Urban and Regional Planning
Head of the Department: Christopher Silver111 Temple Buell Hall
611 Taft Drive
Champaign, IL 61820
(217) 333-3890
j-terry@uiuc.edu
Graduate Degree Programs
The Department of Urban and Regional Planning offers graduate programs leading to the degrees of Master of Urban Planning and Doctor of Philosophy in Regional Planning. Students can also apply to joint degree programs to obtain a Juris Doctor and a Master of Urban Planning or a Master of Architecture and a Master of Urban Planning, or other UIUC master's degrees and a Master of Urban Planning.Admission
The social sciences, the physical sciences, the design professions, engineering, and urban planning are relevant undergraduate backgrounds for graduate work in planning. Consideration will also be given to students prepared in the humanities and other fields. The Graduate College admission requirements apply. International applicants must score 590 or better on the paper-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), or 243 or better on the computer-based test. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required for all applicants. The additional requirements described below apply for admission to the doctoral program. Spring admission may be permitted only in exceptional circumstances.Graduate Teaching Experience
Although teaching is not a general Graduate College requirement, experience in teaching is considered an important part of the doctoral experience in this program.Master of Urban Planning
The professionally accredited master’s degree program prepares
students for careers in planning practice. Such careers involve public
service at all levels of government, private consulting practice,
and a large range of organizations in need of planning services. The
program also prepares students for advanced work leading to the Ph.D.
degree and a career in teaching and research. The program requires
core courses, an area of concentration, electives, and a capstone
experience. Core courses focus on the basic elements of planning,
including theory, land use, history, analytical methods, spatial organization,
public organizations, and law. Concentrations include community and
economic development, environmental science and sustainable development,
planning information and decision support systems, and land use and
infrastructure. Within these concentrations, students can further
specialize in topics such as urban design, transportation, historic
preservation, housing, growth management, and international planning.
A capstone experience is required in the form of a master’s
project, advanced workshop, concentration paper, or thesis. Internships
during the summer are highly recommended.
Candidates from a wide variety of undergraduate degrees may qualify
for the Master of Urban Planning degree by completing one of the following
options for total number of hours: (1) 64 hours, including core courses,
if an internship is not completed; (2) 60 hours, including core courses,
if a zero-hours internship course (Urban Planning 590) is successfully
completed; (3) 32 hours if a student has a B.A. in Urban Planning
from Urbana-Champaign and was admitted to the accelerated program
so that most of the core master’s courses were completed as
an undergraduate. Only students selected by the faculty as outstanding
planning undergraduates at the end of their junior years are eligible
for this third option. Up to 16 hours may be waived if a student has an undergraduate professional degree in urban planning and the department approves a petition for this option. This reduction in courses cannot be combined with option 3, and the student must take at least 30 hours units of his or her coursework in urban planning.
Candidates may propose joint programs combining the MUP with other UIUC master's degrees, according to the following guidelines: 1) They must either be enrolled or offered admission to the other degree program; 2) They must submit a proposal to the MUP program coordinator describing the interdisciplinary value of the proposed joint program and show how the second degree serves as a specialization in the planning curriculum; 3) They must provide evidence of a commitment to their proposal from their academic advisor and coordinator from each program; 4) The proposal must be approved by the Graduate College via petition; 5) At least 40 hours must be in Urban Planning, including all core, capstone, and concentration requirements; 6) The two programs must total a minimum of (a) 80 hours, or (b) the sum of 40 Urban Planning hours plus the required number of hours for the second degree, whichever is greater (in the latter case, the other program may at its discretion count up to 8 hours of Urban Planning courses as electives in meeting its degree requirements as long as students are required to take no fewer than 40 hours in that program); 7) Students may receive credit for a thesis or master's project in both programs provided faculty from both programs participate; and 8) Students must be in residence in Urban Planning for at least two semesters.
For options 1, 2, and 4 joint programs, at least 40 hours must be in urban and regional
planning courses. In option 3 at least 20 hours must be in urban
and regional planning courses. Candidates admitted to the joint Master
of Urban Planning and Juris Doctor or the Master of Urban Planning
and Master of Architecture must complete a minimum of 32 hours
in urban planning, including core courses and the requirements of
the other program. The thesis or master’s project of a joint
degree student may be taken in either program, with faculty in each
program participating on the committee.
Doctor of Philosophy in Regional Planning
The curriculum is designed for students who have completed a master's degree in urban planning or a closely related field. Students will, therefore, already have taken a set of required courses and should be ready for coursework focused on preparing for the qualifying examinations in planning theory, research methods, and the chosen substantive area of intended research. Faculty advisors and the PhD program coordinator provide guidance in selecting coherent sets of courses appropriate for individual students.
Students are required to take 64 hours of credit, usually 32 hours of courses and 32 hours of dissertation research. A student with a master's degree in a closely related field, but not in planning, may be required to take more than 32 hours of course work to fill gaps in preparation. Careful selection of additional courses may permit such students to also obtain a Master of Urban Planning degree.
All students take an advanced planning theory course. Students without prior course work in planning theory will take an introductory planning theory course before taking the advanced course. Of the remaining seven courses, one will usually be in research design, two in research methods, and four in the substantive area.
All students must pass a qualifying examination covering planning theory, research methods, and a substantive area of intended research. The qualifying examination is tailored to the focus of each student and includes a written portion and an oral defense before a committee. The content of these exams and the courses to prepare for them vary depending on the type of reseach the student chooses to pursue. For example, research methods may focus on qualitative or quantitative approaches. The substantive specialization may be defined by functional attributes, such as transportation or land use, cultural and institutional situations, such as international development or community development, or tools development, such as regional economic modeling or planning support systems.
A successful dissertation in planning reports original research on a subject appropriate to the field, the results of which produce significant advances in knowledge about that subject. Each student takes a Preliminary Examination, which is an oral examination based on the dissertation proposal and is administered by the student's dissertation committee. Upon approval of the dissertation proposal, the candidate can proceed with the research, written analysis, and findings. When the candidate and the supervisor agree that the research and writing are complete, the candidate is ready for the final examination, which is a defense of the dissertation before the committee.