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Top 10 Urban Design Colleges in the World
Urban design is an interdisciplinary field that combines architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental design to create sustainable and functional urban spaces. Pursuing a career in urban design requires a strong foundation in design, planning, and engineering principles. Therefore, choosing the right college to study urban design is crucial for building a successful career in this field.
In this article, we will take a look at the top 10 colleges to pursue a career in urban design. We will provide a brief overview of each college, its admission procedure, and eligibility criteria for admission.
1. Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Harvard University Graduate School of Design is one of the top-ranked colleges for urban design in the world. The school offers a Master of Urban Planning degree program that prepares students for careers in urban design, planning, and development. The program focuses on sustainability, community development, and urban policy. Students also have the opportunity to engage in research and fieldwork projects, including international travel studios. The admission procedure requires a Bachelor’s degree and submission of GRE or TOEFL scores.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $52,906 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) School of Architecture and Planning
The School of Architecture and Planning at MIT offers a Master of City Planning program that focuses on sustainable urban development, transportation planning, and real estate. The program prepares students to work in the public and private sectors, as well as in academia. Students also have access to research centers, including the Center for Advanced Urbanism and the Real Estate Innovation Lab. The admission procedure requires a Bachelor’s degree and submission of GRE or TOEFL scores.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $53,450 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
3. University of California, Berkeley, College of Environmental Design
The College of Environmental Design at the University of California, Berkeley offers a Master of City Planning program that combines design, planning, and policy to create sustainable and livable urban environments. The program emphasizes environmental sustainability, social equity, and community engagement. Students have access to research centers, including the Center for Community Innovation and the Institute of Urban and Regional Development. The admission procedure requires a Bachelor’s degree and submission of GRE or TOEFL scores.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $53,450 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
4. Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation
Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation offers a Master of Science in Urban Planning program that focuses on design, sustainability, and social equity in urban environments. The program prepares students to work in a range of fields, including affordable housing, transportation planning, and community development. Students have the opportunity to participate in fieldwork and research projects, including the Urban Design Lab and the Center for Sustainable Urban Development. GSAPP offers a range of academic programs that study the built environment at multiple scales and through different critical methods. Learn more about the School’s various degree programs in Architecture, Urbanism, Preservation, and Real Estate Development.
GSAPP strives to redefine the roles of architecture and urbanism within a research university, envisioning new forms of practice as research and new research practices. The School’s Centers, Labs, Incubator, and Initiatives lead groundbreaking investigations that tackle emerging challenges in the disciplines of the built environment and create opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: Tuition Fees: $59,430 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
5. University of Pennsylvania School of Design
The School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania offers a Master of City Planning program that emphasizes sustainability, equity, and social justice in urban design. The program prepares students to work in a range of fields, including land use planning, real estate development, and community engagement. Students have access to research centers, including the Penn Institute for Urban Research and the Center for Environmental Building and Design.
The University of Pennsylvania Stuart Weitzman School of Design prepares students to address complex sociocultural and environmental issues through thoughtful inquiry, creative expression, and innovation. As a diverse community of scholars and practitioners, we are committed to advancing the public good–both locally and globally–through art, design, planning, and preservation.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $51,156 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
6. University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning
The Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan offers a Master of Urban Design program that focuses on creating sustainable and livable urban environments. The program emphasizes design thinking, systems thinking, and social justice. Students have the opportunity to participate in research and fieldwork projects, including the Detroit Collaborative Design Center and the Michigan-Mellon Project on Egalitarianism and the Metropolis. The admission procedure requires a Bachelor’s degree and submission of GRE or TOEFL
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $51,156 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
7. Georgia Institute of Technology School of Architecture
Embedded in the heart of Atlanta and situated in a Tier 1 research institution, the Georgia Tech School of Architecture combines research, technology, and design to form a well-rounded, interdisciplinary, future-focused education as students prepare to make an impact on the built environment. The School of Architecture at Georgia Institute of Technology offers a Master of City and Regional Planning program that focuses on urban design, transportation, and sustainability.
The Georgia Tech School of Architecture is filled with world-changers, entrepreneurs, and makers, and we fuel their ambitions by providing the resources, knowledge, applications, and connections necessary for their success. Our students work in studios in the Architecture West building, catch lectures in the Reinsch-Pierce Family Auditorium and pin up their work in the Cohen Gallery in Architecture East, collaborate in our spacious studios in Hinman Research Building, and pour cement, fly drones (and so much more) in the Digital Fabrication Lab.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $51,156 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
8. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Department of City and Regional Planning
The Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill offers a Master of City and Regional Planning program that focuses on creating sustainable and equitable urban environments. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a leader among planning schools with world-class faculty and high-impact research. Located in the booming Research Triangle, Carolina Planning is a center of collaboration and innovation in the economic, housing, community development, transportation, land use and environmental planning that shapes our cities and regions of the world. A two-year professional program that teaches the theory, skills, and decision-making techniques needed for positions of leadership in the planning profession.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $51,156 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
9. Pratt Institute School of Architecture
The School of Architecture at Pratt Institute offers a Master of City and Regional Planning program that focuses on urban design, sustainability, and community development. We educate future leaders in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, city and regional planning, construction and facilities management, environmental management, urban placemaking, historic preservation, and real estate. These fields are all intrinsically linked to the major environmental and social issues we face today, and at the Pratt School of Architecture you will gain the technical, strategic, and conceptual skills necessary to meet those challenges.
An education in the School of Architecture will help you focus on your chosen program while being part of a larger interdisciplinary community that provides opportunities to learn both individually and collectively within and across disciplines. No matter which program and department you enter at the School of Architecture, you will be immersed in disciplinary, intellectual, and cultural diversity.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $51,156 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
10. University of Southern California School of Architecture
The School of Architecture at the University of Southern California offers a Master of Urban Planning program that focuses on sustainable and inclusive urban design.
Landscapes are the dynamic synthesis of natural systems, sociocultural forces and the physical material of the constructed world. The Graduate Program of Landscape Architecture + Urbanism uses the complex regional geography of Southern California as its primary laboratory to generate and test responses to the planet’s most pressing environmental challenges, including resounding impacts of climate change, rapid urbanization, social and environmental injustice, and the interface of nature and technology. Looking regionally and globally, we conduct rigorous design-research to develop multi-scalar innovations in performative regional infrastructures, equitable urban frameworks and public spaces, and healthful biophysical systems. We focus on pressures of urbanization and how to utilize landscape strategies to shape those systems, spaces, cities and infrastructures to imagine more resilient futures – socially and ecologically.
Admission Requirements: Bachelor’s degree, GRE or TOEFL scores
Tuition Fees: $51,156 per year for full-time students (2021-2022 academic year)
It’s important to note that admission requirements, deadlines, and tuition fees may change from year to year, so it’s always a good idea to check the official websites of these colleges for the most up-to-date information.
In conclusion, pursuing a career in urban design requires a strong educational foundation, and selecting the right college or university is crucial for achieving success in this field. The 10 colleges and universities listed above are some of the best institutions for urban design programs, offering rigorous coursework, access to industry professionals, and real-world experience. Each of these colleges and universities has its unique strengths, and selecting the right one will depend on individual preferences and career goals. By choosing one of these institutions, students can gain the skills and knowledge needed to make a positive impact on the built environment and shape the cities of the future.
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