Master of City Planning

2 Years On Campus Masters Program

University of Pennsylvania

Program Overview

The University of Pennsylvania’s Master of City Planning (MCP) is a two-year, on-campus professional degree designed for students who want to address complex urban and regional challenges through practical planning, quantitative analysis, policy, design, and community engagement. Students complete a core curriculum, choose from six specialized concentrations, and gain real-world experience through planning studios and a required professional internship.

Curriculum Structure

Year 1: The first year establishes the core planning knowledge and analytical skills needed for professional practice. Students study CPLN 5000 Introduction to Planning History and Theory, CPLN 5010 Quantitative Planning Analysis Methods, and CPLN 5030 Modeling Geographic Objects, followed by CPLN 6000 Studio I, where students work on a real planning problem for a Philadelphia-area community.

Year 2: The second year moves toward advanced professional practice, specialization, and applied problem-solving. Students complete CPLN 7000 Planning Studio and choose CPLN 5020 Urban Economics and Public Finance or CPLN 5090 Law of Planning & Urban Development, while completing coursework within their selected concentration and building deeper expertise through electives and advanced studios.

Professional Experience: Between the first and second years, every MCP student must complete a non-credit planning internship involving full-time work with a government agency, private consulting firm, nonprofit, advocacy organization, or other planning-related organization.

Focus Areas: Housing, Community & Economic Development; Land Use-Environmental Planning; Public Private Development; Smart Cities; Sustainable Transportation and Infrastructure Planning; Urban Design.

Learning Outcomes: Students develop quantitative, qualitative, digital, policy, spatial-analysis, community-engagement, planning, and urban-design skills; learn to analyze demographic, economic, environmental and geographic data; understand the legal, historical and institutional foundations of planning; and apply planning knowledge to real-world community and metropolitan challenges.

Professional Alignment (Accreditation): The Master of City Planning is accredited by the Planning Accreditation Board (PAB). Penn reports a 100% AICP pass rate among master’s graduates taking the exam within three years for the 2021 graduating class and 84% employment in professional planning, planning-related, or other positions within 12 months for the 2024 graduating class.

Reputation (Employability Rankings): Penn’s City and Regional Planning program was ranked 7th in the U.S. in the sixth edition of the Planetizen Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs, while planning educators placed it 5th nationally; Penn also reports that Weitzman graduates are prepared for careers across private, public, and nonprofit sectors.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

studios, real-world community projects, data analysis, GIS, and a required professional internship. The program’s first-year CPLN 6000 Studio I involves developing a community plan for a Philadelphia-area city, town, or neighborhood, while second-year CPLN 7000 Planning Studio allows students to define and pursue an advanced planning challenge; students also complete a full-time planning internship between the first and second years.

GIS and spatial analysis: Students develop practical GIS skills through CPLN 5030 Modeling Geographic Objects, including the use of ArcGIS for spatial analysis and map-based narratives.
Data and digital tools: The MCP curriculum develops skills in quantitative planning analysis, spatial statistics, geospatial data science, Python, and Java through courses such as CPLN 6710 Spatial Statistics & Data Analysis, CPLN 6720 Geospatial Data Science in Python, and CPLN 6920 Java Programming for Planning and Urban Management.
Real-world projects: CPLN 6000 Studio I places first-year students on real planning problems for real clients, with projects focused on Philadelphia-area communities, while CPLN 7000 Planning Studio gives second-year students responsibility for scoping and carrying out an advanced planning process.
Internships: Every MCP student must complete a non-credit planning internship, normally between the first and second years, with opportunities at government agencies, commissions, private consulting firms, nonprofits, or advocacy organizations. Penn cites examples including the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, Reinvestment Fund, Interface Studios, New York City Department of Planning, Nikken Sekkei in Tokyo, and the Chicago Mayor’s Fellowship.
Collaborative planning: CPLN 5040 Site Planning develops practical skills in physical and environmental site inventory, analysis of alternative uses, site design, development standards, community participation, and collaboration across disciplines.
Smart Cities projects: The Smart Cities concentration combines urban planning with computing, communication technologies, big data, data retrieval, modeling, and collaborative planning and design tools, supported by courses such as CPLN 5910 Introduction to Smart Cities and CPLN 6710 Spatial Statistics & Data Analysis.
Planning research: Students have access to the Penn Institute for Urban Research, which is located in Meyerson Hall alongside City & Regional Planning, supporting opportunities to engage with urban research and interdisciplinary planning work.
Library resources: The Penn Libraries Architecture and City Planning Collection, primarily housed in the Fisher Fine Arts Library, provides resources covering sustainable transportation and land use, economic development, urban health and social policy, environmental sustainability, global urbanization, poverty, and urban design.
Planning facilities: Meyerson Hall houses City & Regional Planning along with the Penn Institute for Urban Research, McHarg Center for Urbanism and Ecology, computer facilities, studios, and other Weitzman resources used across design disciplines.

Progression & Future Opportunities

The Master of City Planning (MCP) at the University of Pennsylvania prepares graduates for professional planning careers across government, consulting, development, transportation, urban design, housing, and environmental planning. Its required planning internship, practical studios, six concentrations, and strong professional connections give students opportunities to apply planning skills to real-world urban challenges.

Typical Job Roles: Urban Planner, Transportation Planner, Urban Designer, GIS/Planning Analyst

Career Opportunities:

University Career Services: Penn provides access to Handshake, its job and internship database, while Weitzman hosts opportunities from firms and alumni and connects students with professional resources.
Career Fairs: The annual Weitzman Design Career Fair connects more than 400 graduate students with employers recruiting for full-time positions, part-time roles, and internships across city and urban planning and related fields.
Professional Experience: Every MCP student must complete a full-time planning internship between the first and second years, with opportunities at government agencies, private consulting firms, nonprofits, and advocacy organizations. Examples include the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, Reinvestment Fund, Interface Studios, New York City Department of Planning, and Nikken Sekkei in Tokyo.
Externships: Weitzman’s externship program pairs graduate students with professional firms for intensive real-world collaborations; MCP students have worked with Interface Studio on planning projects.
Employment Rate: 84% of graduates from the 2024 graduating class obtained professional planning, planning-related, or other positions within 12 months of graduation.
Employment Preparation: In the 2025 graduating-student survey, 52% of respondents said skills gained from the program helped them obtain employment.
Salary Figures: Not stated by the official Penn MCP employment information reviewed; therefore, no salary figure is provided.
Industry Connections: Penn’s planning ecosystem includes professional firms and organizations such as Interface Studios, AECOM, CBRE, SEPTA, FEMA, and other planning, design, government, and infrastructure employers represented through internships, alumni activities, and career events.
Professional Accreditation: The MCP is accredited by the Planning Accreditation Board (PAB), providing valuable professional recognition for a planning career; Penn reports a 100% AICP pass rate among master’s graduates taking the AICP examination within three years for the 2021 graduating class.
Graduation Outcomes: Penn reports a 95% graduation rate within four years for the entering class of 2021, with 76 degrees awarded during the 2024–25 academic year.

Further Academic Progression: After completing the MCP, students can continue into Penn’s PhD in City & Regional Planning for advanced research and academic or professional leadership. Students can also broaden their expertise through Penn dual-degree options combining the MCP with Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Urban Spatial Analytics, Environmental Studies, Public Administration, Public Health, Business Administration, Law, Social Work, Systems Engineering, and other fields.