Grad school for urban planning in the UK?

[butternutsquashcomplex]

Hi everyone! I am hoping to get advice on graduate programs in urban planning. I am an American with a Bachelor's degree in geography. (I've also posted this question on Reddit, in case anyone is seeing it again...)

I've received acceptances from a few schools in the US, as well as Sheffield in the UK. (I'm waiting on a decision from a Canadian university.)

Since I haven't received funding anywhere, Sheffield is the 2nd cheapest option as a one year program. The cheaper option would be an in-state university. However, I am very interested in starting a career abroad. I spent a semester abroad in Europe as an undergraduate student, and I have been itching to take more comparative planning courses ever since.

I'm not 100% decided on a career in planning after graduation -- I would like to remain open to a career in planning or research. But I'm nervous that, in terms of a career in planning, studying in the UK will close doors rather than open them. It doesn't seem like there is a shortage of planners there, so I'd imagine finding a job would be difficult, and then I'd be at a disadvantage returning to the states... right?

Anyone have advice for reaching a decision? I'd really like to travel and step outside of my comfort zone (again!), but I'm not sure grad school is the best time to do it, especially in a location-specific field like planning.

P.S. I'd love to hear anybody's experiences studying overseas, regardless of field!

[PlanneDesign]

Hey! I am pretty much in the same boat as you. Trying to decide between UK/US programs. Would love to see what everyone else has to say. Haven't actually completed a MSc overseas, so take the following with a grain of salt.

The way I see it (and from what I've learned so far), a UK planning degree - especially from a school like Sheffield - would certainly still make you competitive in the US. I know the planning systems are pretty different from one another, but for the most part, I think plenty of people have success in finding jobs in either the UK or US with a planning degree from a competitive UK planning program. 

A UK MSc would certainly open up avenues not just in the UK, but also across Europe, Asia, and the rest of the world (if you are looking for that). 

Lastly, if grad school isn't the best time to step outside your comfort zone and live somewhere else, then what is?!

 

[jlc816]

hey! I studied at UCL and got a MSc. in urban regeneration there. If you are interested in working in the U.S. after, I would advise against it since the planning systems are so different; and I do think people hiring here might either be unfamiliar w/ the programs or just more likely to hire someone with a U.S. education. plus, the one year degree also meant I didn't get a chance to learn as much as I would have liked...

 

Relatedly, I had wanted to work in the UK/EU. It was also difficult to find jobs there, especially with the UK (and now with brexit). They have to prove they can't hire anyone there w/ a UK residency / citizenship before sponsoring you for a visa, which itself is also expensive... and a long process. so I don't think places there are really willing to put in that effort unless you are exception.

 

Those are my thoughts!

[jlc816]

5 hours ago, PlanneDesign said:

I know the planning systems are pretty different from one another, but for the most part, I think plenty of people have success in finding jobs in either the UK or US with a planning degree from a competitive UK planning program. 

 

Taking back / editing what I said: I think if you are working at a gov't planning agency or CDC, you might have a large learning curve / and still think they will prefer someone who has experience / education from the U.S. BUT if you are working somewhere where policy isn't at the heart of what you do, or if you are doing more research-based work, I think you would have more luck. If that makes sense? I'm also not sure how the pandemic affects career options, generally...

I do have to say I enjoyed the time I did spend in London, had a great advisor - learned some interesting things - but as I mentioned, feel like I didn't have enough time to dive deeply into the topics. I similarly ended up in London for the same reasons - wanting to be abroad again, saving money b/c it's one year - the latter of which, for reasons mentioned, I regret.

wrt to people having heard of schools abroad: generally, unless you are speaking to an academic or someone familiar with the planning field, my experience has been that very few people know of schools aside from oxford / cambridge / lse. Even with UCL being one of the top-ranked built environment schools globally, whenever I mention UCL, they think I am talking about UCLA. This of course, is restricted to the U.S. Not sure about looking for jobs in the EU/Asia -- but i think the EU, similarly to the UK, have become more stringent with issuing visas. And of course, would also depend on your language proficiency.

 

Hope this helps! I wish I had known all this before going to London...

[Felix Zhang]

On 3/10/2021 at 8:52 AM, butternutsquashcomplex said:

Hi everyone! I am hoping to get advice on graduate programs in urban planning. I am an American with a Bachelor's degree in geography. (I've also posted this question on Reddit, in case anyone is seeing it again...)

I've received acceptances from a few schools in the US, as well as Sheffield in the UK. (I'm waiting on a decision from a Canadian university.)

Since I haven't received funding anywhere, Sheffield is the 2nd cheapest option as a one year program. The cheaper option would be an in-state university. However, I am very interested in starting a career abroad. I spent a semester abroad in Europe as an undergraduate student, and I have been itching to take more comparative planning courses ever since.

I'm not 100% decided on a career in planning after graduation -- I would like to remain open to a career in planning or research. But I'm nervous that, in terms of a career in planning, studying in the UK will close doors rather than open them. It doesn't seem like there is a shortage of planners there, so I'd imagine finding a job would be difficult, and then I'd be at a disadvantage returning to the states... right?

Anyone have advice for reaching a decision? I'd really like to travel and step outside of my comfort zone (again!), but I'm not sure grad school is the best time to do it, especially in a location-specific field like planning.

P.S. I'd love to hear anybody's experiences studying overseas, regardless of field!

Hello,

 

I'm not a very professional student learning architecture, urban landscape, urban planning or relevant majors. But I know both UCL & AA would definitely the top crown of this  field in UK, undeniably better than Sheffield. When it comes to the expense, then Sheffield might be a perfect fit. As some comments mentioned above, even though now UK has a PSW visa for graduates, it still be fairly difficult to find a full-time job there. If you hope to start your career abroad, you really need to consider the employment market there. I was wondering why don't you consider The University of Hong Kong or Hong Kong Polytechnic University? I know they also have relatively decent master degrees with much cheaper tuition. It's also a city with diverse cultures and most expats will be treated equally. Hope my advise helps.