Urban and Regional Planning

Study mode:On campus Study type:Full-time Languages: English
Local:$ 26.8 k / Year(s) Foreign:$ 37.5 k / Year(s) Deadline: Mar 1, 2025
201–250 place StudyQA ranking:3719 Duration:

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The goal of the program is to train students to become planning practitioners  capable of working in a variety of public, nonprofit, and private sector environments in a number of different fields. Graduates of this program will go on to play a vital role addressing the planning and public policy challenges in our region and beyond.

The program recognizes the need for effective planners to possess diverse skills in the planning and management of human settlements. Accordingly, the MURP core coursework includes thematically-related courses in land use planning, research methods, quantitative analysis, planning theory and history, planning politics and policies, community and economic development, and geographic information systems (GIS). Students have the option of enrolling in electives that focus on housing & community development, land use planning, local economic development, GIS, international development, coastal zone management, housing & community development,  environmental and natural resources planning, and transportation planning. These areas of specialization build on the strengths of existing faculty in our sister-program in Public Administration, as well as with colleagues and facilities across the university. The program is thus distinct in its flexibility. Graduates of the program will be able to:

  1. Engage in policy-related research relevant to urban and regional issues
  2. Assume positions of leadership public, private and nonprofit organizations engaged in planning, land use, and public policy
  3. Further public discourse on the problems confronting cities and regions
  4. Utilize communications and technical skills to become successful at all levels of the planning profession.

Total Minimum Program Hours: 48 hours

Core Requirement – 27 hours

Foundational Core Courses

  • URP 6058 Community Development Planning (3)
  • URP 6100 Planning, Theory, and History (3)
  • URP 6115 Planning, Policy, and Politics (3)
  • URP 6316 Land Use Planning (3_ 
  • URP 6549 Urban and Metropolitan Economic Development (3)

Analytical Methods Core Courses

  • URP 6232 Research Methods for Urban and Regional Planning (3)
  • PAD 6703 Quantitative Aids for Public Managers (3)

Planning Practice & Techniques Core Courses 

  • GIS 5049 GIS for non-majors (3)
  • URP 6940 Urban Planning Internship (3)

*required for students without 5 or more years of relevant planning experience

Electives - 15-21hours minimum

(21 hours required for non-thesis option; 15 hours for thesis option)

The rest of the required coursework allows the URP student an opportunity to Explore one or more fields of urban & regional planning through approved electives within and outside the School of Public Affairs.  Depending on personal interest, students may choose course work in the following areas:

  • Housing & Community Development;
  • Environmental & Natural Resource Policy;
  • Geographic Information Sciences;
  • Globalization & International Development Planning;
  • Transportation Planning.

Comprehensive Exam 

This is the default option for the MURP program. All MURP Students are required to take this examination at the end of, or during, the last semester of the program coursework. The examination is waived for students who elect, with the approval of the program director, to pursue the thesis option. (See below for more on the thesis option) 

Non-thesis                                                                                                                              

  • Non?thesis students must complete all of the 27 hour core, 21 elective credits.

Thesis - 6 hours minimum

  • URP 6971 Thesis (6)

Students approved to pursue this option must complete all of the 27 core credits, 15 elective credits, and a minimum of 6 credit hours of thesis. The thesis must be completed and approved for the credit to be received.

Internship - 3 hours

  • URP 6940 Internship in Urban and Regional Planning (3)

All MURP students are required to complete at least 180 hours of work in a planning agency to earn the 3 credit hours stipulated as part of the core requirements above. . This requirement is waived for students with at least 5 years of relevant planning experience.

  • BA/BS in any field with a GPA of 3.00 or higher on a 4-point scale (overall or on last 60 hours of undergraduate work);
  • Two letters of recommendation (one from a faculty member if BS/BA, in last 5 years);
  • A “letter of intent” explaining your background and interest in Urban and Regional Planning
  • GRE is required with preferred minimum scores of 153 Verbal (59th percentile) and 144 Quantitative (18th percentile.)  However, the MURP program will waive the GRE requirement if the student meets at least one of the following criteria:
    • A completed master’s degree from a regionally accredited institution
    • A 3.25 or higher GPA in upper division undergraduate work from a regionally accredited institution
    • A doctorate (including professional degrees such as the JD and MD) from a regionally accredited institution.
  • All Students not meeting one of the above criteria will be considered for conditional admission based on the following criteria:
    • A preferred minimum score of 153 Verbal and 144 Quantitative) on the GRE
    • An academic writing sample
    • Three written letters of recommendation, with at least one from a faculty member familiar with the applicant’s academic performance and potential.  Should the applicant be unable to provide the letter from a former professor, with the Director’s approval, letters from other sources will be accepted.

Conditional admission status will be converted to regular status upon completion of three courses from the MURP core requirements with a GPA of 3.50 or above.

  1. A satisfactory score on the TOEFL (79 on the Internet-based test and 550 on the paper-based test) may be required for the natives of non-English speaking countries.
  2. All applicants asre required to write a statement describing their purpose and goals in the MURP statements.

Scholarships

  • Graduate Assistantships
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