PhD in Regional Planning

The PhD in Regional Planning Program leads to a research degree for students interested in careers in the academic world, or research in public agencies or private corporations. The department can supervise doctoral work in most areas of planning, plus some areas where planning and landscape architecture overlap. To learn more about faculty interests and expertise, as well as the intellectual tone of the department, potential applicants should review faculty descriptions and sections on both the Master of Regional Planning Program and the Master of Landscape Architecture Program webpages and handbooks.

Course Requirements

The typical student will require two years to complete the course requirements and the comprehensive examinations, and a third or fourth year to complete the dissertation. The total time allowed to complete the degree (known as the Statute of Limitations) is four calendar years for those with a master's degree in planning, and six years for those with degrees in other fields.

The degree requires satisfactory completion of 60 credits, of which 22 are required: three in the PhD Seminar (Regional Planning 891), and 18 in dissertation credits (Regional Planning 899).

The course program is initially developed by the student and the PhD Program Director; it is subsequently adjusted in consultation with the dissertation supervisor. The principal criteria for selecting courses are preparation for the comprehensive examinations and relevance to the student's research field and dissertation. As a result, each student will have a highly individualized curriculum.

Foreign Language Requirement

The program has no foreign language requirement.

Comprehensive Examination

A written and oral Preliminary Comprehensive Examination must be taken after the course requirements are completed.

The written examination has three parts:

1. Planning history and theory
2. The substantive area of interest of the student
3. Research methods

The oral examination will deal with issues raised in the written exam, major issues in the planning field, and the dissertation proposal.

Dissertation Supervisor and Committee

A dissertation supervisor is generally identified by the end of the first semester in residence, and a committee by the end of the second semester. The supervisor and committee members are formally appointed by the Dean of the Graduate School after the submission of an acceptable research proposal, generally in the fourth semester.

General Regulations of the Graduate School

The General Regulations of the Graduate School at UMass Amherst cover such matters as graduate credit, the course numbering system, changing or dropping of courses, requirements regarding incomplete work in a course, and the format of the doctoral dissertation. These regulations are listed in the Graduate School Bulletin.

Please contact the PhD Program Director, Elisabeth Infield, PhD (eminfield@umass.edu), with any questions and for more information about the program.

Visit the Graduate School website to learn how to apply to UMass Amherst as a doctoral student.

Application Requirements

It is generally helpful if the student's research interests align with a planning faculty member. The student should contact the appropriate faculty member before completing and submitting an application, as faculty can help identify current research opportunities. Applicants are also encouraged to visit the campus and meet with the PhD Program Director and pertinent faculty.

Considerable care and thought should be given to the written statement as part of the application. Research and writing samples may be included. While standardized test scores (TEOFL) are included in the application requirements, these are only one aspect of the qualities we seek in a candidate.  Other important attributes include a passion for scholarship in planning, originality of thought, ability to work independently, ethical awareness, leadership and collegiality, and a commitment to rigor in research,whether qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods are used.  We encourage the use of electronic mail for inquiries (addressed to Elisabeth Infield, @email).

Students admitted to this doctoral program normally have a master's degree in planning or a closely related field (such as landscape architecture or geography). Those with a master's degree in other fields, but with appropriate professional experience, are given serious consideration and encouraged to apply.

Persons interested in a part-time study must be aware that PhD studies at the UMass Amherst require a minimum of one year of residence (two consecutive semesters).

Financial Support

The department attempts to offer an assistantship that carries a small stipend and a tuition waiver to all students admitted to the doctoral program. There are two types of assistantships:

1. Teaching assistantship in one of the department's other academic programs
2. Research assistantship in one of the department's research programs