Urban Planner Guide: How to Become an Urban Planner

An urban planner is a professional who helps to design and execute plans for sustainable and beneficial land use within a city. Urban planners should have competencies in a series of fields, including public policy, economic analysis, engineering, city planning, and community engagement. These professionals may specialize as city planners, regional planners, land-use planners, economic development specialists, or transportation planners.

Urban planners may work alongside civil engineers or real estate developers to help draft a construction or city plan from scratch. They should be proficient in the local building codes and zoning laws to adapt an existing neighborhood to the changing needs of the population. Urban planning is a collaborative job that involves managing many moving parts, so planners will need sharp analytical skills, as well as quick decision-making abilities and communication skills.

An urban planner’s role may differ depending on their specialty, but urban planners are generally responsible for one or more of the following:

• Expansion: When the population of a city or town grows, the city must adapt to accommodate it. Urban planners work with civil engineers and architects to help develop plans for new housing or parking structures in a city that needs to expand to better serve its residents.
• Conservation: Certain urban planners work specifically at heritage sites or protected landmarks to conserve and maintain existing significant cultural sites.
• Short or long-term planning: Some urban planners specialize in strategic urban planning to help community development in a particular jurisdiction over a series of years. Other planners may focus on short-term planning for individual site plans or singular projects within different jurisdictions.
• Revitalization: Crumbling buildings, broken benches, or abandoned buildings in an area can pose a safety hazard to citizens, in addition to driving down the area’s property values. Urban planners will work with government agencies, stakeholders, and landowners to revitalize areas that need a structural makeover.
• Regional planning: Regional planners develop and maintain the infrastructure, services, and settlement growth of a large jurisdiction made up of many towns or cities.
• Environmental planning: Environmental urban planning considers the natural environment of a particular area to formulate sustainable development plans that reduce ecological impact. Urban planners use geographic information systems (GIS) tools and statistical software to gather and analyze data (such as environmental studies or market research data) to craft the most efficient plan for an area.
• Addresses needs of a community: Urban planners will often meet with the local government, public officials (as well as the public in general), developers, and engineers to help draw up new community plans for an area to accommodate their developing needs. Urban planners will also survey the area to see what else the community needs—from new schools to updated transportation hubs—in order to improve living conditions.

Urban planning can be a fulfilling profession with many potential career paths. Here is an overview of how you can become an urban planner.

1. 1. Obtain a degree. The lowest level of education required for an urban planning career is a bachelor’s degree, but these professionals typically work as junior urban planners. Urban planners that can lead planning projects independently typically have a master’s degree in urban planning. Find a school that provides bachelor’s degrees for related fields such as environmental design, political science, architecture, or engineering.
2. 2. Apply for an internship. Most urban planners have a full-time internship after they receive their master’s degree or work at a part-time internship as they’re working on their advanced degree. Internships give you hands-on work experience and allow you to build your network of experienced working professionals. In addition, some entry-level jobs may require you to have at least one to two years of experience.
3. 3. Get certified. Earning certification can help give you a competitive advantage as an urban planner, but it is typically not required. The American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), which is a branch of the American Planning Association, offers this certification. In order to get certified, aspiring planners must meet particular academic requirements, as well as pass an exam to earn their AICP certification.
4. 4. Apply for positions. Use any connections you’ve made or search online for an urban planner job in your selected (or related) urban planning field. Create a solid resume and cover letter detailing your education, experience, and certifications.

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