PhD in Planning

About this programme

SCARP’s mission is to, through education and research, generate and transform knowledge into action by planning in partnership to improve lives and communities and the quality of built and natural environments. We are interested in attracting students to our PhD program who are interested in gaining the capabilities of a planning scholar – including deep awareness of intellectual history and planning theory, the diverse research designs employed in planning research, and in specific research methodologies – data collection and analysis. Planning scholarship touches on issues of participatory democracy, policy, and social and environmental change in place-based communities. Explicit connection of knowledge to action distinguishes planning research from that of many other disciplines. SCARP’s faculty have diverse areas of expertise and interest that prospective students are encouraged to seek out, including sustainable/active transportation, disaster and resilience planning, social planning, place-based health and care planning, climate adaptation and energy transition, cross-cultural and indigenous planning, housing and infrastructure planning, community based urban design, and urbanisation and its challenges in the Global South, to name just a few of our faculty's research interests. Our research approach is inherently interdisciplinary and spans qualitative, quantitative, and participatory/action methodologies. For specific program requirements, please refer to the departmental program website