Welcome to the Urban and Regional Planning Program
at Michigan State University!

Welcome to Urban and Regional Planning online! Our website is designed to provide information about the Program, faculty, research, outreach, degree requirements and student support.

The Urban and Regional Planning Program offers four degree programs:

• Bachelor of Science in Urban and Regional Planning (BSURP)
• Master in Urban and Regional Planning (MURP)
• Dual MURP/Juris Doctor (with the MSU College of Law)
• Master of International Planning Studies (MIPS)

Our degree programs serve students from across the United States and from around the world, and are recognized globally for their course content, high standards and commitment to link theory and practice. The Program’s faculty are recognized as leading scholars with diverse research and outreach interests that address contemporary and emerging planning issues.

The four year BSURP degree follows the generalist and interdisciplinary approach that allows for flexibility to choose courses that prepares the student for entry level planning jobs. The Program offers a strong foundation in planning, but also is open to develop student interests to combine Program and student academic strengths. We encourage all MSU undergraduate students to consider a major in urban and regional planning, and to meet with a Program advisor to develop an academic program that serves your interests and expertise.

Urban and Regional Planning Program students excel academically. The planning faculty encourages students to learn specific skills such as GIS and planning, written oral and communication skills, planning methods, and grant writing. Our students participate in internship programs with various planning and planning agencies in Michigan, and many of our students take advantage of internship opportunities in other parts of the country. Study Abroad opportunities are numerous for our undergraduate students, while global planning issues are brought into the classroom so that graduates of the Program have an awareness of planning not only in the United States but also from a global perspective.

The two year MURP degree is an advanced degree that follows the interdisciplinary approach while at the same time allowing highly motivated graduate students to concentrate their studies in one of three concentration areas. MURP graduates enjoy competitive starting salaries generally in mid-level positions in planning and other fields. The Dual MURP/JD degree gives full-time students interested in law and urban and regional planning the opportunity to complete both degrees in a four year period of study. The two semester plus one summer MIPS degree is an advanced degree for students with strong experience in global planning and/or with strong interests in global planning.

Admission to our graduate degree programs is very selective. Many factors are considered to determine admission to our MURP and Dual MURP/JD degree programs, such as: undergraduate GPA, GRE score, letters of recommendation, and the applicant’s statement of purpose. Applicants admitted are generally strong in writing, communications skills, statistical methods (or demonstrate the potential to master graduate level statistics and methods), and have demonstrated a passion for the field of urban and regional planning. Applicants for our MIPS degree have experience in global planning and/or have a demonstrated commitment to planning in the international arena.

The Urban and Regional Planning Program at MSU is one of the oldest academic urban and regional planning programs in the United States. Our BSURP and MURP degrees have been accredited by the Planning Accreditation Board since the creation of PAB.

Please contact our office if you have any questions regarding our degree programs.

Sincerely,
Mark Wilson, Ph.D.
Associate Professor & Program Director

Our Mission

Teaching:
To provide future urban and regional planning practitioners the knowledge, practical skills, and values to enable them to become effective, and to improve the quality of places and regions.

Research:
To conduct and disseminate research on the "theory and practice" of urban and regional planning and to assist society to plan for more equitable and sustainable communities.

Outreach:
To address community problems by linking knowledge and practice by facilitating mutual learning between community and university. 

Facilities

The URP Program's computer laboratory is located in the Urban Planning & Landscape Architecture (UPLA) Building and is offered exclusively to URP students and those enrolled in URP courses. The computer lab has up-to-date workstations, high-speed laser printer, and a photo scanner. All computers are loaded with the latest software packages. Students also have access to the many computer labs on campus.

The Charles W. Barr Planning and Design Library is located in Room 210 UPLA Building. A Branch of the MSU Main Libraries, the Barr Library maintains a collection dedicated to urban planning and landscape design topics, including approximately 35,000 planning reports from various governmental agencies throughout the United States and Canada and several foreign countries. Additionally, the library has a book collection of nearly 5,000 items including professional and trade journals, vertical files, encyclopedias, bibliographic references, VHS videotape collection, and various types of equipment/design tools that can be checked out. Concentrating on a vast range of material relating to urban and regional planning and landscape architecture, other subjects covered are graphic design, new urbanism, land use, historic preservation, urban revitalization, zoning, sustainable development, and gardens. Barr Library computers are networked with other MSU Libraries' on -line catalogs, electronic references, and databases.

Newsletter

We publish MSU Planner quarterly.

• Spring 2007 (1,341 KB PDF)
• Fall 2006 (1,178 KB PDF)
• Fall 2005 (7,601 KB PDF)
• Winter 2004 (523 KB PDF)
• Spring 2004 (678 KB PDF)

About this site

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