Unit information: Urban Inequality in 2026/27

Please note: Programme and unit information may change as the relevant academic field develops. We may also make changes to the structure of programmes and assessments to improve the student experience.

Unit name Urban Inequality
Unit code GEOG30044
Credit points 20
Level of study H/6
Teaching block(s) Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12)
Unit director Dr. Duminy
Open unit status Not open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)

None.

Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)

None.

Units you may not take alongside this one

None.

School/department School of Geographical Sciences
Faculty Faculty of Science

Unit Information

Over half the world’s population lives in urban areas, and our global future is increasingly urban. Thus, how urban environments function and change is crucial for the wider cultural, political, economic and developmental transformations that societies are undergoing. Yet urban processes are often protective of, and shaped by, acute inequalities between groups and spaces.

The unit will introduce key concepts through scholarly debates relating to the theoretical, empirical and substantive investigation of urban areas, drawing on examples from across the world. The unit emphasizes a mixed-methods approach to urban analysis, and will involve the application of critical qualitative and quantitative techniques to understanding inequalities within towns and cities. The unit tackles three major aspects of urban investigation:

  1. How do urban areas vary over time and space? How have they developed and changed over time?
  2. How are social and political relations played out in the city? How does the city shape those relations?
  3. How are social, economic and political inequalities (re)produced within and between urban spaces and populations?

This unit explores topics in the Cities and Societies and Political Economies and Mobilities themes, and in quantitative and qualitative methods.

Your learning on this unit

By the end of the unit students should be able to:

  1. Explain, critically evaluate and engage with key theoretical and empirical debates in urban geography.
  2. Recognise the complexities of the relationships between urban spaces and populations.Be able to critically engage in theoretical and empirical debates surrounding the key concepts in urban Geography.
  3. Be able to understand the complexities of the relationships between urban space and the individuals that inhabit it.
  4. Appreciate the interdisciplinary nature of the studyies of urban environments and contributions made by disciplines including geography, sociology and economics.
  5. Demonstrate an understanding of the multiple modes of inquiry used in urban geography, including qualitative and quantitative analysis.
  6. Use quantitative analysis to substantiate and evidence critical arguments within a piece of urban research.

The following transferable skills are developed in this Unit:

  • Written and verbal communication
  • Analytical skills
  • Evidence-based argument
  • Critical interpretative thinking

How you will learn

The unit will be taught through a combination of:

  • lectures
  • online resources
  • workshops, seminars, tutorials and/or office hours
  • individual activities and guided reading for students to work through at their own pace

How you will be assessed

Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):

Seminar and workshop participation.

Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):

Essay (100%). (ILOs 1-5)

When assessment does not go to plan

Students will be offered an alternative essay-based assessment for completion in the summer reassessment period.

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. GEOG30044).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.

The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.