Urban & Regional Planning > Academic Programs > Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning

Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning

The doctoral program provides training in advanced research in urban and regional planning. Graduates are expected to pursue academic appointments at institutions of higher education and to achieve higher levels of professional practice in the public and private sectors.

Admission

Admission to the PhD program requires a master’s degree in planning. In exceptional circumstances candidates with either an advanced research background or exceptional professional experience, but who do not have an MA degree may be admitted. Admission may be granted with the understanding that some background courses or examinations may be required. Consideration for admission requires a GPA of at least a 3.5 in previous graduate work. Applicants are also required to submit Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores for verbal, math and analytic sections. Non-native speakers of English are also required to submit the TOEFL; a score of 600 is required. Applicants are also expected to submit evidence of advanced work such as a research report or sole-authored plan.

Degree
Each Ph.D. degree student is required to complete at least fifteen credits in advanced courses (in addition to any remedial courses designated at the time of admission):

PLAN 655: Advanced Methods and Models (3 credits)
PLAN 602: Advanced Planning Theory (3 credits)

In addition to these two courses, PhD candidates are required to take six credits in an allied field (to be selected in consultation with the student’s adviser). Students are also required to take one three-credit course in research design/proposal writing.

Prior to starting the dissertation, PhD candidates will sit for a comprehensive examination in their primary fields of planning. Students will be required to form a PhD committee drawn primarily, although not exclusively from the department, to guide the student through the qualifying examination and the dissertation research. Under the direction of its chair, the committee will devise a qualifying examination covering both core topics in urban and regional planning and the student’s substantive area of research. Upon successful completion of the qualifying examination, students will be required to present their dissertation proposal to a department colloquium. When the student has successfully completed the examinations and presented the dissertation proposal the student will advance to candidacy. Each student is required to conduct original research and write and present a defense of a doctoral dissertation based on the dissertation proposal. The dissertation research will be guided by the student’s committee. Upon completion, the student will defend the dissertation before the committee. If successful, the candidate will be recommended for award of the PhD in Urban and Regional Planning by the University of Hawai‘i.

Requirements

The MURP degree is a two-year professional program that requires a minimum of 42 credit hours. It is designed to equip students to fill professional planning and policy analysis roles in public agencies, private firms, and community groups, particularly in Hawai‘i, Asia, and the Pacific Basin. All students complete the core sequence (planning theory, planning methods, spatial planning theory, economic analysis for urban and regional planning, and planning models, a 6-credit-hour practicum, and three of the following courses: PLAN 610, 620, 630, and 640). The remainder of the academic program, including a second methodology course, is individually designed with concentration in a specialized area of the student’s own choosing (with the consent of his or her adviser), provided adequate academic resources are available in the department and at the University. Grades of B or better are required in PLAN 600, 601, 602, 603, and 605, and an average of B or better must be earned in all courses counted toward the MURP degree. MURP students receiving a grade lower than a B will be allowed one additional opportunity to achieve a B or better in each core course.

Both Plan A (thesis) and Plan B (non-thesis) programs are available. All students are required to pass a final, which includes a successful defense of the thesis on the selected area of concentration, and to meet the program standards for graduation.