My days involve project calls, analytical reports, conducting progressing reports, outlining project timelines and actions times for the week, and delegating to team members.
CAREER
Urban and Regional Planners
Overview
Salary Median (2020)
$75,950
Projected Job Growth (2019-2029)
+11% (faster than the average)
Most Common Level of Education
Master's degree
Career
Roadtrip Nation Leaders in This Career
What Urban and Regional Planners Do
Develop comprehensive plans and programs for use of land and physical facilities of jurisdictions, such as towns, cities, counties, and metropolitan areas.
Other Job Titles Urban and Regional Planners May Have
City Planner, Community Development Planner, Community Planner, Development Technician, Housing Development Specialist, Neighborhood Planner, Planner, Planning Consultant, Planning Technician, Regional Planner
How Leaders Describe a Typical Day at Work
A great day for me would involve several meetings with our private partners, policymakers, community members, and educators where we are developing innovative ideas that can attract low-tech and hi-tech businesses to our region. I travel quite a bit to meet with potential business partners. I also do a lot of research on resources that we can use to develop career development solutions for our region.
Tasks & Responsibilities May Include
- Design, promote, or administer government plans or policies affecting land use, zoning, public utilities, community facilities, housing, or transportation.
- Advise planning officials on project feasibility, cost-effectiveness, regulatory conformance, or possible alternatives.
- Create, prepare, or requisition graphic or narrative reports on land use data, including land area maps overlaid with geographic variables, such as population density.
- Mediate community disputes or assist in developing alternative plans or recommendations for programs or projects.
- Hold public meetings with government officials, social scientists, lawyers, developers, the public, or special interest groups to formulate, develop, or address issues regarding land use or community plans.
Education
Level of Education Attained by Urban and Regional Planners
Most common level of education among people in
this career: Master's degree (52%)
Bachelor's degree
Master's degree
Doctoral or professional degree
Majors Related to Career
Educational Paths Suggested by Leaders
Suggested Path
High School
Bachelor
City/Urban, Community and Regional Planning
Graduate
Organizational Leadership
Doctorate
Land Use Planning and Management/Develop...
Suggested Path
Bachelor
City/Urban, Community and Regional Planning
Additional Skills & Experiences That Can Help You Excel
The three top skills that I would list for my work would include: leadership, creative thinking and communication. Leadership, to me, means having the ability to "create" or "contribute to" a vision, and "initiate" the relationships needed to develop and implement that vision. A good leader absolutely needs to know how to "think outside of the box", and that involves the ability to "innovate". Last, but certainly not least, an effective leader knows how to communicate with others.
There isnt much training needed outside of school, but keeping up with training in GIS or CAD is definitely a bonus as it gives you more of an opportunity for a wide variety of work. Experience is a great thing to have because as more time goes on and you are involved in the work the better you become with reviews or design or code knowledge.
Getting Started
Recommended First Step for:
High School Students
Having a strong science and math background will give you a good foundation that will lead into understanding how projects (like a new mall or football stadium) affects the environment we live in. Join clubs that teach critical thinking skills like the math club, chess club, speech club. Team sports and student government will help you learn leadership and teamwork skills that critical to learning how to manage teams and projects. Use homework to learn how to complete projects on time.
If you have someone in your life that does this type of work, reach out to them to learn about what they do. If you don't have a connection like that, I recommend going to City Hall and seeing if there's anyone there who could answer some questions for you. You can gain so much knowledge from the people who are already doing the work. That's a great way to determine if a particular career or industry is right for you.
College Students
This page includes information from theO*NET 26.1 Databaseby the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under theCC BY 4.0license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
