Master of Urban Planning
Typical Schedule
Master of Urban Planning (M.U.P.) students typically complete most of their required core courses in their first year, giving them the flexibility to take mostly electives in their second year.
- Year 1 (fall): UP 503 (intro to stats.), 510 (public econ.), 513 (law)
- Year 1 (fall or winter): UP 540 (theory)
- Year 1 (winter): UP 504 (quantitative methods), 505 (planning practice)
- Year 1 (winter) or Year 2 (winter) UP 610 (fiscal planning)†
- Year 2 (fall and/or winter): six-credit capstone: either UP 631, 634 ,733, or 734
† Note: Students may take 610 either in their first or second year. Taking 610 in your first year would just leave your 6 credit "capstone" studio-like course as the only remaining "core" course for year two.
In the fall, most students take three or four core courses (*), and sometimes an elective or two:
- 503 Intro to Statistics* (if you have no statistics background)
- 510 Public Economics* (if you have no economics background)
- 513 Legal Aspects*
- 540 Planning Theory* (or winter)
- UP 590 Expanded Horizons (1 credit)
- (elective)
Many students take the less formal, one-credit course: UP590 (Expanded Horizons: a 4-5 day field trip to a major North American city). In addition, if you waive out of either 503 and/or 510 [see below], you will have more room for electives this fall. Office of the Registrar Schedule of Classes.
Generally students take 12 credits/semester, but you can take more/less depending on your needs and workload. (15 credits/semester is not unusual, but 18+ credits would likely be an excessive load for most students.) You need 48 credits to graduate with your Master of Urban Planning (M.U.P.) Most courses are three credits.
Each student must complete a minimum of four credit hours of courses outside the program (i.e., "cognate" courses). In general, students are encouraged to take courses across the university, as long as 30+ credit hours are taken in graduate-level urban planning courses. Students typically take planning courses in the fall and begin looking around at non-planning courses in later semesters.
See your concentration for specific information on that concentration's core courses, cognates, and recommended course sequences.
