Master of Urban Design

In courses led by Berkeley faculty from across disciplines, you’ll develop a deep understanding of cities and the forces that shape them. After three intensive semesters of courses and studios, you’ll be prepared to take what you’ve learned in the context of California and apply it anywhere in the world.

Berkeley MUD is a one-year STEM-designated program for anyone with a prior professional degree in architecture, landscape architecture, or city planning who wants to learn advanced skills and tackle urgent urban design issues. In our program, you’ll engage with sites at urban, suburban, and territorial scales, all requiring inventive design strategies supported by research and analysis and grounded in economic, political, and social contexts.  

Over the course of three semesters — summer, fall, spring — you’ll learn to work effectively in teams across a large range of scales and develop a deep understanding of urban places and the social interactions that shape them. The program culminates in the thesis studio in the spring semester, where you realize an advanced design project based on your own passions and concerns.

As a UC Berkeley graduate student, you will be studying at the number one public university in the United States alongside the brightest and most passionate students from across the globe. Berkeley’s environment of critical inquiry, discovery, and innovation is informed by a deep commitment to contributing to a better world. 

California is the ideal laboratory for creating new forms of socially and environmentally resilient urbanism. With a diverse population of 40 million, who live in megacities and small rural towns — and everything in between — California offers boundless opportunities. Always at the cutting edge, California is at the forefront of progressive policies and innovative solutions to meet the challenges of a changing climate and rising socioeconomic inequality.

The College of Environmental Design — the top-ranked public school in the U.S. for architecture and the built environment (2025 QS World University Rankings) — is UC Berkeley’s home for theory, research, innovation, and practice focused on the built environment. Home to three departments, four undergraduate majors, and more than a dozen graduate and professional degree programs, the college is an interdisciplinary creative community dedicated to solving the world’s most pressing environmental problems. Research and teaching focus on design excellence, climate solutions, equity and social justice, and new materials and technologies.

Faculty from across the College of Environmental Design lead and teach in the Master of Urban Design program, bringing a variety of disciplinary perspectives.

As a MUD student, you will complete one year (three consecutive semesters) in residence, which includes 32 units of coursework, the core curriculum, and an advanced design project or master’s thesis. Each student completes the following core curriculum:

For your final project, you have a choice of two different plans: an Advanced Design Project (Plan I), filed with the MUD program or a Thesis-Design Project (Plan II), filed with the Graduate Division.

The Advanced Design Project (Plan I) starts with a specific site, program or design problem. It is explored through extensive site analysis, review and analysis of relevant precedents, the development of design alternatives leading to a design proposition that addresses the challenges of the site and problem.

The Thesis Project (Plan II) starts with a topic or issue and a set of related questions. It is explored through a review of relevant scholarly literature, applicable case studies and logical analysis of the discourse in the topic area. The exploration leads to a design proposition (or thesis) that demonstrates how the exploration is transformative in the creation of urban places. It must demonstrate its impact through a design that engages the spatial and environmental analysis of a particular site and context.

Students who graduate from Berkeley’s Master of Urban Design program take the lessons they learned in California and apply them in other parts of the country — and the world — that are also seeking sustainable forms of human-centered urban development. You can find our alums working at large and small firms and municipal agencies, heading their own practices, teaching, and starting nonprofits.

We are committed to recruiting students of outstanding achievement and potential, regardless of ability to pay. 

UC Berkeley begins accepting applications in early September for the following fall term only (no spring admissions). The fall semester begins in mid-August. 

We recommend you start the application process as soon as possible. As a prospective graduate student, you’ll submit your application through UC Berkeley’s Graduate Division. You’ll find lots of useful information on the Graduate Division website, including application instructions and information about funding your education.

Only online applications (including letters of recommendation) are accepted. All documents, regardless of language of instruction, must be translated into the English language. Transcripts, diplomas, and certificates should be provided in the original language of instruction AND in English. Transcripts must show your full name, degree conferral date, and degree.

The Master of Urban Design (MUD) program is intended for exceptionally qualified post-professional students who already have professional work experience. Students must demonstrate evidence of high-quality work and potential for development based on the grade-point average, TOEFL/IELTS scores, letters of recommendation, and examples of work.

Admission to the Master of Urban Design program requires a prior five-year professional degree in Architecture (BArch or MArch), Landscape Architecture (BLA or MLA), or City and Regional Planning (MCP, MUP or equivalent with a strong design background). Professional experience after completion of the professional degree is highly recommended.