Question re: schooling for Urban Planning /Architecture

[Kimm in WA]

Hi,

 

My son is interested in architecture, but the pay and occupational outlook don't look good. I don't want to discourage him, but want to give him other options similar to what he is interested in.

 

Our state university has an urban planning minor and a BA in Community, Environment, and Planning (CEP). It's unclear to me whether to be an urban planner if you would do the CEP degree AND the minor in urban planning.

 

http://urbdp.be.washington.edu/admissions/undergraduate/

 

Of course they also have a master's in urban planning.

 

I guess my question is for anyone in the urban planning field. What was your undergrad degree in? Could one major in architecture and then get the master in urban planning...does that make sense?

 

Most college pages make sense, but this department's pages don't make things clear to me.

 

I'd appreciate any advice/input.

 

Thanks,

Kimm in WA

[Kimm in WA]

This is interesting. On this site, it says the occupational outlook for architects for 2010-2020 is better than urban planners, and they make more with a BA than an urban planner's master's.

 

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-engineering/architects.htm

 

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Life-Physical-and-Social-Science/Urban-and-regional-planners.htm

 

I keep hearing that architecture isn't a good paying job. Is the person I'm hearing from clueless?

[planner]

I worked as a city planner for a city of 100,000+. My degree was a BS in Planning. I think an architecture background would be more helpful for working for a private planning company as opposed to government. A cartography background would be helpful for both government and private sector. If I were to do it over again, I would have a stronger cartography background.

 

Keep in mind that many cities laid off planners during the recession. Without growth, planning staff can be kept at a bare minimum. I stopped working full time over 10 years ago. The city called me back for part time projects from time to time for a few years. When construction stopped, the calls for me to work stopped. Lots of planners feel lucky to have a job in their field right now. I feel like it would be hard for me to find a planning job and I have experience.

 

I worked with a planner who had an architecture degree with a minor in urban planning. The most marketable designation an urban planner can obtain is the AICP.

 

By the way, one thing to consider about being a planner is that is not a 9-5 job. Many meetings take place at night. I worked about 5-6 nights a month. There were several times meetings lasted until midnight. That made for long days!

[Mama Geek]

Another option you could look at is Civil Engineering. It touches on a lot of topics from wastewater, to roads, to buildings to construction management. I am sure that there are schools with urban classes in their graduate level civil classes. I don't have the architecture background but have often though a double major or a major in civil and a minor in architecture would be useful.

[Candid]

This is interesting. On this site, it says the occupational outlook for architects for 2010-2020 is better than urban planners, and they make more with a BA than an urban planner's master's.

 

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-engineering/architects.htm

 

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Life-Physical-and-Social-Science/Urban-and-regional-planners.htm

 

I keep hearing that architecture isn't a good paying job. Is the person I'm hearing from clueless?

 

I think the last bit I bolded is probably the case. Do your own research. Make sure you are talking about like terms.

[mom2scouts]

My husband and I are both architects and the pay and job market are very poor right now unless you are in a major city. Job security is not great because it's an industry that is closely related to the economy and construction industry. My son recently showed me an article that listed the 5 most worthless degrees and architecture was on the list.:glare: I personally know many architects and most have very moderate incomes and work very long hours. We've told our own children that we would support their desire to be architect, but we wouldn't recommend it. None of our children are interested.

 

To answer your other question, the school I attended did allow an undergraduate degree in architecture with a master's in urban planning. You cannot become a registered architect with just a BS, so you have to continue beyond a 4 year degree to be a professional and urban planning is one option.

 

ETA: I just looked at one of the links. $72,000 per year? My dh has over 25 years experience in the field and has never made anywhere near that much and most of my architect friends would get a good laugh about that number. The median must be affected by big city architects and a few big name architects.

Edited October 3, 2012 by mom2scouts

[Kimm in WA]

Thanks mom2scouts your post was very helpful.

[K-FL]

You may also want to research combining w/Environmental studies (what ever degree would be compatible.) With all the "greening" of buildings, that is a good field to be up on.