The APA Los Angeles provides this section of the website for current and prospective planning students. Please click on one of the links below to learn more about planning schools in the area, as well as related resources or events. If you have any requests for this section, contact APA Los Angeles’s University Liaison. Refer to APA Los Angeles’ Leadership Page for Student Representatives.
Planning Schools
UCLA
UCLA’s Department of Urban Planning, established in 1969, is known for its progressive curriculum that promotes cultural diversity, community activism, international development, environmental quality, and social justice. The department takes full advantage of its location in Los Angeles, an extraordinary laboratory for learning about every aspect of urban and regional planning and public policy, from housing to toxic waste disposal, urban design to mass transit, community advocacy to regionalism, site planning to multi-cultural arts programming, job generation to historic preservation.
The Department prepares students for a wide variety of professional roles in policy making and planning in the public domain. It provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the many forces that shape a community’s well-being. Through course work and internships, students acquire the professional skills needed to guide the complex, interrelated processes of social and economic change on any geographic scale.
For more information, please visit the School of Public Affairs, Department of Urban Planning website.
USC
Master of Planning Program, School of Policy, Planning and Development, University of Southern California
The accredited USC Master of Planning program, housed since 1998 in the School of Policy, Planning, and Development, began in 1955. The program prepares students for a wide range of careers through a curriculum that offers knowledge of the field’s theoretical foundations and its practical applications, often taught by leading professionals from the region. The program is committed to offering students the opportunity to explore planning issues in local, national, and international environments. Students have praised the program’s international (e.g., China and Brazil), national (e.g., New Orleans and the US-Mexico border), and local planning studios. USC Price School provides a rich academic environment that offers students many opportunities for practice- and policy-oriented research positions. Students can draw upon USC Price courses in real estate development, public policy, health policy, and public management, as well as in architecture, geography and other USC units. Our students are positioned at the hub of the Los Angeles region, the largest planning job market in the world, just a short ride from the planning offices of city, county, and regional government, and of major consulting firms and nonprofit agencies.
For further information, please visit the School of Public Policy, Master of Urban Planning website.
The Bachelor of Science in Policy, Planning, and Development is an interdisciplinary major that prepares students for a professional career and/or graduate study by engaging them in the analysis and exploration of the problems and issues communities face in the 21st century. Students gain exposure to society’s critical political, social, and economic issues in areas such as planning, health care, and the environment, with a focus on developing solutions that lead to improvements in urban life.
For further information, please visit the School of Public Policy, Undergraduate Programs website.
Cal Poly Pomona
The Cal Poly Pomona Urban and Regional Planning Department, established in 1965, is recognized as a national leader in planning education. It is the only accredited undergraduate planning program in Southern California, and one of the largest in the nation. Accreditation teams give the program very high marks for the quality of teaching and the professional readiness of its students. Cal Poly Pomona has an extensive network of alumni in the field and an excellent reputation in the profession. In addition, students learn planning in a college with architects, landscape architects, environmentalists, and artists, thus enriching their education. Undergraduate and graduate planning students have active student organizations that enhance the educational experience through field trips, professional activities and community service.
Please contact the Department at (909) 869-2688 or urpdept@cpp.edu. The Department will send you information, arrange a meeting with faculty, arrange a class visit and/or tell you about other activities in the Department.
For further information, please visit the Department of Urban and Regional Planning website.
Cal State Northridge
The California State University, Northridge, Department of Urban Studies and Planning offers a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Urban Studies and Planning and a Master of Urban Planning (MUP). Located in the City of Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley, the faculty works with the students to provide a strong understanding of local and regional problems that address our modern metropolis: transportation, housing and sustainability.
Students start with the fundamentals: theory, history, research methods and urban design; and finish with specialization and application through seminars, field work and a required internship experience. With a low student to faculty ratio, students have an opportunity to know and work with their professors and frequently participate in research with them. Alumni are actively involved in preparing students for their professional careers. Undergraduate students are prepared to work in full-time positions or to continue on to graduate school for more advanced education.
For further information, please visit the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Urban Studies & Planning website.
Long Beach Community College
Long Beach City College (LBCC) and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona) have collaborated to establish an innovative Urban Planning Associate of Science program. This partnership enables LBCC students to seamlessly transfer into the third year of the Urban Planning program at Cal Poly Pomona.
The program includes a series of new, urban-focused courses designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of urban planning and its related fields. These courses have been officially approved by the LBCC Curriculum Committee and are set to be offered starting in the Fall of 2024. Additionally, the program encourages interdisciplinary collaboration by having urban planning students work closely with peers from other built environment majors, such as interior design and architecture. This approach not only enriches the educational experience but also mirrors the collaborative nature of real-world urban planning and design projects.
