MCRP Program
The Master of City and Regional Planning program is a 2-year program of study. The formal requirements for the degree are as follows:
- A total of 90 credit hours. Of these:
- 47 credits are in the required core curriculum.
- The remaining 43 hours are electives. Of these, 23 credits must be additional graduate electives in City and Regional Planning and the School of Architecture and up to 20 credits may be graduate courses in related areas from other departments. (Note: students do not have to take 20 hours outside; this is just an upper limit.) Some exceptions to this distribution are possible for dual degree programs or by petition. See below for further explanation. Thesis credits are counted as elective City and Regional Planning credits. The student must have an overall B average (3.0 on a 4-point scale) for graduate coursework at the time of graduation.
- At the end of the course of study, the student must either
- Write and have accepted a Master's thesis (the so-called Plan A degree option); or
- Take and pass the Comprehensive Examination (the so-called Plan B degree option); or
- A student may select either option, but most students end up obtaining their degree under Plan B (the Comprehensive Examination).
A student who enters the program other than in the Autumn Quarter should consult with his or her adviser to determine how best to sequence the courses, meet the prerequisites, etc.
Course Load
All regular students carrying between 12-15 hours per quarter are considered full time. However, international students are required to carry a minimum of 10 credit hours per quarter to fulfill immigration requirements (this can include their required English courses) unless they hold a Graduate Associateship.
Graduate Associates (50% or more) must register for a minimum of 15 credit hours per quarter (however, under special circumstances a minimum of 9 credit hours is allowed) except in the summer when it is a minimum of 7 credit hours. Students with a 25% associateship must register for at least 7 credit hours.
Fellows and trainees must register for a minimum of 15 credit hours each quarter of appointment (GSH II.2.1.2, II.2.1.3).
NOTE: Part-time students are not eligible for financial aid.
Thesis or Master's Examination
One of the degree requirements for City Planning is either the satisfactory completion of a thesis (Plan A) or the satisfactory completion of a written exam and an individual research paper (Plan B).
Masters Thesis (Plan A)
The Master's thesis is a research project undertaken with the guidance of the faculty. A research proposal must be presented to the student's Advisory Committee before work can begin on the thesis itself. Upon approval of the research proposal, the student will begin work on the thesis.
The steps in thesis topic formulation and approval are as follows:
- Selection of the Advisory Committee It is the student's responsibility to select a member of the City and Regional Planning faculty to serve as the primary adviser. In addition, the student, together with the primary adviser, must select a secondary adviser. This is formally accomplished by filling out the "Approval of Thesis Advisory Committee" form available from the department secretary (see Exhibit E). This committee will be activated upon the approval by the Graduate Studies Committee Chairperson. In general, students will select their Advisory Committee at the end of their first year and no later than the beginning of their second year.
- Preparation of the Research Proposal During the first quarter after the creation of the Advisory Committee, the student is responsible for preparing a "Research Proposal." Guidelines for the Preparation of Research Proposals are available to the student (see Exhibit F). The student is to prepare the research proposal while enrolled in a 793 course for a minimum of three credit hours with the primary adviser. (The Advisory Committee has the responsibility for providing the necessary guidance and assistance during this quarter.)
- Evaluation of the Research Proposal: At the end of the quarter in which the student begins the research proposal, the proposal is submitted to the Advisory Committee for approval or disapproval (Exhibit G). If the Advisory Committee disapproves the research proposal, then the student will switch to Plan B and will be required to take the Comprehensive Examination at the appropriate time. If the Advisory Committee approves the research proposal, then the proposal is submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee Chairperson for approval. The student may then (and only then) begin work on the thesis and should enroll in City and Regional Planning 998 (Thesis Research). A copy of the student's approved research proposal becomes part of his or her file. Disapproval of the thesis proposal does not automatically imply a U (unsatisfactory) for 793. The primary adviser will determine the grade for 793. In general, the quality of the literature review portion of the proposal will be evaluated for the purposes of 793. If the student wishes to reconstitute the Advisory Committee, then the form "Request for a Change in Advisory Committee" must be submitted to the Department Chairperson (see Exhibit H). In no case will a student be allowed to reconstitute the Advisory Committee more than once except in circumstances beyond the control of the student.
- Preparation of the Master's Thesis Upon approval of the research proposal, the student will begin work on the Master's Thesis under the guidance of the Advisory Committee. The student is required to have registered for a minimum of ten units of City and Regional Planning 998 before graduation, not including the three units of 793 taken during the preparation of the research proposal. A maximum of 15 hours of 998 will be allowed. It is recommended that students take five hours of 998 per quarter. These units cannot be transferred to Plan B. (It is the responsibility of the Advisory Committee to provide the necessary guidance and assistance in the preparation of the thesis.) In general, the student will have completed the thesis toward the end of the second year of study. At that time the Advisory Committee will evaluate the Master's thesis in its written form, and the student must undergo an oral defense of the thesis by the Advisory Committee. The results of the oral defense and the evaluation of the thesis in written form must be presented to the Graduate Studies Committee Chairperson. The thesis must be submitted to the Graduate School no later than one week before commencement and must conform to the Graduate School format requirements described in Section III of the Graduate School Handbook, which can be obtained from the Graduate School or the Graduate Programs Office.
- Evaluation of the Master's Thesis If the Advisory Committee approves the Master's thesis in final form, then the student has fulfilled the requirement of Plan A (Thesis Option) for completion of the Master of City and Regional Planning degree. If the Advisory Committee does not approve the Master's thesis, then the student must switch to Plan B in order to receive the Master of City and Regional Planning degree. It should be noted that the credit hours of City and Regional Planning 998 are not transferable to Plan B, and the student would have to complete additional hours of course work before graduation.
Comprehensive Examination (Plan B)
A student who does not do a thesis or whose thesis is not approved must take the Comprehensive Examination (CE). The student takes the Comprehensive Examination in the quarter he or she is to graduate. Since the exam is not offered in the Summer Quarter, students who will graduate in the Summer should take the in the Spring Quarter.
The Graduate Studies Committee Chairperson will meet with all students planning to take the Comprehensive Examination. Generally, this meeting has been on the first Friday of each quarter but may be at a different time if conflicts arise. At that meeting, the nature of the Comprehensive Examination and the rules governing its administration will be reviewed. The will consist of two partswritten and oral.
- A four-hour written examination will be given on the Friday of the 5th or 6th week of the quarter, from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. The day will be decided by the majority of students attending the informational meeting at the beginning of the quarter, or if there are no preferences expressed, by the Graduate Studies Committee Chairperson.
- The examination is divided into three sections:
- Section A: covers material from the core courses on quantitative methods and urban and regional economics including City and Regional Planning 771, 781, 762 and 763. All students must answer at least one question from this section.
- Section B: covers material from the physical planning courses, including City and Regional Planning 745, and the Studio experience.
- Section C: covers material from law, planning theory, social science, history, and administration, including City and Regional Planning 761, 712, 733, 643, and 764. All students must choose a fourth question from one of the above sections.
- At the exam, each student will be given an identification number which will be used on the answer paper so that faculty grading the exam cannot identify individuals.
- The Comprehensive Examination questions will be graded with a letter grade on each question. In order to pass, a student must receive a "B" average and must not fail (get B- or below) more than one question. In order to pass with distinction, a student's grades must average at least A-. Student exam papers will not be returned and will not be available for review.
- A student who fails the written exam must take an oral exam.
- The oral exam will be for a maximum of two hours, with the participating faculty composed of those faculty members who have granted failing grades, the Examination Committee (one faculty member representing each of the three major subject areas of the examination), and the student's academic adviser acting as Chairperson of the Committee. The student has the option to expand the participating faculty with a faculty member from the Department selected by the student. The Examination Committee determines the result of the oral exam after consultation with the other participating faculty. The grade on the oral is final.
- In the case of a failing grade, the Graduate School rules provide:
"If the examination is judged unsatisfactory, the Master's Examination Committee must decide whether the student will be permitted to take a second Master's Examination in that graduate program and must record that decision on the Master's Examination Report form"(GSH II.5.10.7.3).
A student who fails the oral examination and is permitted to retake the examination will take the written examination as described above.; In the event of failure of the second written examination, the student will take an oral examination as described above.; Failure of the second oral examination means that the student will not graduate. - In case of a second oral exam, the Examination Committee will be composed of the same faculty members that were in charge of the first oral exam.; "A student who has failed the Master's Examination twice in one graduate program is not permitted to take another Master's Examination in that program" (GSH II.5.10.7.5).
MCRP Core Curriculum
Information about the individual courses, including in many cases recent syllabi, can be found on the "Courses" menu.
- CRP 643 American City and Regional Planning Since 1900 A.D. - 4 credit hours
- CRP 701 Internship Seminar – 1 credit hour, repeated a minimum of three times
- CRP 712 Theory of City and Regional Planning - 4 credit hours
- CRP 733 Urban Planning and Urban Form: Social Functions - 4 credit hours
- CRP 745 Physical Elements of Urban Development - 5 credit hours
- CRP 761 Land Use Controls - 4 credit hours
- CRP 762 Urban Planning Data and Forecasting - 5 credit hours
- CRP 763 Consequence Analysis - 4 credit hours
- CRP 771 Application of Quantitative Methods in Urban Planning - 4 credit hours
- CRP 781 Spatial Models in Urban Planning - 4 credit hours
- CRP 793 Orientation - 1 credit hour
- Planning Studio (one of six: 749, 821, 824, 851, 852, 853) - 5 credit hours
Recommended MCRP Curriculum
The following is a recommended curriculum. Courses need not be taken in this order. Students may enter the program in autumn, winter, or spring quarters; however, the preferred matriculation is in the autumn quarter since some courses assume others as prerequisites, and courses are given only once a year.
Year 1
Autumn Quarter - 15 credit hours
- CRP 771 Applications of Quantitative Methods in Urban Planning - 4 credit hours
- CRP 643 American City and Regional Planning Since 1900 A.D. - 4 credit hours
- CRP 793 Orientation - 1 credit hour
- CRP 701 Internship - 1 credit hour
- Electives - 5 credit hours
Winter Quarter - 15-18 credit hours
- CRP 761 Land Use Controls - 4 credit hours
- CRP 745 Physical Elements of Urban Development - 5 credit hours
- CRP 733 Urban Planning and Urban Form: Social Functions - 4 credit hours
- CRP 701 Internship - 1 credit hour
- Electives - 1-3 credit hours
Spring Quarter - 15-18 credit hours
- CRP 712 Theory of City and Regional Planning - 4 credit hours
- CRP 762 Urban Planning Data and Forecasting - 5 credit hours
- CRP 781 Spatial Models in Urban Planning - 4 credit hours
- CRP 701 Internship - 1 credit hour
- Electives - 1-4 credit hours
Year 2
Autumn Quarter - 14-16 credit hours
- CRP 763 Consequence Analysis - 4 credit hours
- Electives/Studio* - 10-12 credit hours
Winter Quarter - 15 credit hours
- Electives/Studio*
Spring Quarter - 15 credit hours
- Electives/Studio*
*Students take at least one studio course during the second year. Choices include:
C&RP 749 Development Countries Studio (spring quarter) 5
C&RP 821 Regional Planning Studio (spring quarter) 5
C&RP 824 Introduction to Planning for Sustainable Development (winter or spring quarter) 5
C&RP 851 Urban Precinct Planning (autumn quarter) 5
C&RP 852 Urban Project and Policy Planning (winter quarter) 5
C&RP 853 The Urban General Plan (winter quarter) 5
Other studios may be available each year depending on student and faculty interest.
Internship Requirement
The internship program is designed to provide successful candidates with a broad but intensive learning experience in various areas of city and regional planning. The program is designed to prepare individuals for professional planning positions.
Students shall begin work in an internship upon the start of the MCRP program or as soon as an internship placement has been made in coordination with the Internship Coordinator. Students shall obtain a minimum of 400 hours of internship experience to complete the internship requirement.
The Internship Coordinator will assist students in placement in an internship. It is permissible for the student to obtain an internship on their own, in consultation with the Internship Coordinator.
For each quarter that a student is in an internship, he/she shall be required to register for 1 credit hour of CRP 701 and attend this internship seminar.
Students unable to complete the internship requirement due to full-time employment, family obligations, or other circumstance approved by the graduate studies chair shall complete a Practicum CRP 990, for five credit hours, which is a supervised field experience. The Practicum will be approved by the Internship Coordinator, but may be under the guidance of any of the C&RP faculty.