized / Elective Courses

YEAR 1 SEMESTER 2

Course Code	Course Title	L	P	Total	CF
URMT 709	Urban Financial Management	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 714	Urban Housing and Transportation Systems	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 716	Sociology of Urbanization and Human Settlement Theories	45	0	45	3.0
ENSC 705	Environmental Impact Assessment	45	15	60	3.5
Electives: Choose one
URMT 704	Peri-Urban Dynamics	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 705	Conflict Management in Urban Areas	45	0	45	3.0
TOTAL		225	=SUM(ABOVE) 0	225	15

YEAR 2 SEMESTER 1

Course Code	Course Title	L	P	Total	CF
URMT 706	Gender Issues in Urban Management	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 711	Urban Disaster Prevention and Management	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 712	Urban Project Planning Management & Evaluation	30	30	60	3.0
URMT 715	Urban Livelihoods and Poverty Analysis	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 717	Computer Applications in Urban Management	30	30	60	3.0
URMT 719	Practicum in Urban Management	15	30	45	3.5
Electives: Choose one
URMT 708	Managing Urban Health Issues	45	0	45	3.0
URMT 713	Urban Infrastructure Management	45	0	45	3.0
TOTAL		255	=SUM(ABOVE) 90	345	=SUM(ABOVE) 21

YEAR 2 SEMESTER 2

Course Code	Course Title	L	P	Total	CF
URMT 799	Research and Dissertation	0	270	270	9.0

		L	P	Total	CF
Grand Total		690	420	1110	63

2.10.2 Matrix Aligning Courses to Learning Outcomes

Programme Learning Outcomes	Year (Semester 1)		Year 1 (Semester 2)		Year 2 (Semester 1)		Year 2 (Semester 2)	C.F
	Courses	C.F	Courses	C.F	Courses	C.F
i. Demonstrate both management techniques and analytical skills in effective and sustainable management of evolving urban environment.	GEOG 702 URMT 702 ENSC 705	3.0 3.0 3.0			URMT 717 URMT 719 URMT 713	3.0 3.0 3.0	URMT 799	9.0
ii. Develop a preferred specialty in one or more key areas of practice, such as environmental management; health systems planning; environment impact assessment; urban land use planning; and environmental hazard management.	URMT 710	3.0	URMT 707 URMT 709 URMT 714 URMT 716	3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0	URMT 711 URMT 719	3.0 3.0	URMT 799	9.0
iii. Demonstrate professional judgment and awareness through field experience, and appreciation research and theory from many contributing disciplines.	URMT 703				URMT 712 URMT 719 URMT 799	3.0 3.0 3.0	URMT 799	9.0
iv. Demonstrate ability and competency to undertake situational analysis in dealing with emerging urban challenges/issues.	URMT 701 URMT 718	3.0	URMT 704 URMT 705	3.0 3.0	URMT 706 URMT 715 URMT 719 URMT 708		URMT 799	9.0