Building for Success – Melbourne School of Design Launches New Double Masters Degrees

Recognising that graduates are faced with an increasingly competitive jobs market, Melbourne School of Design has launched a suite of professionally accredited double Masters degrees in built environment disciplines to help graduates stand out from the crowd and allow them to complete two Masters degrees in less time.

The program fosters interdisciplinary skills by combining complementary Masters programs, exposing students to a diversity of disciplines, adding depth to their professional knowledge, and equipping them with the skills to solve complex and multifaceted issues. The university explains, “double Masters give a competitive edge in the employment market, as graduates with the skills and knowledge to talk ‘across disciplines’ are highly sought after in industry.”

“Looking towards the future, we need to work together across disciplinary boundaries if we’re going to be successful in tackling some of the challenges ahead.”

Professor Alan Pert, Director of Melbourne School of Design, notes the importance of instilling this interdisciplinary knowledge in graduates: “Looking towards the future, we need to work together across disciplinary boundaries if we’re going to be successful in tackling some of the challenges ahead. ”The complementary programs on offer include architecture, architectural engineering, construction management, landscape architecture, property, cultural heritage, urban design, and urban planning. Graduating with more than one Masters degree allows graduates to pursue studies in two interest areas, rather than being restricted to just one. This has the added benefit of providing graduates with greater flexibility, so that they can move between options and industries later in their career. Each Masters degree includes full professional accreditation.

The other major advantage of undertaking a double Masters is the reduced time to completion, allowing graduates to enter the workforce sooner. Normally, completing two separate Masters will take, on average, between four and five years, whereas most double Masters will take between three and four years of full-time study to complete. If students have completed prior study in the same discipline in their undergraduate, they may be able to shorten this by up to a year.

The major advantage of undertaking a double Masters is the reduced time, allowing graduates to enter the workforce sooner.

Professor Pert highlights the importance of combining built environment disciplines when it comes to responding to one of the most significant issues of our time: upgrading and retrofitting cities for the future. “By 2056 there’s an expectation that Melbourne will grow to 11.2 million [people], that’s double what we currently are, in the next 30 years. Now, to get there, the challenge is, what does it look like physically and socially? That’s one of the unique opportunities of a double masters, is the opportunity to work across these disciplinary boundaries to start to tackle some of these problems in the future.”

As the pace of change continues to increase, through the new double Masters the Melbourne School of Design is looking to provide students with the best foundation from which to enter the competitive built environment industries. And for students with an interest in going beyond the usual Masters program, the new offering provides an opportunity to explore complex urban and social issues and contribute to shaping the future.