A bachelor’s degree in urban planning and a master’s degree in urban planning are both required. You will also require on-the-job experience gained through summer and part-time internships while in college. Unless they have extensive hands-on experience in an urban planner office, most urban planners cannot find work with only an undergraduate degree.
Attending college undergraduate classes is the first step toward earning an urban planner degree. Successful urban planners usually major in a variety of subjects, including political science and economics. Analyzing community needs, from schools to highway construction, is one of this position’s responsibilities. A bachelor’s degree in geography, social science, or a related subject will help you understand local needs; however, future urban planners can choose to earn a bachelor’s degree in another subject because the majority of the planner’s career will be taught in subsequent graduate courses.
A master’s degree program in urban design, environmental planning, or regional planning is usually required to earn an urban planner degree. The urban planner degree courses combine hands-on workshops, discussion seminars, and laboratory work, rather than being a continuous set of lecture courses. Many classes revolve around the creation of a mock urban center using student suggestions and ideas. Alternative classes may include a set problem presented the professor, with students encouraged to work in groups to find a cost-effective and safe solution.
Internships are frequently required in graduate courses, either as part-time work during the semester or as a full-time summer internship. Many students look forward to internships because they can apply their classroom learning to real-world problems. Students will collaborate with professional planners to make recommendations for future projects or to propose a novel solution to a city issue. Once the student has earned their urban planner degree, the career relationships formed during the internship can lead to a large network of potential employers. During the final semester of graduate school, most internships are required.
Some students are hired the company that offered the internship after receiving an urban planner degree from a graduate school. Because the employer knows the person’s work ethic from the internship experience, many companies use this hiring method. This hiring method ensures that a quality employee is hired, and for hiring managers, it may be preferable to spending a lot of time reading resumes and interviewing candidates. Companies with enough urban planners on staff, on the other hand, may be able to assist the previous intern writing letters of recommendation for a better job opportunity elsewhere.