a. Year One: Course Work and Plan of Study

i. Advisory Committee

Every entering student has an advisory committee composed of two faculty members, one of whom is the primary advisor. By the end of the first year, students must ask a third faculty member to join this committee for the purpose of administering the Major Field Examination (see Year Two for committee requirements).

ii. Planning Theory and History Requirement (UP222 A/B/C)

Students must pass 222B and 222C with grades of A- or better.

Students who have any incomplete grades in the sequence may be placed on probation and may not take their Major Field Exam until all the incompletes are cleared.

Students who come to the doctoral program without a planning degree must take UP222A, Introduction to History and Theory of Planning, in preparation for the UP222B/C sequence, Advanced Planning History and Theory I and II. (See below under Outside Field for more information).

iii. Quantitative Analysis (UP 220B or equivalent)

All doctoral students must demonstrate in their first year competence in statistical methods at the Master's level either by completing UP220B with a grade of B+ or better, or by submitting a waiver petition with appropriate documentation of having taken an equivalent master's level statistics course with a grade of B+ or better.   Statistics courses at other universities during MA studies should be sufficient as well as courses in other departments at UCLA (such as statistics courses in the Departments of Public Policy, Education, and Sociology.)

iv. Research Methods (3 courses)

Having taken UP 220B in their first year or having waived that requirement, students must also take a pre-approved set of three advanced courses in research methods.   Students should choose methods courses in consultation with their advisors to ensure their relevance for the student's future research. Research methods classes should be completed with a grade of B or better. Students may waive a portion of this requirement on the basis of prior work by submitting a waiver petition with appropriate documentation to their committee and the Ph.D. Coordinator.   For a list of recommended courses, see Section IV.

The three required research methods courses should be over and above the methodology courses taken for the M.A. degree.

v. Outside Field (3 courses)

Doctoral students must complete at least three related courses at UCLA in an area outside their major field. Usually these courses are taken outside the Department of Urban Planning. These courses must be completed with a grade of B+ or better.  

*For students who not have a Master's degree in Urban Planning, the outside field course requirement will be satisfied by completion of the master's core and required courses:  UP 207, UP 220A, UP 222A and either Up 233, UP 242, UP 281, or UP M250. A placement examination is required before enrolling in UP 207 and UP 220A.  Please see your Graduate Advisor for details.

vi. Research Design (UP208A, UP 208B or UPM204)

All students are required to take UP 208A in their first year of the program and UP 208B or M204 by the end of their second year.  All three courses examine research design; they cover the quantitative and qualitative methodologies prominent in the social sciences and the field of  Urban Planning and Public Policy.

vii. Plan of Study

The Plan of Study is a concise document that lays out the academic path that the student plans to follow in his/her doctoral studies. Appendix 2 details the answers to the question: Why the Plan of Study?

The goals of the Plan of Study are to:

• help students define the intellectual landscape of their particular area of research;
• prepare for the Major Field Examination, an exam that tests competence in a recognized area of planning teaching and research; and
• provide a roadmap for successful completion of doctoral studies.

The Plan of Study should identify and briefly discuss the student's major area of focus, as well as three substantive sub-areas of scholarship. The Major Field is defined as a broad area of scholarship in which students are prepared to teach a sequence of courses and to conduct advanced research. It should be substantially broader than a dissertation topic. The three sub-areas should be specialized areas of inquiry that fall within the Major Field and indicate the student's major focus of research and teaching.

The Plan of Study should briefly identify:

• The context and major debates of each of the three sub-areas and the basic bibliography that covers them;
• The courses that the student plans to take. This should include at a minimum:
  a) The Ph.D. core courses: (UP222B, UP222C)
  b) The "core" methods and research design classes: (UP220B, UP208A, UP 208B or M204, UP208C);
  c) Three "advanced research methods" courses related to the major field; and
  d) Three "outside" courses (preferably from outside the department).  These outside courses are a cluster of courses taken in another discipline.
• The topics of the research papers through which the student proposes to prepare for the Major Field Examination;
• A timetable that indicates the expected completion of examinations and other requirements for the degree.

Once completed, the Plan of Study must be approved by the student's faculty advisor and by the Ph.D. Coordinator, and filed with the Graduate Advisor.   Every effort should be made by faculty advisors and the Ph.d. Coordinator to have students file their Plan of Study by the end of their first year.  If this does not happen, a Counseling Board should be established by the Fallof the second year (consisting of the Ph.D. coordinator, the student's faculty advisor and a third faculty member) to help the student complete the Plan of  Study.

viii. Major Fields in Urban Planning

Expertise in the major field is primarily reflected in an ability to teach a sequence of Urban Planning courses at a major university, from introduction to the field to an advanced research seminar. Within each major field, the student should identify 2-3 sub-specializations that reflect their particular interests and approach. The following is a list of major fields for which faculty members are prepared to guide students in preparing for their exam. Students can also identify additional fields if none of these match their interests, but only after committee review and approval.

History of planning practice
History of planning doctrines

Political economy of urban and/or regional development
Community development: social, economic, and physical
Urban Poverty
Social Policy Formation
Critical studies of cities and regions

Comparative social policy
Social policy formation (U.S.)
Public finance of urban services
Social services planning
Urban transportation planning
Housing policy
Political economy of the environment
Land-use policy and planning
Regional resources policy (water, energy, etc.)
Pollution and environmental hazards
History of environmental policy

History of the built environment
Social policy and the built environment
Planning and designing the built environment

Comparative international and Third World Studies:
Regional development
Rural development
Urbanization policy
Housing policy
Resource-based development
Environmental Policy