Breadcrumb

Home Programs Minors Minor in Urban Studies and Regional Planning

Minor in Urban Studies and Regional Planning

(15 credit hours) 

The Undergraduate Planning Minor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences would provide non-geography undergraduate students in CLAS at UC Denver the opportunity to pursue studies in the professional field of planning. Geography majors are able to pursue the Urban Studies Option and so this minor would not be available to these majors. In a sense, the relationship between the Urban and Regional Studies Minor and the Urban Studies & Planning Option within Geography would be similar to the Geography Minor and a Geography Major. The same set of classes cannot count for a major and a minor degree.

Geography and urban and regional planning share a common concern for the spatial configuration of the places that we inhabit and enjoy. In recognition of this close association, there is currently an articulation agreement between the Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences and the College of Architecture and Planning that provides students with a mechanism for acceleration through the Masters in Urban and Regional Planning degree program if accepted into it. Those students completing the requirements for an Undergraduate Planning Minor may also be eligible to pursue an accelerated MURP degree.

Curriculum

To meet the requirements for this minor, students must complete three core requirements and two electives, totaling 15 credit hours. Although the three core courses may be taken in any order, it is advisable to begin with Introduction to Human Geography, since this course familiarizes students with many key concepts used in the other classes. All core courses are offered on a yearly basis.

  • Students at CU Denver must follow the graduation guidelines specified in the catalog from the year in which they were admitted.  The following link contains an archive of the course catalogs from previous years: www.ucdenver.edu/registrar/catalogs/archived

Core Requirements (nine hours) 

  • GEOG 1602, Urban Studies & Planning
  • GEOG 4640, Urban Geography: Denver and the US
  • GEOG 4680, Urban Sustainability: Perspectives and Practice
 
Two Electives from the Following Courses (six hours)
 
  • GEOG 4000/URPL 5010, Planning Methods
  • GEOG 4085, GIS Applications for the Urban Environment
  • GEOG 4230, Hazard Mitigation and Vulnerability Assessment
  • GEOG 4235, GIS Applications in the Health Sciences
  • GEOG 4450, Urban Food and Agriculture: Perspectives and Research
  • GEOG 4630 / URPL 6550, Transportation Planning and Policy
  • URPL 5000, Planning History and Theory

NOTES:

  • This option has an articulation agreement with the Masters in Urban and Regional Planning. If interested, students should check with the option advisor early in the program. 
  • Students must complete three core requirements and two electives, totaling 15 semester hours.
  • 12 semester hours of upper-division courses are required.
  • Although the three core courses may be taken in any order, it is advisable to begin with GEOG 1602, since this course familiarizes students with the many key concepts used in other classes.
  • All undergraduate students, except geography majors, are eligible for this minor.
  • Students must achieve a grade of C (2.0) or higher in required courses (this is a B 3.0 if interested in applying for the articulated MURP degree program).
  • All upper-division courses must be completed at CU Denver and a minimum of 9 semester hours must be completed in CLAS (geography) to satisfy residency requirements.