About the Program

The Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning and Design is offered by the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. The Ph.D. program prepares students to teach at the university level in departments of Urban Planning, Architecture, Historic Preservation, Landscape Architecture or Real Estate Development. It also qualifies graduates to conduct research and participate in high-level decision-making in the public, private and non-profit sectors.

This Ph.D. program builds on the University of Maryland's National Center for Smart Growth Research and Education and the faculty's community-based work in Maryland, nationally and internationally. The faculty of the School is involved with the State of Maryland on issues of land-use planning and future patterns of urban development, with local communities to address issues of education reform, economic development, housing stabilization and revitalization, and urban design; and with foreign governments on issues of urban development and planning. This ongoing research and education provides a rich intellectual environment for students pursuing the Ph.D. in urban and regional planning and design.

Specific assets of the Ph.D. program at the University of Maryland, College Park are:

• Proximity to Baltimore, Washington, DC, and Annapolis, three cities that provide a wealth of topics for applied and theoretical urban planning and design research.
• The National Center for Smart Growth Research and Education. The University of Maryland has created The National Center for Smart Growth Research and Education as a cooperative venture of four of its schools (Architecture, Planning and Preservation; Public Policy; Agriculture and Natural Resources; and Engineering). The Center undertakes a broad range of research in growth, development, redevelopment and smart growth issues.
• Maryland's leadership in the Smart Growth arena. Maryland's legislation serves as a national model for land planning and growth management. Under the leadership of then Governor Paris Glendening, the State of Maryland aggressively implemented dozens of innovative programs aimed at guiding metropolitan growth, land preservation and transportation planning in Maryland's future.
• The integration of planning and design coupled with programs in historic preservation and real estate development. With all four programs in the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, the University of Maryland's Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning and Design takes a uniquely comprehensive and holistic approach to the social, economic, and design aspects of urban environments.
• The School's Master of Real Estate Development. This new degree can provide Ph.D. candidates who have an interest in the built environment and development finance with an opportunity to do cutting edge research with experienced faculty.
• A nationally-known faculty, with specializations in urban form and growth management, social planning, land use planning, urban design, real estate development and international planning.

Thesis defense for Aysgul Yilmaz