Urban and Regional Planning, MURP

Students enter the MURP program from a variety of fields, usually the social sciences, architecture, engineering, public health, social work, and, increasingly, the natural sciences, but also from such diverse fields as philosophy, human development, and history. Students coming into the program are required to have an adequate background in descriptive and inferential statistics or to acquire this background prior to enrollment in PLAN 601 .

Native speakers of English are required to take the GRE General Test. Others will be expected to have achieved adequate preparation in English as evaluated by the TOEFL. Each applicant should provide two letters of reference, preferably from individuals acquainted with the applicant academically or professionally. In addition, applicants must complete an Express information form (available from the department). An interview with a member of the faculty, if feasible, is highly recommended. The deadline for application for admission is February 1 for the fall semester and September 1 for the spring semester.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the MURP degree, students should be able to:

1. Explain major planning paradigms and their applications;
2. Articulate processes leading to urbanization and rationales for planned interventions;
3. Apply planning methods to organize, analyze, interpret and present information;
4. Critically and creatively develop planning inquires or processes to foster solutions-orientated decision-making;
5. Effectively collaborate as a planning team to work with a and/or stakeholder to assess and address a relevant planning problem to create a plan or professional report;
6. Effectively present oral and written work (as a plan, professional report, or research paper) in a coherent, persuasive and professional manner;
7. Reflect upon the ethical implications of the choices planners make as professionals.

MURP graduates hold a variety of planning and related positions in public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and private firms. In Hawaiʻi, these include the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism; Department of Health; Land Use Commission; Legislative auditor; Department of Hawaiian Home Lands; House Majority Research Office; Hawaiʻi Community Development Authority; Housing Finance and Development Corporation; Department of Public Safety; Department of Land and Natural Resources; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Honolulu City and County Departments of Planning and Permitting, Land Utilization, Housing and Community Development, and Parks and Recreation, Office of the Managing Director, Office of Council Services; Planning Departments of the counties of Hawaiʻi, Kauaʻi, and Maui; Mediation Center of the Pacific; banks and trust companies; consulting firms; development corporations; real estate firms; university research and extension organizations; and community colleges.

On the continental U.S., graduates are city and county planners, program analysts in federal agencies (e.g., Office of Ocean and Coastal Management and Office of Management and Budget), and planning consultants. Other graduates include a planner for a nonprofit housing corporation, a lawyer-planner, and a law professor. Overseas positions include planners with regional planning, housing redevelopment and environmental agencies, the United Nations, private development and consulting firms, as well as faculty in university programs. Several MURP graduates are pursuing doctoral degrees in planning, geography, political science, and economics, while others are seeking law degrees.