A Program as Complex as Today's Cities Are Complicated

NYU Wagner's Master of Urban Planning program brings students into direct contact with the critical urban challenges of our time. Today's urban planners must balance development, community needs and social justice, provision of critical public services, sustainability and security.

Housed within a school of public service, rather than a school of architecture, the Master of Urban Planning program uses the broader contexts of policy, management and finance to prepare students with the critical thinking they need to succeed in urban design, land use, economic and community development, housing, and environmental and infrastructure planning.

NYU Wagner is at the forefront of the vital issues and debates about the future of cities, and the program presents myriad opportunities to obtain and practice the skills needed to confront these challenges, in New York and beyond.

Exploring ...

Urban Planning Student Association Exhibit


Ariana Karamallis MacPherson
MUP, Winter 2011

Running in the Bo-Kaap Cape Town, South Africa
During apartheid the largely Muslim community in the Bo-Kaap neighborhood resisted resettlement and painted their homes bright colors—still preserved today—to symbolize their presence in the city.
Ariana Karamallis MacPherson MUP, Winter 2011 Running in the Bo-Kaap Cape Town, South Africa During apartheid the largely Muslim community in the Bo-Kaap neighborhood resisted resettlement and painted their homes bright colors—still preserved today—to symbolize their presence in the city.

"There is no better place to study and understand the 21st century city than New York, where government has created the conditions that allow more than 8 million people to call it "home." New York is proof that even in the age of the internet, there is a powerful need for face-to-face communications."

—Professor Mitchell Moss, Henry Hart Rice Professor of Urban Policy & Planning

Public Information

Public Information about the NYU Wagner Urban Planning Program is available by clicking the image below.

Global Perspective

Within Wagner's Master of Urban Planning degree program, students may specialize in international development planning. The curriculum focuses on cities in the developing world, how planning systems can be designed to work effectively in different country contexts and the skills that are required for planning in less-developed contexts.
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Graduates of Wagner's international planning specialization leave well prepared to work with governments, international development agencies and community-based NGOs working on sub-national development issues.
Shaun Donovan Image

Shaun Donovan, U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, is the keynote speaker at NYU Wagner's 50th Anniversary celebration of the Urban Planning program. Click here to view more photos of the celebration.