The Master of Urban and Regional Planning program prepares skilled, practice-ready professionals and researchers by combining critical theory with hands-on experience. Grounded in a multidisciplinary approach, the program blends social sciences with design, analysis, and decision-making skills while offering specializations in Land Use & Real Estate Development, Health & Social Planning, and Environmental Services. Through fieldwork, collaborative projects, and research-driven coursework, students learn to connect knowledge with action and tackle real-world planning challenges.
You will complete 48 credit units (16 courses) through a flexible structure that lets you tailor your experience to your goals.
Choose the path that fits your ambitions:
- Coursework Option
- Report Option
- Thesis Option
Whichever route you take, your learning is enhanced by a summer of hands-on professional or research experience, giving you real-world insight before you graduate.
Program Pathway Options
Build a broad foundation in planning through advanced coursework focused on contemporary planning issues, policy, and professional practice. This flexible option is ideal for students seeking a comprehensive, practice-oriented education.
Core + 24 credit units
Combine advanced coursework with an independent research project that explores a real-world planning challenge. The report option allows you to develop specialized expertise while applying research to professional planning practice.
Core + 18 credit units + report (equivalent of 6 credit units)
Procedure for SURP 800 (Report/Thesis Proposal) and SURP 898/899
In their first year, students should discuss their interest in pursuing a thesis or report option with their Academic Advisor, ideally in the late fall or early winter term, to understand the expectations and workload involved. As part of this process, students are expected to develop a one-page research idea outlining a general topic they may wish to expand into a full proposal. The Academic Advisor can help guide them toward a member of SURP’s Core Faculty whose research interests align, and students are encouraged to explore faculty expertise through the SURP website and publications. Once a suitable match is identified, students should meet with the faculty member to discuss their idea and determine whether supervision is possible. Formal approval from a Core Faculty supervisor is required, after which students must add SURP 800 to their Academic Change Form, signed by the supervisor—typically by April, although exceptions may be made in special circumstances. Students are not automatically enrolled in SURP 800. After securing a supervisor, students begin work on a literature review or background study over the spring and summer, and are required to complete SURP 800 in the fall term of their second year. Progress on the proposal is tracked using the Decision Sheet for the Master’s Report/Thesis. If SURP 800 is not successfully completed in the fall, registration in SURP 898/899 will be withdrawn for the winter term.
Notes:
- Students have no guarantee that a faculty member will supervise their master reports/theses.
- It is at the sole discretion of each faculty member to agree to supervise a master’s report/thesis.
- If the student’s research idea falls outside the scope of the expertise of the Core Faculty, he/she should first discuss the matter with the SURP Director. Only in exceptional cases, a supervisor may be found who is not a member of the Core Faculty.
Pursue original research under faculty supervision and make a meaningful contribution to planning scholarship. The thesis option is designed for students interested in research-intensive careers or doctoral studies.
Core + 12 credit unit + thesis (equivalent of 12 credit units)
Procedure for SURP 800 (Report/Thesis Proposal) and SURP 898/899
In their first year, students should discuss their interest in pursuing a thesis or report option with their Academic Advisor, ideally in the late fall or early winter term, to understand the expectations and workload involved. As part of this process, students are expected to develop a one-page research idea outlining a general topic they may wish to expand into a full proposal. The Academic Advisor can help guide them toward a member of SURP’s Core Faculty whose research interests align, and students are encouraged to explore faculty expertise through the SURP website and publications. Once a suitable match is identified, students should meet with the faculty member to discuss their idea and determine whether supervision is possible. Formal approval from a Core Faculty supervisor is required, after which students must add SURP 800 to their Academic Change Form, signed by the supervisor—typically by April, although exceptions may be made in special circumstances. Students are not automatically enrolled in SURP 800. After securing a supervisor, students begin work on a literature review or background study over the spring and summer, and are required to complete SURP 800 in the fall term of their second year. Progress on the proposal is tracked using the Decision Sheet for the Master’s Report/Thesis. If SURP 800 is not successfully completed in the fall, registration in SURP 898/899 will be withdrawn for the winter term.
Notes:
- Students have no guarantee that a faculty member will supervise their master reports/theses.
- It is at the sole discretion of each faculty member to agree to supervise a master’s report/thesis.
- If the student’s research idea falls outside the scope of the expertise of the Core Faculty, he/she should first discuss the matter with the SURP Director. Only in exceptional cases, a supervisor may be found who is not a member of the Core Faculty.
The course arrays are as follows:
- Seven compulsory core courses (SURP 812, 814, 815, 817, 818, 819 and one of the compulsory project courses);
- Two constrained elective courses in a designated area of concentration;
- Including one methodological course, which is typically comprised of two independent skills modules;
- Other unconstrained electives;
- The summer between the first and second year is used in acquiring professional/research experience.
For more information about the available courses, please visit our Courses webpage.
Areas of Concentration
Students choose one required area of concentration, while having the flexibility to develop expertise in additional areas. These concentrations reflect faculty strengths and labour‑market demand. With advisor approval, students may take concentration courses across SURP, other university departments, or partner institutions. Choosing a concentration gives you a clear framework for early career planning, useful talking points in job interviews, and helps match you to the most relevant project courses, while remaining flexible about course selection; the chosen concentration does not appear on the official transcript or degree.
Land Use and Real Estate Development
Health and Social Planning
Environmental Services
Internships
The School of Urban and Regional Planning offers a rigorous, hands-on internship program designed to build real-world experience. Students secure paid placements with organizations across all three levels of government, as well as in the private and civil society sectors, both in Ontario and across Canada, with opportunities available internationally. Typically completed over the summer between the first and second years, these three to four-month internships allow students to apply their skills in professional settings, expand their networks, and gain valuable experience that strengthens their career prospects.
InternshipsCombined Degrees
The combined degree program is intended to help civil engineering, geography, environmental studies and kinesiology and health studies students who want an accelerated professional degree in urban and regional planning. This combined degree program makes it possible for these students to finish their Bachelors and MPL degrees in less time than it would take by pursuing the degrees independently.
Combined Degrees