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Areas of Specialization

The department offers five primary areas of specialization:

Applications of Technology in Planning

This specialization enables students to develop knowledge and skills for using computer technology in the planning process. Classes and studies draw on the rich agglomeration of technical applications and skills available in the Silicon Valley region.

Electives in this concentration are:

  • URBP 248: Computers in Urban Design
  • URBP 278: Geographic Information Systems Planning Applications
  • URBP 279: Advanced GIS Applications
  • URBP 276: Social Media & Planning (recommended additional 1 unit course)

Community Planning and Development

This specialization provides students with knowledge and skills that planners use to ensure that development in our communities addresses the needs of all its residents. This area examines the interactions among social, economic, political, and cultural factors and the built environment.

Elective courses in this concentration are:

  • URBP 103: Local Politics (3 units)
  • URBP 203: Collaborative Neighborhood Planning
  • URBP 223A: Housing I
  • URBP 228: Urban Community Development
  • URBP 233: Social Issues in Planning
  • URBP 250: Urban Planning Public Finance
  • URBP 275E: Historic Preservation Planning
  • URBP 275F: Private Development & Urban Planning

Environmental Planning

The linkage between the built environment and the natural environment is a subject of growing concern to planners at the local, regional, and national levels. This concentration prepares graduates to understand the linages between land use patterns and the natural environment, as well as the policy tools that planners use to promote sustainable urban development.

Elective courses in this concentration are:

  • URBP 185: Environmental Impact Analysis
  • URBP 240: Environmental Planning
  • URBP 260: Environmental Planning Topics
  • ENVS 190: Advanced Environmental Impact Analysis

Transportation and Land Use Planning

Students in this program learn the principles of transportation and land use planning at the local and regional levels. In today's rapidly growing regions, planners recognize that transportation and land use planning are intricately connected and must be planned together to allow residents and freight carriers to access destinations quickly and efficiently, improve accessibility options for residents who cannot or choose not to drive, and build economically and environmentally sustainable communities.

Elective courses in this concentration are:

  • URBP 211: Regional Analysis and Planning
  • URBP 226: Regional Transportation Planning
  • URBP 255: Urban Growth Management
  • URBP 256: Local Transportation Planning

Urban Design

This specialization provides students with knowledge and skills that planners use to enhance the design of the physical environment.

Elective courses in this concentration are:

  • URBP 163: Twentieth Century Urban Design (3 units)
  • URBP 231: Urban Design in Planning
  • URBP 232: Urban Design Studio
  • URBP 248: Computers in Urban Design