Since its founding in 1948, the Department of City and Regional Planning (DCRP) has grown into one of the largest and most respected graduate city and regional planning programs in the United States. Throughout its long and changing history, the department has sought to provide its students with:

Lifelong analytical, research, and communication skills;
The knowledge and skill sets to successfully practice planning in a variety of urban, metropolitan, and regional settings;
An understanding of the history and theory of cities and urban regions;
Expertise in various fields and sub-fields of city and regional planning;
Sensitivity to the human impacts of planning decisions.

The Master of City Planning (M.C.P.) degree combines a common core curriculum with the opportunity to specialize in one of four concentration areas:

Degree Requirements

To earn the M.C.P. degree, a student must complete:

48 units of coursework within two consecutive years of residence, or 36 units in concurrent degree programs (normative time to degree).
The core curriculum;
A concentration curriculum; and
A capstone project consisting of either a client report, a professional report, or a master's thesis.

Program Selection and Advising

Students plan their individual programs with the help of their faculty advisor. All entering graduate students are assigned an advisor, whose role is to help students structure their first-semester program. Normally, first-year students meet with their assigned advisors during the first or second week of classes.

Students declare a concentration at the end of the first semester by completing a study plan, signed by the advisor, and filing it with the Graduate Student Affairs Officer (GSAO). Advisors are chosen within the area of concentration.

Internships

All students are expected to complete a three-month internship in a planning-related position between their first and second years of study unless exempted by previous work experience. Frequently, the work completed during a summer internship forms the basis for the professional report. International students who hold an F-1 or J-1 visa must complete an internship during their two years of study.