Course overview

Quantity surveyors are traditionally regarded as experts when it comes to construction costs – ‘How much will it cost?’ is often the first question most people want answered when it comes to a building project. But modern-day quantity surveying is now about much more than simply costing buildings. Increasingly, there’s a demand for the broader skills of whole-life costing, project and commercial management, risk management, energy efficiency and carbon reduction programmes.

The profession has also become international in outlook, with emerging markets in Eastern and Western Europe, mainland China, Malaysia, Vietnam and North America. Most quantity surveying offices now have international links, either through their own overseas offices or as part of an international network or alliance.

A vibrant and friendly community

Based in the award-winning Portland Building, the School of Civil Engineering and Surveying shares its facilities with the School of Architecture, providing a vibrant and friendly community for both staff and students involved in the built and natural environments.

You will be taught by staff from a wide range of professional practice, including quantity and general practice surveyors, architects, structural and civil engineers, economists, planners and lawyers. Their hands-on experience is reflected in the modern and diverse nature of this course. We aim to provide a flexible degree programme that allows you to tailor the course to your own interests or career intentions, acquiring a range of skills and experiences that will be of direct benefit in the workplace.

Professional accreditation

The University of Portsmouth has delivered property courses for over 35 years and is one of the longest established and largest Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredited centres. Many of our former students now hold senior positions in industry and the quality of our courses has been recognised by both the property profession and the national press.

Once you’ve graduated and gained your first job you will begin training to become a chartered quantity surveyor with a professional qualification. This is known as the ‘Assessment of Professional Competence’ (APC) and is a structured on-the-job training scheme, ending with an assessment interview. Once you have satisfactorily completed this, you can apply to become a member of the RICS and are able to use the designated status of Chartered Surveyor.

Career focused

The entrance criteria of this degree have been designed to comply with the requirements of surveying graduate programmes. Competent students can have the opportunity to apply their skills to real-life practical problems as part of the department’s partnership scheme with charities, local and global organisations. Please view the 'Career prospects' section for further details.

To find out more about placement opportunities in the Faculty of Technology, please visit our Placements Office pages.

Studying abroad

During the final year, all students have the option to participate in a residential overseas field trip, the nature of which will reflect your programme of study. Venues have included Barcelona, Paris, Istanbul, Berlin, Dublin and the Netherlands.

A year in industry

Although this is a three-year full-time course, we do encourage you to find relevant employment, so far as your studies permit and, where appropriate, this may take the form of a year in industry.

Course content

The BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying course is intended for those who are interested in all aspects of the built environment and wish to follow a programme of study that leads to a career as a Chartered Quantity Surveyor.

We are renowned for our friendly, modern and supportive learning environment, which will provide you with the opportunity to maximise your potential. Graduates from this degree programme are in demand in the workplace and this is reflected in one of the highest employability uptake rates nationally. They are also able to attract a competitive starting salary.

First year

During your first year, you will study topics that will introduce you to the construction industry in general, which will underpin your study of quantity surveying. These will include:

• Professional Development
• Construction, Design and Sustainability
• Measurement
• Law
• Economics and Finance
• Property Valuation

Second year

During the second year, you will develop your general construction studies and be introduced to the more specific quantity surveying topics. These will include:

• Professional Development
• Health and Safety and People Skills
• Procurement
• Pre-contract Practice
• Valuation
• Tender Documentation
• Measurement
• IT
• Quantitative Methods

You will also have the opportunity to study an optional unit, which can include:

• Heritage Property
• Property Investment
• Project Management
• International Fieldwork
• Building Technology

Alternatively, your optional unit can be to learn a second language or develop existing language skills through our Institution-Wide Language Programme.

Third year

During your third year, your studies will focus on quantity surveying subjects that will prepare you for the working environment, such as:

• Measurement
• Tender Documentation
• Quantity Surveying Practice
• Contract Administration
• Claims Management
• Dispute Resolution
• Project Management

You will also continue to study Applied Professional Awareness and Research Methods which will help equip you for finding employment and to develop a portfolio that you will be able to present to potential employers. The final-year dissertation will allow you to develop an expertise in a subject of your own choice related to construction and quantity surveying, which is developed and conducted under the guidance and advice of a personal tutor.

In a piece of group work you will also develop a ‘real’ project.

Teaching and assessment

In addition to the more traditional forms of assessment, the course is assessed in a variety of different ways, providing you with valuable skills and experience in activities such as teamwork, report production, making presentations and web authoring. Most lectures are supported by a set of tutor-based study guides, many of which are available electronically via our web-based learning resource. Whilst classroom-based learning has its place, by its very nature this course requires a proactive hands-on approach that encompasses site visits and fieldwork, introducing you to the markets and environments in which you will eventually work.

We encourage all of our students to become active learners, in order to take full advantage of the many learning resources that are available while they are students here in Portsmouth. All students are assigned a personal tutor, who holds weekly tutorial sessions where issues raised in the course can be discussed in small groups.

Input from industry

The ‘property development and construction lecture series’ provides the opportunity for all our students to attend and contribute to the topical debates that surround emerging property and construction issues. Delivered by specially invited professional practitioners, the lecture series provides an opportunity for updates and a first-hand perspective on both local and national property and construction developments.

Career prospects

Placement opportunities

In the Faculty of Technology we feel that students should be given as many opportunities as possible to gain meaningful work experience and build employability skills throughout their studies to make them more attractive to future employers.

Working with other University services, the Faculty’s Student Placement and Employability Centre (SPEC) ensure students have access to a range of volunteering and work experience opportunities, including year-long industrial placements, and provide support for the different types of application processes.

To find out more about how you can gain work experience whilst studying BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying, please visit our Placements Office pages.

Graduate roles

Most students join the course because they want to become chartered surveyors. Either working in a professional practice, as part of a multi-disciplinary team or as a contractor’s quantity surveyor, the skills you will learn lead to a career as a chartered quantity surveyor.

Working in the construction and property industry makes for an interesting, challenging and exciting career. It is highly regarded and contains a great deal of networking opportunities. The best thing about working in the construction industry is the sheer variety of projects in the field. This will make you increasingly employable in your further career.

British quantity surveying skills are highly regarded and the majority of international projects call for them. This gives graduates the potential for both working in the UK and to be based abroad. Apart from the financial rewards there can also be the satisfaction of being part of a team delivering landmark projects.

Facilities and features

This course is based in the award-winning Portland Building. The acclaimed design of the building incorporates many of the principles of effective and environmentally sensitive property development. Apart from being a fantastic place to learn and study, the building is an example of how important buildings are in creating an environment that is conducive to learning. Part of the building is given over to a resource centre which includes extensive computer facilities and student access to online technical indexes and resources.

Maths Café

The Maths Café is a daily drop-in facility, where ANY student of the University can receive help on any maths or statistics problem they encounter in their studies. We operate in a friendly, informal location which we hope will encourage students to visit us. Handouts on key topics are available to take away. Students can be shown how to use computer aided learning packages, which can be accessed from any computer attached to the University's computer network.

Entry requirements

View all the entry requirements for BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying for the academic year 2013/14 (opens in new window).