Applicable only to students admitted during the 2012-2013 academic year.

Doctoral Degree

Admission

Program Name

Urban Planning

Address

3250 School of Public Affairs Building
Box 951656
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1656 

Phone

(310) 825-4025 

Email

upinfo@publicaffairs.ucla.edu  

Leading to the degree of

Ph.D. 

Admission Limited to

Fall 

Deadline to apply

Ph.D.: December 15th 

GRE (General and/or Subject)

GRE: General 

Letters of Recommendation 

3 

Other Requirements

In addition to the University's minimum requirements and those listed above, all applicants are expected to submit the departmental application and a statement of purpose. Applicants admitted to the Ph.D. program in Urban Planning must have a master's degree in planning or a closely related field.

The statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, grade-point averages and GRE scores, and resume of relevant experience are all considered in the review process for admission. Applicants must submit transcripts from each college attended.

A minimum grade-point average of 3.5 is required in all graduate work completed for consideration for the Ph.D. program. Employment experience in planning or a closely related field is strongly recommended.

Applicants are required to submit two statements of purpose. The first should address how past experiences have shaped the applicant's interest in planning, the applicant's personal career plans, and how a Ph.D. in planning will contribute to those plans. The second statement should describe the applicant's intended area of concentration, specific areas of interest in planning, including research interests, and current plans for the dissertation.

Before acceptance into the program, two faculty members must agree to assume responsibility for guiding students in their studies.

For those applicants whose native language is not English, a score of 600 (paper and pencil test) or 250 (computer-based test) or 100 (internet-based) on the TOEFL, or overall band score of 7.5 on the IELTS is expected. 

Advising

Every entering student has an advisory committee composed of two faculty members, one of whom is the primary advisor. By the end of the first year students must ask a third faculty to join this committee for the purpose of administering the Major Field Examination. At least two of the members must be Urban Planning ladder faculty (0% appointment or higher). One of the members may be a UP non-ladder faculty who has been granted approval to serve on committees by the UCLA Graduate Council. Any exception to this policy must be approved by the student’s advisor(s), the Ph.D. Coordinator, and the Department Chair.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Students choose a major field by the end of the first quarter in the program. Expertise in the major field is primarily reflected in an ability to teach a sequence of Urban Planning courses at a major university, from introduction to the field to an advanced research seminar. Within each major field, students should identify two to three subspecializations that reflect their particular interests and approach. The following is a list of major fields in which faculty members are prepared to guide students in preparing for the major field examination:

History of Planning Practice
History of Planning Doctrines

Political Economy of Urban and/or Regional Development
Community Development: Social, Economic, and Physical
Critical Studies of Cities and Regions

Comparative Social Policy
Social Policy Formation (U.S.)
Public Finance of Urban Services
Social Services Planning
Urban Transportation Planning
Housing Policy
Political Economy of the Environment
Land-Use Policy and Planning
Regional Resources Policy (water, energy and so forth)
Pollution and Environmental Hazards
History of Environmental Policy

History of the Built Environment
Social Policy and the Built Environment
Planning and Designing the Built Environment

Comparative International and Third World Studies:
Regional Development
Rural Development
Urbanization Policy
Housing Policy
Resource-based Development
Environmental Policy

Additional Major Fields. In special circumstances, students may devise their own field in consultation with appropriate faculty members. Final approval of the proposed additional major field must be obtained from the department chair. Further details may be obtained from the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

A foreign language is not required either for admission to or completion of the doctoral program. However, if students are expecting to do dissertation research abroad, they are strongly advised to obtain the necessary language skills prior to beginning such research.

Course Requirements

A high level of competence in a major field and in planning theory and history, as measured by coursework and doctoral examinations, is required. In addition, students must satisfy a requirement in research methods, take three related courses in an area outside of their major field, and are required to take a three-course sequence in planning research design (Urban Planning 208A-208B-208C). Urban Planning 208A introduces students to planning scholarship and guides them through the preparation and filing of the doctoral program of study. Urban Planning 208B is a foundation course in planning research design. Urban Planning 208C guides students through the preparation of their doctoral dissertation research proposal.

Planning Theory and History Requirement . Planning theory is concerned with the ways that philosophers and social scientists have examined the question of how scientific and technical knowledge is to be joined to practice and action, with particular emphasis on the field of urban and regional planning. Planning history looks at how planning has evolved in the U.S., Western Europe, and elsewhere in the world as a form of institutionalized practice. Students are expected to acquire an understanding of both and become familiar with the several styles and forms of planning and the major debates in the field. To satisfy the planning theory and history requirement students must take a two-course planning theory and history sequence (Urban Planning 222B and 222C). Students who enter the doctoral program without having previously completed a graduate level course in planning theory and history equivalent to Urban Planning 222A are required to complete this course before taking Urban Planning 222B and 222C.

Major Field Requirement. The major field is defined as a subject in which a student is prepared to teach two or three courses and conduct advanced research. The area should be generally recognized by academics in other planning schools and should be substantially broader than a dissertation topic. To prepare for an individualized major field examination which tests competence in an area of planned study, students must submit for approval a plan of study to their advisory committee and to the coordinator of doctoral studies, preferably no later than the beginning of Spring Quarter of the first year. The plan must include (1) a one to two page description of the major field and its subspecializations; (2) a short indicative bibliography; (3) a list of suggested courses and research papers through which the student proposes to prepare for the examination; (4) a list of three courses each to satisfy the Research Methods and Outside Field Requirements; (5) a timetable indicating expected completion dates for all requirements and examinations; and (6) a brief statement identifying a possible dissertation research topic. Once approved, the plan is filed with the graduate adviser. The normal time for completion of the major field requirement is two academic years. The actual timing for the examination is set by agreement between the student and the advisory committee.

Research Methods Requirement. To fulfill the research methods requirement, a student must complete a sequence of three methods courses beyond the introductory level with grades of B or better. All doctoral students must first demonstrate competence in statistical methods at the master's level (Urban Planning 220B or the equivalent) either by completing Urban Planning 220B with a grade of B+ or better or by submitting a waiver petition with appropriate documentation. In addition, as part of their plan of study, all students must take a pre-approved set of three advanced courses in research methods. These courses, which students should begin taking in the first year in the Ph.D. program, must be closely related to the major field and must be completed with grades of B+ or better. A list of recommended courses is included in the Ph.D. handbook. Students may waive a portion of this requirement on the basis of prior work by submitting a petition with the appropriate documentation to their committee and the coordinator of graduate studies.

Outside Field Requirement. Doctoral students must complete at least three related courses at UCLA in an area outside their major field.  Usually these courses are taken outside the Department of Urban Planning.  These courses must be completed with a grade of B+ or better. 

*For students who do not have a Master’s degree in Urban Planning, the outside field course requirement will be satisfied by completion of the Master’s core and required courses: UP 207, UP 220A, UP 222A, and either UP C233, UP 242, UP 281, or UP M254.  A placement examination is required before enrolling in UP 207 and UP 220A.  Please see your Graduate Advisor for details.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass University written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations the University oral qualifying examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to University requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

Details on the written qualifying examinations are included in the Planning Theory and History and Major Field Requirements under Course Requirements.

After successful completion of the planning theory and history, major field, research methods, and outside field requirements, students may nominate their doctoral committee. The committee consists of four members, three of whom may be chosen from the advisory committee and one of whom must come from outside of the department (students may contact the graduate adviser for additional details on committee membership). The doctoral committee administers the University Oral Qualifying Examination. At this examination the student defends the dissertation proposal. The University Oral Qualifying Examination should be taken by the end of the third year of doctoral study.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Not required for all students in the program. The decision as to whether a defense is required is made by the doctoral committee.

Time-to-Degree

Normal progress toward the Ph.D. degree, from admission to the doctoral program to award of the degree: fifteen quarters (five years).

(1) The planning theory and history requirement should be completed during the first year of study.

(2) Students are expected to pass the major field requirements/examination by the end of the second year, and to finish all other requirements and take the University Oral Qualifying Examination by the end of the third year.

3) Students who have not taken their oral qualifying examination by the end of the third year (excepting approved leaves of absence), must submit a written explanation to their advisory committee with a copy to the department chair.

(4) Students who have not passed the oral qualifying examination by the end of the fifth year (excepting approved leaves of absence), are asked to withdraw from the program. However, students are entitled to request that a review board be established to consider their case.

(5) Dissertation work typically requires two full years of work, including field research (if any) and the final writing. To enable students to devote this time to their research, every effort should be made to obtain extramural funding.

(6) Students must be registered continuously or on approved leave of absence or their student status will lapse. A leave is normally granted for periods of one to three quarters. Leaves may be extended for a total of two years (six quarters) at the request of the student, on the recommendation of the department involved, and with the approval of the Graduate Division. A student who fails to return to the University the quarter after being on official leave of absence must apply for readmission to graduate study.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

A counseling board of three faculty members is established for every student whose grade point average is below 3.0 or who fails to make sufficient progress toward the degree. The board is responsible for reviewing the student's record, determining strengths and weaknesses, and aiding the student to raise academic performance to minimum standards. In addition, the faculty and the graduate counselor meet each winter and spring quarter to discuss the progress of all registered students.

A student whose grade point average is below 3.0 for any three quarters may be subject to a recommendation for termination. Recommendations for termination based on other reasons may be made by (1) the counseling board submits a written statement to the department chair; and (2) the department chair, acting in consultation with the student's adviser, recommends termination. In certain circumstances a student may be given the option to withdraw from the program. A student may appeal a recommendation for termination to the three-person faculty review board.

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