The Institute for Planning and Building in Non-European Regions (PAR) at the Technical University of Darmstadt, one of Germany's leading universities. The Institute belongs to the Department of Architecture and has a 30-year history of education in the fields of architecture and urban design in developing countries.

While the Institute's regular course program focusses on the design related dimension of urban planning, the new Master's degree program "International Cooperation and Urban Development" was created to address urban management issues in Latin America, Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe comprehensively from their social, technical, ecological, and economic perspectives.

The postgraduate program aims at qualifying professionals for conceiving and directing forward-looking urban management approaches by providing an integral understanding of urban space, society, and technology in the context of proceeding globalization. It is geared towards enabiling students to conceive, oversee, and evaluate comprehensive sustainable urban projects in a development context.

Given that a large proportion of investments in the regions of greatest need involves foreign aid and finance, a second focus is placed on international cooperation  a growing field of activity still marked by an unsatisfied need for well-trained experts.

Most lecturers are internationally distinguished scholars and practitioners, who guarantee up-to-date insights into a rapidly advancing discipline and an excellent quality education. The multi-national background of both participants and academic staff helps the students build up a worldwide network of professional contacts - an indispensable asset especially in the field of international cooperation.