Does anyone have any information on jobs in city planning/community design etc in the United States and abroad? (Particularly the US though) Including average salary, where the jobs are, what this career usually entails and segments of planning that have more or less opportunity/growth/profit?

Any information regarding this topic would be extremely helpful. Thanks.

1. Median annual earnings of urban and regional planners were $49,880 in 2002

2. Local governments employ 7 out of 10 urban and regional planners. Most new jobs will arise in affluent, rapidly growing urban and suburban communities.

3. Urban and regional planners often confer with land developers, civic leaders, and public officials and may function as mediators in community disputes, presenting alternatives that are acceptable to opposing parties. Planners may prepare material for community relations programs, speak at civic meetings, and appear before legislative committees and elected officials to explain and defend their proposals.

In large organizations, planners usually specialize in a single area, such as transportation, demography, housing, historic preservation, urban design, environmental and regulatory issues, or economic development. In small organizations, planners do various kinds of planning.

4. Most entry-level jobs require a master’s degree; bachelor’s degree holders may find some entry-level positions, but advancement opportunities are limited.

The frustrating thing about being a planner is that you hold no power to enforce your recommendations. You have to have the patience to understand that your ideas are going to fall on the deaf ears of local governments who see sprawl as "economic development" and environmental review as "communist control;" as they yield to the wishes of the blessed single family homeowner.

planning is political always remember that!

What about architect? What happen to the architect if one day the world running out of space to build new building......

What about architect? What happen to the architect if one day the world running out of space to build new building......

Nothing lasts for ever, there will always be rehabilitation of old buildings and thats an architect's job.

or engineers.....

Architects in the US have it bad.

A related question ... I'm presently in my second year of university (geography), and I'm looking at going for a master's degree in urban/regional planning - can anybody recommend a good school for that (preferably in Canada, but I might be willing to go abroad)?

I work for a private planning consultancy in Central London (soon to move firms). I don't know how the system works in the US, but from the posts above I'll assume you have the same public/private balance that we do, whereby public planners assess schemes and make recommendations to Members, while private planners work up schemes with architects and clients, then negotiate them through the planning process. I do the latter. In Britain, pay is generally higher in the private sector but public planners enjoy more holiday and flexibility. Some planners, like myself, work for global surveying firms such as Colliers, CBRE, FPDSavills, JLL etc., while others work for dedicated planning practices.

I find the work interesting. I work schemes up from pre-planning, negotiate issues such as affordable housing, advise clients on uses, development quantum, viability etc. - all of which in my mind are more interesting than being a public planner and having to simply assess schemes against a set of policies, to then have my professional judgement sidelined by someone who has simply been voted in to power (and may have no planning knowledge whatsoever!).

I don't know about average salaries, but I'm a graduate (I qualify next July) and earn £25,500 (about $37,500) plus bonuses. My fee target for this year is £80,000 ($120,000). Hope that gives you some idea!

A related question ... I'm presently in my second year of university (geography), and I'm looking at going for a master's degree in urban/regional planning - can anybody recommend a good school for that (preferably in Canada, but I might be willing to go abroad)?
Depends, what sect of planning are you most interested in. University of Waterloo has a very prestigious environmental planning program. Any of the top Canadian public uni's will do. Planning isn't really like business or law in which it truly matters where you got your degree.

Hi, I'm interested in going into Town Planning too, and then I want to use my experience with dealing with the politicians to become one. I was just wondering how much a planning degree costed over there.

Depends what school you attend.

Avg total costs:
In-state - $10K/year
Out-of-state - $18K/year
2nd-tier privates - $24K/year
1st-tier privates - $30K/year

For detailed info:
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/rankguide/rghome.htm
http://www.princetonreview.com

Bloody Hell.

That's expensive.

*Cancels plans to study in America*

At public Australian universities, I can get the entire course for about AU$25,000. That's about US$17,500.

^Just to be sure, I posted total costs -- we're talking tuition, room and board, meal plan, books, etc. -- is university really that cheap in Australia!?!

We have HECS(Higher Education Contribution Scheme). HECS is two things. First is a subsidy on all university fees, second is an interest-free loan from the government which you don't have to start paying back until you're earning $30,000/year after tax.

Sorry guys, but it's only available for Australian students. It doesn't cover room and board, but they aren't really all that expensive at most universities.

Entire Courses including everything, maybe around about AU$45,000 or US$30,000

Jesus... my 4 year university course cost me (well, my parents) just over £1,000 a year, with the rest paid by the government.

4,000 pounds. That's about US$8,000 or AU$12,000. Did you still live at home or something?

Yes, that was the cost for the education. Some of my mates who didn't now have debts of around £12k, so maybe that is more comparable if you are taking living costs into account as well.

I also wanna have a job in city planning, but I'm living in Holland.

I also wanna have a job in city planning, but I'm living in Holland.
There's planning jobs there, in the public sector, they're just mostly in historic preservation and urban revitalization. There's jobs in urban design, too, mostly in the private sector, not as many, tho.

Wow the average starting salary for planners in the UK is something :uh:
The ave salary for planning graduates here in western australia is around A$36,000 ($US26,000 or £14,600). And it seems those working in the private sector are better paid than those in the public sector.

Here in Norway, salaries for those that work with city planning is not that great. The starting salary is fine I guess, but it doesn't increase that much. Providing them with the software they need however......;):D

Here's a job posting for an entry-level planning position here in Austin, Texas (just to give you an idea): http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/jobapp/jobs_detail.cfm?Requisition_ID=9777

Wow the average starting salary for planners in the UK is something
The ave salary for planning graduates here in western australia is around A$36,000 ($US26,000 or £14,600). And it seems those working in the private sector are better paid than those in the public sector.

My wage is at the higher end... I guess an average for starters would be about £17k outside London, £20k in London.

Is there any subject you must excel in order to get a job in city planning such as maths or geography?

Is there any subject you must excel in order to get a job in city planning such as maths or geography?
Not really. Do you like to look at maps and figure why out objects are located where they are? Are you interested in solving urban and regional problems? Do you like to think about the future? If yes to at least two of the previous questions you're a good fit. Geography by and large is a social science -- along with history, economics, poli sci, sociology, psych -- so if you excel at social sciences, then, you are a good fit. All social sciences are relevant in geography. There is also a stats and data processing/computer compenent. If you like stats and aren't scared of computers you'll do alright. All in all, geography isn't very quantitative. On the otherhand, environmental geography/planning has a physical science slant, it's very closely related to geology and earth science. So, if you don't like raw science stay away from this aspect. By majoring in geography you learn to be analytical and critical of the world. Just make sure you're independent.

Just about to finish my undergraduate degree - bachelor of built environment majoring in urban and regional planning. Will be doing my post grad next year here at QUT in Brisbane.

@Toadman.
In Brisbane there are only three universities that you can do Planning in:
QUT - which offeres more of a design based and real world area of study.
University of Queensland - which is more theory based with very little design stuff.
Griffith University - not exactly sure what they offer.

I reccomend QUT as many graduates from Griffith and UQ come here to do their post grad studies.

Getting a job in planning has more to do with who you know rather than what you know so people if you want a job, get out there and become known to people.
jt

Getting a job in planning has more to do with who you know rather than what you know so people if you want a job, get out there and become known to people.
jt
This can't be stressed enough.

Yeah. I've been looking into it recently, and I've pretty much decided that I want to go to QUT. And I am working at the "who you know" thing. I'm involved in several committees for the Gold Coast City Council.

To be honest, I don't think planning requires any specialist skills or knowledge to begin with. You need a good sense of geography (for the physical aspect), maths (some parts of planning require a good grasp of figures, but not all) and english (I write a lot of letters and reports - grammar skills are essential). Being able to communicate is also important, as planning involves a lot of negotiation. But skills vary between public and private, transport and urban, regional and local planners... I guess you know what type of planner you want to be based on your interests and strengths.

You will pick up the details of planning policy and procedure as you do the job, but you need a basic sense of what development is 'right'. If you think that building a 50-storey tower in a neighbourhood of historic townhouses is okay, you probably wouldn't make a very good planner! You need to be aware of the built environment, aware of how different uses interact, how people use spaces and buildings and how different uses affect infrastructure (physical and social). You also need to be able to look at the macro and micro, from the development of one house to the distribution of 100,000 new homes across a region.

I've tried to be as generic as possible although I accept I don't know how planning works in Australia - judging by some comments it is obviously different in that in Britain it doesn't matter who you know, but what you know. Having contacts only comes into play in the private sector once you have reached a level where you're expected to bring in your own fees.

hey guys, i'll join the list of people wanting to be planners.
i have basically narrowed it down to three specific types: urban designer, environmental planner, and transportation planner.
can somebody elaborate on the roles and availability of these jobs?
thanks a lot for advice in advance.
-andy

hey guys, i'll join the list of people wanting to be planners.
i have basically narrowed it down to three specific types: urban designer, environmental planner, and transportation planner.
can somebody elaborate on the roles and availability of these jobs?
thanks a lot for advice in advance.
-andy
http://www.planning.org/webinterface/images/top.home.apa.gif

www.planning.org (www.planning.org)

yeah, i had tried that b/f w/o too much luck.

Well I now have a degree - I must say I am a little depressed. Its like Christmas with no presants, its like I have been waiting and working for this moment for 3 years now and it has arrived rather quietly without much excitement.

I now have a degree and I am - the same as I ever was, well thats how I feel.

I have a university education and I feel like - me, like nothing has changed or no event has taken place?

Has anyone else or is anyone else feeling this way or has felt this way.

Perhaps it hasn't sunk in yet - I have a degree - woopee for me.
Should I be feeling excited?
jt

yeah, i had tried that b/f w/o too much luck.
http://www.fsu.edu/~durp/images/leftmast.gif

Employment Resources for Students (http://www.fsu.edu/~durp/employment/index.html)

Click the above link. Scroll down to the "State/Regional Planning Employment Resources" and visit several links of the various state APA chapter sites. Each site has job announcements. Take a look at them and see for yourself the availability and duties of common planning positions. :)

thanks a lot james!

very nice, many thanks.

No problem! I thank FSU's DURP for creating that page. Very helpful, indeed.

Landscape architecture is the way to go if you are interested in urban design and planning. NCSU's College of Design Landscape Architecture Department and UNC-Chapel's School of Government have a dual degree program option that would be very useful unless you want to focus on public policy. What planning departments sorely need are more urban designers IMHO.

so basically an urban designer would seek to create cohesiveness b/w developments?

Planners/planner-wannabees, check out this handy reading list at Amazon.com...

So you'd like to... earn a Degree in Urban Planning and Save the World!
A guide by Chad N Blevins, Founder, Academy for Conservation & Peace (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/guides/guide-display/-/32LIU8ZMGPYXB/ref=cm_bg_lm/104-5472700-7690334)

Toadman, the sticker price is high, but many don't have to pay that much. I'm working on a master degree in planning at Rutgers University in New Jersey. I'm from out of state so the tuition is about $15,000, but the school offered me free tution for the first year plus a fellowship worth about $20,000. So I'm basically being paid to attend school (at least for year one). Lots of schools offer nice financial aid packages to entice students to choose their institution, and for me it worked.

Planning is political? Understatement!
I am currently doing a Planning Law module on my BA(hons)Planning and Transport course at Sheffield Hallam University, UK- where britannia went (or did you go to city UNI?? or am i confusing your going to a uni here with you living here once? :crazY:) Anyway, just half a days law reading makes you realise the mass contradiction when it comes to court decisions being made, some cases, one side win, other identical cases, the other side wins! Its barmy! But its a pretty easy module, coursework is very much a cut and paste job ;)

RE:Qualifications needed for starting courses,
The only qual. I had that related to my course was Statistical maths A Level, a geographical state of mind is useful, but i the highest qual. i had in that was GCSE (the simple high school qualification). I never did A level geography.

RE: costs, my tution fees are supposed to be around £1250 a year, but i only have to pay £580 cos my dads only so rich! I get around 4 thousand pounds loan a year and my rent is around 50-55 pounds a week if i take bills into consideration. I have enough to eat but i'm currently working on getting a job so i can do some partying and drinking!

I wrangled over whether to persue an urban design or architecture degree. I decided to persue law for multiple reasons, but not least of which is that i think i will be able to reach a position of influence through a direction where law will be more relevant.

I wrangled over whether to persue an urban design or architecture degree. I decided to persue law for multiple reasons, but not least of which is that i think i will be able to reach a position of influence through a direction where law will be more relevant.
I bet there's a lot of work in environmental and land use law in Houston b/c the city doesn't have comprehensive planning. Am I correct?

Your absolutely right. There are movements in this area with the government though. However, i have actually recently left the city, but still firmly connected to it.

Your absolutely right. There are movements in this area with the government though. However, i have actually recently left the city, but still firmly connected to it.
Yeah, I'm aware Houston is making a movement towards some (<---key word) planning. If it ever obtained planning on par with it peers, in the rest of the US and particularly in Texas, I'd love to be a Houston city planner. From what I understand, though, Houston has an enormous legal department that handles some of what a planning dept would in the area of environmental and land use. I wouldn't mind working in that legal dept, after graduating from law school. Btw, if you look at my bio, I planning on attending law school and following a path that I suspect is similar to yours.

Well I am currently at Uclan doing a comb hons in English Language and Psychology.. Ive done 1 semester.. and it bores me. Frankly my biggest mistake was not thinking about what to do enough. College was more interested in merely getting you into a university, rather than focusing on what your attributes, interests and skills were.

When I go back in the new year, I am going to consult the course advisers and mentors, mainly because I want to change to something different, say.. city planning. I want to do a course that I feel is both fun and interesting (to me) but also beneficial and feel like I am gaining something. Being an Architect seems an ideal job, I'd love in 30 years time to be driving down a road with my family in a car (or whatever people are driving in 30 years, lol) and point to a building and say with pride.. I put that there. Obviously that will probably always be a dream and never reality. I gather that city planners have little input into the aesthetics of a building, but it still seems like a nice idea for a career.. basically over the next few months I want to find out as much as I can about the courses and the professions. My ultimatum would then be whether I restart uni now, having wasted a year in this course.. or finish the course I have and re-start... it has me in a right mess at mo, lol

Ferge, psychology is very relevant to planning. If you decide to stick with it, you can always use that major as preparation for a Master's in planning. The english isn't so relevant, though. A Master's is the best way to be competitive in the planning field, though there is plenty of opportunity with a Bachelor's. I say stick with it because you won't have much breadth with an undergrad degree and an advanced degree in planning. If you don't see yourself earning a Master's and you come to realize that planning is indeed for you, then, I recommend changing your course/major and minoring in your former courses. Just keep in mind the competition, though. Do really not see yourself earning a Master's?

i want to do urban planning, what is involved?

Planning is political? Understatement!
I am currently doing a Planning Law module on my BA(hons)Planning and Transport course at Sheffield Hallam University, UK- where britannia went (or did you go to city UNI?? or am i confusing your going to a uni here with you living here once? :crazY Anyway, just half a days law reading makes you realise the mass contradiction when it comes to court decisions being made, some cases, one side win, other identical cases, the other side wins! Its barmy! But its a pretty easy module, coursework is very much a cut and paste job

RE:Qualifications needed for starting courses,
The only qual. I had that related to my course was Statistical maths A Level, a geographical state of mind is useful, but i the highest qual. i had in that was GCSE (the simple high school qualification). I never did A level geography.

RE: costs, my tution fees are supposed to be around £1250 a year, but i only have to pay £580 cos my dads only so rich! I get around 4 thousand pounds loan a year and my rent is around 50-55 pounds a week if i take bills into consideration. I have enough to eat but i'm currently working on getting a job so i can do some partying and drinking!

I studied Planning Studies and a Town Planning diploma at Sheffield Hallam, so you remembered correctly. I also grew up there and lived there until 2 years ago, so again, well remembered!

The political element of planning (in the UK at least) differs depending on whether you work for a public or private body. Public planners (at least those working in development control departments) work to advise the politicians, who actually make the decisions, so I imagine you need to be constantly aware of the political situation.

As a private planner, you acknowledge the political process that takes place in local authorities, and the extent to which this affects your work depends on the size of the scheme (and the local authority). Some schemes are intensely political, for example housing and tall buildings. Many of the project teams I work in include political consultants to deal with this aspect, so it is very important.

Planning law is not really political in terms of decisions (as these are down to the Inspectorate, which is a professional body), though of course bills are passed by parliament (i.e. politicians) and planning policy is shaped by the government of the day, so in that sense it is also highly politicised.

Qualifications to enter a planning course vary between universities, but they're not normally considered to be highly intellectual courses and have lower entry levels than architecture, for example (though you might want to note that in the UK at least, planners' wages are one of the highest in the entire field of building professions).

I have a question for the North American planners on here... what specifically does it entail? What is the process for getting 'planning approval' for a building and what role/functions do planners perform? I'd be interested to know how it differs from the British experience and the work I do.

Was your course 4 years long Brittania?

Planning is a possible career choice for me, If I choose it I'll be going to Sheffield Hallam or Manchester probably. Doing first year of A levels atm so I've a year to decide what to do, provided I don't totally crash and burn in the exams!

But I have concerns, 4 years is a long time, I'm afraid I'll lose interest halfway through the course.

My degree was 3 years and the diploma was an extra year, so yes, 4 years straight. 4 years is a long time, but courses are so flexible now that if you don't like it you can change part way through, and if at the end of it you get the job you want, 4 years of your life getting a good start is time well spent. You obviously like the built environment, so you must enjoy planning at some level! A lot of my coursemates didn't really enjoy it until the 3rd/4th years, but then really got into it and are all now planners.

What you need to think about is not the course, but the job at the end of it. There is an acute shortage of planners, so have a sniff around, see what takes your fancy and go for the course that will get you there.

I decided at an early stage that I wanted to work on skyscrapers in London, and now I do... the opportunities are there to work on whatever type of project you want. I would strongly recommend getting work experience though, especially in the private sector as you won't really find out what it is like through a uni course.

Why not try for work experience at Manchester City Council, or any of the planning/architects' firms in the city, before you make your mind up?

Ooops, forgot about this thread, couple more questions Brittania.

1. What sort of assingments are there on the degree course? Is it much more intensive than A-Levels?
2. In basic terms, what things does your job require you to do? What are the average hours/pay?

1. Can't remember that much, but generally essays of several thousand words, a few large group projects and a 10,000 word dissertation. Examples of group projects would be writing a Local Plan and costing and designing a development for a site in Sheffield.

2. I've only been working for a little over 18 months, so I'm still at the bottom rung. Having said that, I'm no longer the dogsbody and actually have other graduates who I can ask to do basic stuff for me!

When I first started, I did a lot of work researching planning histories of sites, looking at planning policy (and relaying to the senior people), taking minutes, writing planning potential reports and preparing planning applications.

Now I run my own planning applications, generally for the smaller developments... i.e. I'm submitting applications for 2 satellite dishes on the top of towers at Canary Wharf. My job is to prepare and submit the applications, liaise with the Council to ensure that everything is going okay, feedback to the client (i.e. Canary Wharf), check conditions and generally negotiate consent.

But the majority of my time is spent assisting the partners on larger schemes. My job is to write the planning statement, formulating the arguments we'll use to justify our scheme, attend project meetings and act as the point of contact for the architects, environmental consultants, client, townscape consultants etc. A lot of the work I do now is on environmental statements, getting quotes for consultants, providing information to local authorities and consultants, and then compiling all the documents and submitting the application. On the larger schemes this is quite a task... we have to submit to the Corporation the application forms, application cheque, ownership certificates, planning drawings, design statement, transport statement, access statement, environmental statement etc. It's my job to assemble and submit.

I also do site visits, discuss the potential of sites with partners and clients, comment on the evolving design of a scheme, attend various meetings, sometimes with local authorities or people like CABE or the GLA, most often with project teams which can include in the region of 20 consultants, including architects, structural engineers, affordable housing specialists, transport consultants, public realm consultants etc.

I generally work 9 til 6 with a 30min break for lunch, but often the workload and timescales require me to work later. But the range and diversity of work is worth it... at the moment I'm involved in several skyscrapers, a scheme of super-apartments in Kensington and Chelsea, a mixed-use scheme in Hove, office towers at Canary Wharf, a big urban redevelopment in Westminster, a mixed-use listed building scheme in Sheffield, flags for the Asprey store in Mayfair, a hotel scheme in the City, a resi scheme in Bracknell etc. etc. It's not uncommon to be working on upwards of 20 schemes at once, and most major planning consultancies are the same, so the experience you get is considerable.

Pay is £26k basic plus bonuses, rising to about £30k when I get my professional qualification in June. Not bad 2 years out of Uni! I'd highly recommend it as a career.

To be honest, I don't think planning requires any specialist skills or knowledge to begin with. You need a good sense of geography (for the physical aspect), maths (some parts of planning require a good grasp of figures, but not all) and english (I write a lot of letters and reports - grammar skills are essential). Being able to communicate is also important, as planning involves a lot of negotiation. But skills vary between public and private, transport and urban, regional and local planners... I guess you know what type of planner you want to be based on your interests and strengths.

You will pick up the details of planning policy and procedure as you do the job, but you need a basic sense of what development is 'right'. If you think that building a 50-storey tower in a neighbourhood of historic townhouses is okay, you probably wouldn't make a very good planner! You need to be aware of the built environment, aware of how different uses interact, how people use spaces and buildings and how different uses affect infrastructure (physical and social). You also need to be able to look at the macro and micro, from the development of one house to the distribution of 100,000 new homes across a region.

I've tried to be as generic as possible although I accept I don't know how planning works in Australia - judging by some comments it is obviously different in that in Britain it doesn't matter who you know, but what you know. Having contacts only comes into play in the private sector once you have reached a level where you're expected to bring in your own fees.


Excellent post Britannia!! I'm working as a Planner in a western Sydney Council and I can relate to a lot of what you have said. I think the most important thing when considering if you want to become a planner is whether or not you REALLY like the whole concept of planning. If you don't, look elsewhere. I finished uni with a general science degree but had a major in Geography... didn't know exactly what i wanted to do... but i can safely say that Urban Planning, as a field of expertise, is where I'll stay for the very long term.

I am a city planner, but i would like to finish my structural engineering degree and manage the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA). To get there, in Oz, you must begin at local government then work your way through consultancy firms. Then move toward the state government then a few years to become manager of PIA. From year one in university to manager...about 10-15 years. :)

Hiya!
I'm graduated from Urban and Regional Planning Department of Istanbul Technical University (4 years) and in this period giving a couple of exams in the same department of Venice University to convert my B.A. to work in Italy. Do you think 3-4 year B.A.'s are enough to be an avarage Urban planner? I'd like to go on with the studies bt not like a specialization in a same dept. of same university.. For ex. city management, property and facility development, real estate sounds quite interesting...

I agree that you have to get you name out there in order to get good planning jobs. Attend neighborhood, publi, and informational meetings. Meet elected officials, become involved in you local neighborhood organization, etc. I got lucky and got hired as a permit writer for the City of Indy right out of school. Got to know people on the planning staff. Once a junior-level position open up, I git hired. From there I worked to a senior-level planning position. I now am the Planning and Development Administrator for a small suburban community making $42,000...all of this in just 5 years!! I feel lucky, especially since I only have a BA in Urban Geography. I am looking at Law School, though.

Columbia University (New York) has a good Planning course which is co-ordinated with their Architecture course.

Aparently Columbia has an elective where students get to go to Brisbane and Melbourne in Australia to view cutting edge architecture and sub-tropical architecture. Aparently Australia is 'doing it differently' so they tell me:D

In the US planning tends not to be the kind of degree where your career path is already set for you by the nature of the degree. This is to say, it's not like accounting, where you get your degree in accounting, learn the skills you need to know, then go out and become an accountant, and, well, account for finances for a businesses or governments.

You can get a degree in planning and end up not being a "planner" at all, with "planner" defined as a public employee who plans for land use in a given geographical area, and implements policies to ensure that new development and redevelopment fits these guidelines. I know of people who received planning degrees who work in the business world, or in education, where good planning skills are very attractive. In planning school you learn how to turn a vision of the future into concrete goals, devise feasible ways to acheive those goals, and then go about implementing the policies to make those goals, and thus the vision, reality. You'd be amazed how few people in the world know how to do this effectively.

Your planning career is what you make of it, which makes a planning degree such a great one to have. If you're passionate about cities and the quality of people's surroundings, and if you're one of the people who would rather do something to change things rather than just talk about it, a planning degree is for you. But a planning degree could easily land you as a pencil-pushing bureaucrat, stamping a figurative "yes" or "no" on the the papers that run across your desk. That's why, if you do get a planning degree, you need to take control of your career, stay patient and keep your eye on the prize -- working for meaningful positive change.

I really love to do something like this in london :)

Your planning career is what you make of it, which makes a planning degree such a great one to have. If you're passionate about cities and the quality of people's surroundings, and if you're one of the people who would rather do something to change things rather than just talk about it, a planning degree is for you. But a planning degree could easily land you as a pencil-pushing bureaucrat, stamping a figurative "yes" or "no" on the the papers that run across your desk. That's why, if you do get a planning degree, you need to take control of your career, stay patient and keep your eye on the prize -- working for meaningful positive change.

You don't know how much easier you just made my life. I was thinking of going into journalism- I gave up on my true dream. But maybe now I will reconsider.