Graduate Programs

Students at a community meeting

Training the Professionals and Citizens Who Make Our Cities Great

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning offers two graduate degrees, a Master of Arts in Geography and an accredited Masters of Urban Planning. In addition, the department offers seven advanced graduate certificates emphasizing focus areas such as affordable housing, community development, environmental planning, GIS, real estate development, transportation, and urban design.

Geography

Masters in Geography

Geographers study the natural environment, the built environment, and the socio-demographic characteristics of places to understand and explain what makes them special and unique. Geographic Information Science (GIS) uses the power of location integrated with computing technologies to analyze large volumes of data to make informed decisions. As the only Geography Masters program in Silicon Valley, the program takes advantage of its downtown San Jose location to emphasize urban and cultural geography, economic geography, and geospatial methods.

urban planning

Masters in Urban Planning

Urban planning began at SJSU in 1970 and SJSU offers the only accredited Master in Urban Planning degree in Silicon Valley. Urban planners balance visionary thinking with pragmatic problem solving - working in partnership with multiple stakeholders to address challenges related to growth and change. Urban planners work within the frameworks of formal and informal institutions to solve problems related to affordable housing, climate change, economic development, environmental protection, public health, and transportation.

Course Information and Student Resources

In this section, you will find information about our course offerings, including links to the current schedule of classes and syllabi from the most recent academic year, as well as detailed guidance for current students about pathways through the graduate programs. This section also contains information about Career Resources.

Crosswalk design by students

Advanced Certificate Program

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning offers advanced graduate certificate programs in Affordable Housing and Community Development Finance, Applications of Technology in Planning, Community Design and Development, Environmental Planning, Geographic Information Science (GIS), Real Estate Development, and Transportation and Land Use Planning. Certificates are available to SJSU graduate students and to members of the public through Open University.