The Graduate Program in Urban Design at The University of Texas at Austin offers students the opportunity to develop skills working at the urban scale while engaging in applied research on the culture of cities. As the world becomes more urbanized and the dilemmas more complex, urban designers will play a critical role in manifesting an ethical agenda for urban life, directing urban development outcomes, aspiring to improve the human condition, and leading the way toward a healthy future. Urban design's agency, reconciling the spatial implications of multiple disciplinary perspectives, brings qualitative value to the places we inhabit.
The program is designed for post-professional students with an educational background in architecture or landscape architecture and leads to a Master of Science in Urban Design (MSUD). Students without a professional design degree, or those who wish to expand their professional expertise, may follow the dual-degree curriculum shared between the Master of Science in Urban Design and the Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning (MSCRP).
The program brings together an international cohort of faculty and students working globally on issues ranging from climate change to fair housing. Students in the program come from countries ranging from Peru, Spain, India, Russia, China, and South Korea. The program's STEM designation from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board enables additional professional opportunities for international students.
The program is fortunate to have received generous support from The Sinclair Black Endowed Excellence Fund for Urban Design. This endowment enhances the research opportunities available to students and faculty in the program by funding travel studios, sponsoring visiting critics and lecturers, and providing individual research and publication opportunities for students.
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
Urban Agencies - Projections for the Contemporary City
URBAN LAND INSTITUTE GERALD HINES STUDENT COMPETITION
TEXAS URBAN FUTURES LAB
URBAN DESIGN
DEGREES + PROGRAMS
The Urban Design Program at the University of Texas as Austin offers two graduate-level degree programs and a certificate in Urban Design.
| GRADUATE | CERTIFICATES | |
|---|---|---|
| Housing & Urbanism Certificate | ||
URBAN DESIGN STUDENT WORK
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@utaustin_urbandesignOnce again the ULI Hines competition is underway. Thank you to Steven Spears @momarkdevelopment, Mandy Pope @texas_realestatecenter , and Rebecca Leonard @lionheart_places for their efforts managing this years competition and to all the mentors for their commitment to teaching students.
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@utaustin_urbandesignSunday in SF with students from the SF/Gehl advanced urban design studio. Views from Telegraph Hill. #udtexas #utsoa #gehl_citiesforpeople #utsoagrads
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@utaustin_urbandesignA tour along the SF waterfront demonstrates the incredible infrastructural transformation of the city edge. #udtexas #utsoa #utsoalandscape
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@utaustin_urbandesignAfter 2 full days of intense research, a Saturday spent experiencing the new tunnel top parks connecting the Presidio to the waterfront. Glorious! #fieldoperations #udtexas #tunneltopspark #utsoalandscape #gehl_citiesforpeople
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@utaustin_urbandesignStill debating the virtues of the potential of urban design to address the ongoing transformation of the Silicon Valley. Students from the Gehl SF studio keep working after a long day of visioning and strategic diagramming. #utsoa #udtexas #gehl_citiesforpeople
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@utaustin_urbandesignAnd their off….
UT urban design students, hosted by Gehl_cities for people. Ready for the workshop #gehl_citiesforpeople #udtexas #utsoa.Instagram Post
@utaustin_urbandesignGhigo DiTommaso, Laura Johnson and Abel Del Pino @ Gehl_citiesforpeople. set the table at the Gehl SF office for the day long workshop on the Silicon Valley. It’s been a while since we’ve seen so many triangles on one table! #gehl_citiesforpeople #udtexas #utsoa #utsoagrads
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@utaustin_urbandesignGreat dinner hosted by Ghigo DiTommaso and Laura Johnson of Gehl, to welcome students to San Francisco. #gehl #udtexas #utsoa
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@utaustin_urbandesignStudents in the UD option studio led by Dean Almy together with Gehl have arrived in San Francisco to study the evolving situation in the Silicon Valley. Looking forward to an eventful week of discussions on urbanism. #gehl #udtexas #utsoa