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Urban Studies
Develop the urban research skills valued by municipalities, NGOs, federal and provincial governments, and private sector employers. Understand the city, its functions and its dynamics, offering insights into today's social, economic and environmental challenges from an interdisciplinary perspective.
Urban studies courses are offered in the evenings at Simon Fraser University's Harbour Centre campus in Vancouver. The Urban Studies Program offers both full-time and part-time options for its master's and diploma programs.* Students receive an education in economic, geographic, political, and social analysis techniques that enable them to address real-world urban problems.
The program focuses on Vancouver as a city, but also includes the study of other urban areas in the past and present.
* Students may apply to the master's and graduate diploma program in urban studies simultaneously. They can also apply to transfer from the diploma program to the master's program later.
Potential careers
The world is changing rapidly and so is the full range of career opportunities that await. Armed with the necessary knowledge and skills, graduates pursue careers in fields such as:
- Urban and land-use planners
- Senior managers in government, construction, transportation, production utilities
- Social and community service workers
- Business development officers
- Market researches/analysts consultants (policy, planning, research)
- and more
Is Urban Worlds for you?
- Are you interested in cities, how they work, and how they change?
- Do you want a career that shapes your city for the better?
If you answered "yes" to one or both, then Urban Worlds is for you! Reach out to urban@sfu.ca to talk to us.
This major tackles topics including: Gentrification, homelessness, housing crises, climate change, migration, spread of infectious disease, racism, city’s role as a node of extraction in the global economy.
Program Options
Learn more about the different degrees and programs available to you at Urban Studies
Undergraduate options
Graduate options
Master
Certificate and Diploma (Graduate)
Career Pathways
Urban studies is for graduate students who are aspiring and practicing professionals (e.g. planners, managers, researchers, analysts and activists) seeking to develop the urban research skills that are vlaued by municipalities, NGOs, federal and provincial governments and private sector employers.
Possible career paths include:
- Urban and regional planner
- Public admnistration
- Government policy analyst or researcher
- Manager in private business or the non-profit sector
- Consultant in the public or private sector
- Local and international development agencies
- Education and academia
"I chose Urban Studies at SFU because I was adamant about conducting industry-relevant research, and sought a program with a strong tradition of faculty and graduate students engaging with the city that it is located in."
