The Department of City and Metropolitan Planning is a member of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP). The Master of City & Metropolitan (MCMP) is accredited by the National Planning Accreditation Board (PAB)
Mailing Address: 375 S. 1530 E. Rm 235, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0370
Office Hours: 9am-5pm
Website: https://plan.cap.utah.edu/
Phone: 801-581-8255
Email: plan@arch.utah.edu
Department Chair: Divya Chandrasekhar, Ph.D.
Director of Graduate Studies: Divya Chandrasekhar, Ph.D.
Undergraduate Director: Divya Chandrasekhar, Ph.D.
MCMP Coordinator: Alessandro Rigolon, Ph.D.
PhD Coordinator: Andy Hong, Ph.D.
Undergraduate Advisor: Emi Ata'ata, M.Ed.
Graduate Advisor: Alex Francis-Riggan, MBA
Mission Statement
We will train students, conduct research, and engage the profession to create meaningful planning processes and outcomes that improve the well-being and quality of life of community members.
Overview
Planners assist in creating opportunities related to the preservation and enhancement of community life, the protection of the environment, the promotion of equity, and the management of urban growth and change. Planners address numerous public issues affecting where people live, work, and play, where they shop and receive medical attention, how they get from place to place, what communities look like, how communities work, and how we use our resources. Planning typically involves the performance of various roles. Some planners function as technical analysts or researchers, others as designers or program developers, some as social change agents, and others as managers or educators.
Planning is a highly interdisciplinary profession. Planners develop plans, programs, and policies; planners must assess, understand, and communicate urban policy options and their social, economic, political, and environmental consequences. Specializations include land use, environmental planning, economic development, housing and community development, transportation planning, urban design, historic preservation, and governmental information systems. Recurring themes include human settlements, interconnections, remote and indirect consequences, pathways for future change, plurality of context, diversity of needs, participatory decision-making and linking knowledge to collective action. Planners work in various public agencies - city, county, state, and federal - and in consulting firms, public utilities, community organizations, and non-profit foundations and agencies.
Types of Degrees
Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science
Minors
Master of City and Metropolitan Planning
Graduate Certificates
Doctor of Philosophy
Undergraduate Programs
Students in the BA and BS in Urban Ecology Program study human settlements – from rural communities to megacities – consisting of dynamic relationships between social, natural, and built systems. The Urban Ecology program in City and Metropolitan Planning at the University of Utah takes an action-oriented, community-engaged approach to help students gain the knowledge and skills to foster sustainable, resilient, and equitable communities. The program is responsive to urban and rural problems and opportunities in the Intermountain West, such as population growth and demographic change, economic restructuring, natural resource management, and climate change.
Students in the Urban Ecology program engage with topics such as sustainability, ecological planning, land use and transportation, economics, law, housing, disaster resilience, dark skies, and community engagement. Many classes will take students out of the classroom and involve them in hands-on research and engagement in local communities and environments. In their senior year, students take the Ecological Planning Workshop, which applies and synthesizes what they have learned to tackle a real-world planning project with a local community.
The undergraduate program in Urban Ecology will prepare students for graduate study or a career in planning or design, sustainability, public health, public policy, community development, and other fields working at the nexus of people, place, and design.
Graduate Program
The Master of City and Metropolitan Planning (MCMP) is an accredited professional degree that prepares students to achieve excellence in guiding the growth and development of towns, cities, and regions. The core courses emphasize ecological resiliency, smart growth, and social justice through effective communication, collaboration, and innovation. The curriculum allows students to specialize in a variety of areas including affordable housing, community development, disaster recovery planning, ecological planning, geographical information systems, historic preservation, land-use, sustainability, real estate development, rural and small-town planning, transportation, and urban design. The program blends core knowledge and skills with specializations to prepare students for professional leadership roles in public sector agencies at local, regional, state, and federal levels as well as private consulting firms, and non-profit organizations. Interdisciplinary work, drawing from fields outside of planning, is encouraged. The curriculum additionally features a community-based planning workshop and a capstone professional project.
The doctoral degree in Metropolitan Planning, Policy and Design helps meet society's need for researchers, scholars, teachers, and leaders to make our metropolitan areas sustainable and resilient. The planning challenge is to anticipate change and learn how best to manage it; the policy challenge is how to craft and implement policies needed to facilitate desired change, and the design challenge is how to shape the built environment to achieve desired outcomes. The degree program is managed by the Department of City & Metropolitan Planning and is designed to facilitate the interdisciplinary culture of the University of Utah.
Additional Information
Scholarship/Fellowship Opportunities
The department offers scholarships and fellowships for incoming students based on merit.
Financial Aid/Support Information
The department offers both TA and RA positions for graduate students. Financial Aid website: https://plan.cap.utah.edu/financial-aid/.
Facilities, Centers, or Labs
Metropolitan Research Center, Center for Ecological Planning + Design, Health Aging and Resilient Places Lab
Professional/Career Opportunities
The department is a participating member of the American Planning Association (APA), the APA Utah Chapter, and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning.
Departmental programs prepare students for roles in public sector agencies at the local, regional, state, and federal levels, as well as in private consulting firms and nonprofit organizations. Graduates are well equipped to pursue advanced study or careers in planning and design, sustainability, public health, public policy, community development, and related fields. Students regularly secure positions across these sectors, applying their skills to address complex social, environmental, and economic challenges.