• Skip to Content
  • AZ Index
  • Catalog Home
  • Institution Home
Northeastern University

Academic Catalog 2021-2022

  • Home›
  • Graduate›
  • College of Social Sciences and Humanities›
  • School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs›
  • Urban Planning and Policy, MS

Urban Planning and Policy, MS

2021-2022 Edition

  • Undergraduate
  • College of Professional Studies Undergraduate
  • Graduate
    • General Admission and Transfer Credit
    • Information for Entering Students
    • College Expenses
    • University-​Wide Academic Policies and Procedures
    • PhD Programs
    • College of Arts, Media and Design
    • D'Amore-​McKim School of Business
    • Khoury College of Computer Sciences
    • College of Engineering
    • Bouvé College of Health Sciences
    • School of Law
    • College of Professional Studies
    • College of Science
    • College of Social Sciences and Humanities
      • General Regulations
      • School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
      • Economics
      • English
      • History
      • Political Science
      • School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs
        • Public Policy, PhD
        • International Affairs, MA
        • Public Administration, MPA
        • Public Policy, MPP
        • Engineering and Public Policy, MS
        • Environmental Science and Policy, MS
        • Urban Informatics, MS
        • Urban Planning and Policy, MS
        • Law, JD /​ Public Policy, MPP
        • Nonprofit Sector, Philanthropy, and Social Change, Graduate Certificate
        • Public Policy Analysis, Graduate Certificate
        • Sustainability and Climate Change Policy, Graduate Certificate
        • Urban Analytics, Graduate Certificate
        • Urban Studies, Graduate Certificate
      • Sociology
      • Interdisciplinary
    • Gordon Institute of Engineering Leadership
    • Faculty
    • Appendix
  • Course Descriptions
  • Catalog Archives
  • Overview
  • Program Requirements

The Master of Science in Urban Planning and Policy (MUPP) program trains leaders interested in building just and sustainable solutions to today’s critical urban problems. Students in the program develop the theoretical and analytical tools to understand contemporary challenges of social and environmental injustice in cities and urban regions. They develop professional tools to work effectively in the realms of planning, policy, politics, and advocacy to impact urban challenges, including affordable housing provision, equitable and sustainable economic growth, sustainable transportation, and climate change adaptation and mitigation. This innovative program combines the expertise in urban planning and policy analysis data analytics of the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs with expertise in physical planning, design, and data visualization at the School of Architecture. The core curriculum of the program provides students with a solid foundation in essential skills and concepts, including techniques of effective community engagement, research design and statistics, economic analysis, legal foundations of urban planning and policy, and the history of urban development and urban planning. Students also have the opportunity to develop substantial expertise in a specialization area, including urban analytics, urban sustainability and resilience, urban design and physical planning, and urban development policy and planning.

The optional cooperative education experience (co-op) is available to eligible students. Cooperative education is central to both the Northeastern experience and to the College of Social Sciences and Humanities experiential liberal arts framework. Northeastern’s signature co-op ecosystem provides qualified master's students with six-month work experiences in businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies in Boston and across the United States. Graduate students take their work from campus learning spaces, apply their knowledge outside of the classroom, and then bring knowledge and skills gained in community learning spaces back to our campus learning spaces during the cocurricular experiential integration course.

In addition to the co-op option, students in the MUPP program have opportunities to gain experience in the application of their knowledge and skills via internships, class projects, and a capstone research report. They graduate prepared for careers working for state and local government, federal agencies, community development corporations and other nonprofit organizations, research institutes, and as private-sector planning consultants.

Complete all courses and requirements listed below unless otherwise indicated.

Core Requirements

Course List
Code Title Hours
Planning and Policy
LPSC 5201Law and the City4
PPUA 6201The 21st-Century City: Urban Opportunities and Challenges in a Global Context4
PPUA 6502Economic Analysis for Policy and Planning4
SUEN 6340Topics in Urban Environmental Design4
Research Design
INSH 6300Research Methods in the Social Sciences4
Quantitative Techniques
Students in the urban analytics focus area are encouraged to take INSH 5301.
Choose one from the following:4
INSH 5301
Introduction to Computational Statistics
INSH 6500
Statistical Analysis

Focus Areas

Complete one of the following focus areas:

  • Urban Design and Physical Planning
  • Urban Analytics
  • Sustainability and Resilience
  • Urban Development Policy and Planning

Urban Design and Physical Planning

Course List
Code Title Hours
Gateway Course
ARCH 6340Graduate Topics in Architecture4
Tracks
Complete one of the following tracks:8
Urban Design and Real Estate
ARCH 5310
Design Tactics and Operations
ARCH 5530
Innovative Models in Real Estate Development and Design
Physical Planning and Design for Sustainable Urbanism
SUEN 7230
Urban Ecologies and Technologies 1
SUEN 7240
Urban Ecologies and Technologies 2
Urban Experience Track
ARTG 5150
and ARTG 5151
Information Visualization Principles and Practices
and Information Design Critique Seminar
ARTG 6310
Design for Behavior and Experience
Capstone
SUEN 6120Graduate Studio 2: Sustainable Urban Systems6

Urban Analytics

Course List
Code Title Hours
Gateway Course
PPUA 5262Big Data for Cities4
Required Courses
ARTG 5150
and ARTG 5151
Information Visualization Principles and Practices
and Information Design Critique Seminar
4
PPUA 5263Geographic Information Systems for Urban and Regional Policy4
Capstone
PPUA 7673Capstone in Public Policy and Urban Affairs4

Sustainability and Resilience

Course List
Code Title Hours
Gateway Course
LPSC 7312Cities, Sustainability, and Climate Change4
or SUEN 6310 Cities, Nature, and Design in Contemporary History and Theory
Methods
Complete one of the following:4
PPUA 5261
Dynamic Modeling for Environmental Decision Making
PPUA 5263
Geographic Information Systems for Urban and Regional Policy
SUEN 7230
Urban Ecologies and Technologies 1
Capstone
PPUA 7673Capstone in Public Policy and Urban Affairs4
Elective
Complete one of the following:4
PPUA 5231
Transportation Policy
PPUA 5234
Land Use and Urban Growth Policy
PPUA 5238
Climate Change and Global Urbanization
PPUA 5249
Sustainable Urban Coastal Policy
PPUA 5260
Ecological Economics
PPUA 5261
Dynamic Modeling for Environmental Decision Making
SUEN 6110
Graduate Studio 1: Sustainable Urban Sites
SUEN 6120
Graduate Studio 2: Sustainable Urban Systems
SUEN 6220
Implementation and Visualization for Urban Environments 2
SUEN 6310
Cities, Nature, and Design in Contemporary History and Theory
SUEN 6340
Topics in Urban Environmental Design
SUEN 7230
Urban Ecologies and Technologies 1
SUEN 7240
Urban Ecologies and Technologies 2
SUEN 7320
Pro-Seminar: Issues in Designed Urban Environments

Urban Development Policy and Planning

Course List
Code Title Hours
Gateway Course
Complete one of the following:4
PPUA 5230
Housing Policy
PPUA 5231
Transportation Policy
PPUA 5233
Contemporary Community Development
PPUA 5265
Urban and Regional Policy in Developing Countries
Methods
PPUA 5263Geographic Information Systems for Urban and Regional Policy4
or PPUA 5236 Introduction to Real Estate Development for Urban Policy Makers
Capstone
PPUA 7673Capstone in Public Policy and Urban Affairs4
Elective
Complete one of the following:4
PPUA 5230
Housing Policy
PPUA 5231
Transportation Policy
PPUA 5232
Immigration and Urban America
PPUA 5233
Contemporary Community Development
PPUA 5234
Land Use and Urban Growth Policy
PPUA 5236
Introduction to Real Estate Development for Urban Policy Makers
PPUA 5270
Food Systems and Public Policy
PPUA 6506
Techniques of Policy Analysis
PPUA 6530
State and Local Public Finance
PPUA 6551
Nonprofit Organizations and Social Change
SUEN 6110
Graduate Studio 1: Sustainable Urban Sites
SUEN 6120
Graduate Studio 2: Sustainable Urban Systems
SUEN 6340
Topics in Urban Environmental Design

Electives

Course List
Code Title Hours
Complete two of the following:8
ARCH 5310
Design Tactics and Operations
ARCH 5530
Innovative Models in Real Estate Development and Design
ARCH 6100
Graduate Skills Studio
ARCH 6330
Seminar in Modern Architecture
ARCH 6340
Graduate Topics in Architecture
ARTG 5100
Information Design Studio 1: Principles
ARTG 5120
Research Methods for Design
ARTG 5130
Visual Communication for Information Design
ARTG 5330
Visualization Technologies 1: Fundamentals
ARTG 6330
Information Design Mapping Strategies
DA 5020
Collecting, Storing, and Retrieving Data
DA 5030
Introduction to Data Mining/Machine Learning
INSH 5302
Information Design and Visual Analytics
PPUA 5230
Housing Policy
PPUA 5231
Transportation Policy
PPUA 5232
Immigration and Urban America
PPUA 5233
Contemporary Community Development
PPUA 5234
Land Use and Urban Growth Policy
PPUA 5236
Introduction to Real Estate Development for Urban Policy Makers
PPUA 5238
Climate Change and Global Urbanization
PPUA 5245
Education Policy in the United States
PPUA 5249
Sustainable Urban Coastal Policy
PPUA 5260
Ecological Economics
PPUA 5261
Dynamic Modeling for Environmental Decision Making
PPUA 5263
Geographic Information Systems for Urban and Regional Policy
PPUA 5265
Urban and Regional Policy in Developing Countries
PPUA 5270
Food Systems and Public Policy
PPUA 6506
Techniques of Policy Analysis
PPUA 6530
State and Local Public Finance
PPUA 6551
Nonprofit Organizations and Social Change
PPUA 7237
Advanced Spatial Analysis of Urban Systems
SUEN 6110
Graduate Studio 1: Sustainable Urban Sites
SUEN 6120
Graduate Studio 2: Sustainable Urban Systems
SUEN 6210
Implementation and Visualization for Urban Environments 1
SUEN 6220
Implementation and Visualization for Urban Environments 2
SUEN 6310
Cities, Nature, and Design in Contemporary History and Theory
SUEN 6340
Topics in Urban Environmental Design
SUEN 7230
Urban Ecologies and Technologies 1
SUEN 7240
Urban Ecologies and Technologies 2
SUEN 7320
Pro-Seminar: Issues in Designed Urban Environments

Optional Co-op Experience

Course List
Code Title Hours
Requires two consecutive semesters of Co-op Work Experience and Experiential Integration:2
PPUA 6964
and INSH 6864
Co-op Work Experience
and Experiential Integration

Program Credit/GPA Requirements

48 total semester hours required (50 with optional co-op)
Minimum 3.000 GPA required

  • Boston Opens New Window
  • Burlington Opens New Window
  • Charlotte Opens New Window
  • London Opens New Window
  • Nahant Opens New Window
  • Portland Opens New Window
  • San Francisco Opens New Window
  • Seattle Opens New Window
  • Silicon Valley Opens New Window
  • Toronto Opens New Window
  • Vancouver Opens New Window

360 Huntington Ave., Boston, Massachusetts 02115 Opens New Window | 617.373.2000 | TTY 617.373.3768 | Emergency Information
© 2021-2022 Northeastern University | myNortheastern Opens New Window

  • Facebook. Opens New Window
  • Twitter. Opens New Window
  • Youtube. Opens New Window
  • Linkedin. Opens New Window
  • Instagram. Opens New Window
  • Snapchat. Opens New Window

Privacy Policy Opens New Window

Back to top

Print Options

  • Send Page to Printer

    Print this page.

  • Download Page (PDF)

    The PDF will include all information unique to this page.

  • 2021-22 Undergraduate PDF

  • 2021-22 College of Professional Studies Undergraduate PDF

  • 2021-22 Graduate PDF

  • 2021-22 Course Descriptions PDF