Building Surveying BSc (Hons)

Course Overview

Embark on an exciting journey where theory meets practice, and dive into captivating subjects such as building pathology and defect analysis, building regulations and compliance, construction technology and materials, sustainable building practices, energy efficiency and green building certifications, project management and coordination with contractors and stakeholders.

Why You Should Study This Course

Distinctive and innovative features:

• The course was designed in collaboration with industry experts and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), a leading professional body globally.
• We prioritize hands-on experience, from conducting property inspections using thermal imaging cameras, drones and laser measure, also developing essential skills in computer-aided design (CAD), Revit, report writing and client liaison, which are crucial for success in the field.
• Our strong industry connections provide guest lectures, site visits, and potential pathways to internships and employment through CV and interview preparation sessions, resume workshops and networking events.
• A common first year enables you to undertake multi-disciplinary learning alongside other professions, if you discover an interest in another specific subject, you could swap degrees with another course (subject to meeting progression requirements).
• Offering you both work placements and study year abroad opportunities, you could explore new horizons, immerse yourself in diverse cultures and gain invaluable hands-on experience while pursuing your degree.

Accreditation and Professional Recognition

The course is currently accredited by the following accrediting body for the 2024/25 intake:

• Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)

Careers in the Built Environment

Associate Head for School of the Environment, Dave Roberts, explains what types of careers are available in the built environment and the different courses we offer including, Quantity Surveying and Commercial Management BSc (Hons), Building Surveying BSc (Hons), Real Estate and Property Management BSc (Hons) and Construction Project Management BSc (Hons).

What You'll Study

• Year one
• Year two
• Placement year
• Final year

This course has a common first year.

The common first year enables you to work alongside students doing similar courses to you, to widen your knowledge and exposure to other subject areas and professions. You will have the opportunity to collaborate with other students, so you can share your insights and experience which will help you to develop and learn.

If you discover an interest in a specific subject you have studied, upon successful completion of your first year, you could swap degrees with another course in your common first year (subject to meeting progression requirements).

Common First Year Courses

• Architectural Design and Technology MSci
• Architectural Engineering BEng (Hons)
• Architectural Technology BSc (Hons)
• Building Surveying BSc (Hons)
• Construction Project Management BSc (Hons)
• Quantity Surveying and Commercial Management BSc (Hons)
• Real Estate and Property Management BSc (Hons)

In the first year, the curriculum is shared across related courses allowing you to gain a broad grounding in the discipline before going on, in the second and third years, to specialist modules in your chosen field.

Modules

• Materials and Building Surveying – 20 credits
• Construction Technology and Environmental Sciences – 20 credits
• Spatial Design and Visual Communication – 20 credits
• Professional Skills Development – 20 credits
• Project and Cost Management – 20 credits
• Sustainable Environments – 20 credits

In your second year, you will continue to develop the skills and knowledge you’ve learnt. We do this by embedding the following four principles into the curriculum and developing your:

• technical skills – digital fluency, backed with the right academic knowledge
• study skills – to be an adaptive, independent and proactive learner
• professional skills – to have the behaviour and abilities to succeed in your career
• global awareness – the beliefs and abilities to be a resilient, confident and motivated global citizen.

Modules

• Construction Technology, Assembly and Environmental Systems – 20 credits
• Law for Built Environment Professionals – 20 credits
• Adaptation Design and Building Pathology – 20 credits
• Building Defects Analysis – 20 credits
• Designing for the Twenty-second Century – 20 credits
• Sustainable Environments in Society: Developing Solutions – 20 credits

There’s no better way to find out what you love doing than trying it out for yourself, which is why a work placement can often be beneficial. Work placements usually occur between your second and final year of study. They’re a great way to help you explore your potential career path and gain valuable work experience, whilst developing transferable skills for the future.

Modules

• UK Work Placement – 0 credits
• International Study/Work Placement – 0 credits

Your final study year is where your knowledge meets culmination and your aspirations become achievements.

Modules

• Interdisciplinary Project – 20 credits
• Professional Practice and Contract Administration – 20 credits
• Research Dissertation – 20 credits
• Historic Buildings and Heritage Preservation – 20 credits
• Analytical Building Surveying in Practice – 20 credits
• Comprehensive Building Surveying in Practice – 20 credits

How You'll Learn

We strive to provide you with as much real-life experience as possible and are fortunate that the city of Coventry has such a rich medieval history, offering excellent examples of many period buildings within walking distance of the university’s main campus.

The highly practical nature of the course enables you to work with staff and students on real-world problems from industry, commerce and research groups. This means that while you learn the technical content of your degree, these projects develop the professional skills required including problem analysis and design; project, task and time management; risk assessment; team work and leadership; technical report and bench assessment; troubleshooting and more.

Several staff who currently teach on the course are Chartered Building Surveyors. They can provide help and guidance in relation to the process of becoming a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), specifically in relation to your post-degree assessment of professional competence, which comprises a written submission and professional interview carried out by the RICS regional training advisor (staff are subject to change and membership of external bodies may carry additional eligibility criteria and fees).

Teaching Contact Hours

As a full-time undergraduate student, you will study modules totalling 120 credits each academic year. A typical 20 credit module requires a total of 200 hours study. This is made up of teaching contact hours, guided and independent study.

Teaching Hours:

Teaching hours vary each semester, year of study and due to module selection. During your first year you can expect 15-18 teaching hours each week. You will also have the option to attend optional sessions including time with a progress coach or to meet with staff for advice and feedback. As you progress through your studies, teaching hours may reduce.

Guided and Independent Study:

Throughout your studies, you will be expected to spend time in guided and independent study to make up the required study hours per module. You’ll be digging deeper into topics, review what you’ve learned and complete assignments. This can be completed around your personal commitments. As you progress through your studies, you’ll spend more time in independent study.

Online Learning:

As an innovative university, we use different teaching methods including online tools and emerging technologies. So, some of your teaching hours and assessments may be delivered online.

Assessment

This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will vary depending upon the module.

Assessment methods may include:

• coursework
• reports
• projects
• phase tests
• group work
• presentations
• laboratories
• posters.

The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.

International Experience Opportunities

Intercultural and international engagement within the education strategy is closely aligned to the global strategy and we aim to provide an expanded understanding of global issues through learning. You will have the opportunity to go on at least one part-funded field trip overseas.

Please note that bursaries may be available to assist with funding field trips. Such funding and/or bursaries will be subject to availability and meeting eligibility criteria. If you are unable to attend a trip, you will be required to undertake alternative coursework.

Please note that all international experience opportunities may be subject to additional costs, competitive application, availability, and meeting applicable visa and travel requirements, and are therefore not guaranteed.

Entry Requirements

Typical entry requirements:

• UK: 112 UCAS points
• International: Equivalent qualifications

Requirement | What We're Looking For ---|--- UCAS points | 112 A level | BBC GCSE | GCSE maths and English at grade 4 / C or Functional Skills Level 2, or other equivalent Level 2 awards. BTEC | DMM IB Diploma | 29 points Access to HE | The Access to HE Diploma to include 30 Level 3 credits at Merit. Plus GCSE English and Mathematics at grade 4 / C or above.

Other Qualifications and Experience

Our students come from a variety of backgrounds, each with a unique story. We recognize a breadth of qualifications. If your qualifications differ from the above, contact our Admissions Team who will be happy to discuss your qualifications and routes into your chosen course.

Contextual Offers and Fair Access Scheme

If you meet the criteria for our Fair Access Scheme, you could automatically receive a contextual offer that may be up to 24 UCAS points lower than our standard entry requirements. View the criteria for our Fair Access Scheme.

English Language Requirements

• IELTS: 6.0 overall (with at least 5.5 in each component area).

If you do not have the typical entry requirements, you may want to consider studying this course with an international foundation year. Upon successful completion our International Foundation Year - Engineering will provide you with the knowledge and skills you need to progress onto this undergraduate degree.

If you don't meet the English language requirements, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.

Fees and Funding

Student | Full-time | Part-time ---|---|--- UK, Ireland*, Channel Islands or Isle of Man | 2026/27 fees TBC 2025/26 fees: £9,535 per year | Not available EU | 2026/27 fees TBC 2025/26 fees: £9,535 per year with EU Support Bursary** 2026/27 fees TBC 2025/26 fees: £19,850 per year without EU Support Bursary** | Not available International | 2026/27 fees TBC 2025/26 fees: £19,850 per year | Not available

If you choose to study this course with a professional placement or study abroad year, you will need to pay a tuition fee to cover your academic support throughout your placement year. Students commencing their professional placement in the academic year 2027/28 will pay £1,500 if they are paying UK fees, or £1,800 if they are paying international fees.

For advice and guidance on tuition fees and student loans visit our Undergraduate Finance page and see The University’s Tuition Fee and Refund Terms and Conditions.

Facilities

Your studies will be centred in high-specification learning environments that benefit from extensive social learning facilities, well-appointed laboratories, industry-standard equipment, lecturing facilities and classrooms, facilitating our innovative teaching methods across a diverse suite of courses.

Careers and Opportunities

Upon successful completion, you should have knowledge of:

• the key concepts, theories and principles used in construction, property and surveying. These will include legal principles; design, construction technology, performance of buildings; building defect identification and analysis; building adaptation; historic buildings and application of building surveying techniques
• contemporary global issues facing the building surveying profession and driving change within it, for example, the sustainability/environmental agenda
• professional ethics, their impact on the operation of the building surveying profession and their influence on the society; conflict avoidance/dispute resolution; communities and the stakeholders with whom they have contact
• skills that promote safe working environments and safe buildings for habitation and use
• select and use effectively a range of appropriate means of communication including information technology.

You should also be able to:

• work effectively with others within the context of a multi-disciplinary team respecting the respective inputs from fellow professionals, client(s) and other stakeholders, and reflecting on one's own performance and role within the team
• present quantitative and qualitative information, together with analysis, argument and commentary, in a form appropriate to the intended audience, including appropriate acknowledgement and referencing of sources
• produce professional reports in accordance with published conventions and/or client expectations
• analyse, interpolate and present information
• analyse and solve construction problems of a technical and managerial nature
• analyse data and information sources in construction.

Building surveying offers a rewarding and challenging career where no two days are ever likely to be the same.

You could find yourself involved in all aspects of construction and it is now one of the broadest areas of surveying practice, taking in projects from a domestic extension to a major retail development. Building surveyors offer advice on many aspects of design and construction, including maintenance, repair, refurbishment and restoration of proposed and existing buildings.

They offer quality assessments and report on defects in, or ways of improving, all kinds of buildings. As well as finding structural faults, building surveyors recommend solutions. They can advise on the feasibility of a building project, how much it might cost to carry out, or how suitable a building could be for a particular purpose.

Where Our Graduates Work

Our graduates from similar courses have found employment in private practices, commercial organisations and local/central government, regionally, nationally and internationally. They work with companies such as Mace, Galliford Try, Balfour Beatty Plc, Lain O’ Rourke, Barrett Home Ltd, Watts Construction Ltd and BAM Construction.

Further Study

Subject to meeting all the progression requirements, you could choose to continue your studies at Coventry University with the Construction Project and Cost Management MSc, Construction Project Management with BIM MSc or Sustainability and Environmental Management MSc. You may be entitled to an alumni discount on your fees if you decide to extend your time with us by progressing from undergraduate to postgraduate study.

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Overview:

• Founded in 1843 as the Coventry School of Design
• Received university status in 1992
• Over 30,000 students from over 150 countries
• Campuses in Coventry, London, and Scarborough
• Known for its focus on practical, industry-focused education

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Student Life:

• Over 150 student clubs and societies
• Sports teams in various disciplines
• Student support services include counseling, mental health support, and disability support
• Campus facilities include a gym, swimming pool, and student union

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Academics:

• Offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in a wide range of subjects
• Faculty with industry experience and research expertise
• Teaching methodologies include lectures, seminars, workshops, and project-based learning
• Academic support services include writing centers, math labs, and peer mentoring
• Unique academic programs include:
  • Centre for Applied Science and Technology
  • Centre for Business in Society
  • Centre for Intelligent Systems

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Top Reasons to Study Here:

• Ranked among the top 150 universities in the UK (Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023)
• Excellent industry connections and partnerships
• Specialized facilities such as the National Transport Design Centre and the Centre for Advanced Manufacturing
• Notable alumni include:
  • Sir Frank Whittle, inventor of the jet engine
  • Sir David Attenborough, naturalist and broadcaster
  • Sir Patrick Stewart, actor

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Services:

• Counseling and mental health support
• Health center
• Accommodation services
• Library with over 1 million books and resources
• Technology support
• Career development services