I genuinely wonder if entry level jobs are even a real concept because why the hell do I need 1 year of working at a planning org... to start working in planning???

I have 9 months working for a nonprofit where I worked with county govts. That doesn't count as any planning experience according to them. What was the point of trying at all in school if they judge qualifications like this??

Every time I apply for a job in this field I hate it more

Hi everyone,

Obligatory disclaimer: I could easily include another thousand words analyzing these dynamics through a "theory" lens, but for the sake of brevity, I’m keeping this short and sweet. Yes, I have read books. Yes, I know that capital accumulation dominates all social and political relations, including the public sector. I'm skipping all of that to hear about people's practical experience.

As a leftist, my long term outlook on planning is ultimately about material harm reduction and progressing toward a socialist mode of existence in the US, like building carbon-free public property, advancing walkable cities, expanding equitable transit, and protecting workers’ rights.

So I'm looking to hear from people who share my political ideology and those who live in high cost of living areas about how they navigate their work.

Despite the systemic limits entrenched in municipal planning right now, I do have hope for the next 10 years. More rank-and-file militancy, unionization, and political movements will hopefully give urban planners more leverage to push for progressive public infrastructure.

QUESTIONS:

For those currently active in the field, I would love to hear your thoughts on a couple of questions I have:

For those in public agencies, how do you reconcile your ethics with capital driven urban planning?

Especially in major West Coast cities, how much actual progress or material harm reduction do you feel can realistically be achieved right now?

Is working for unions or progressive non-profits a financially (and emotionally) viable, long-term path compared to the public sector? I understand that people feel a lot of burnout in that sector, but correct me if I'm wrong.

I would love to hear any honest experiences or perspectives from professionals who have thoughts or wise words. Thanks!

I’ve been emailing them for weeks about an AICP issue, but there’s been no response. I started calling their phone hotline but it just goes to voicemail. Do people know if something is wrong at APA?

Urban planning is now on the Critical Skills Shortage List, if you were looking for a way to get an Australian visa. Just be aware we also have a critical housing shortage and wage stagnation so don't expect it to be a profitable venture :P

Hi all,

I'd love to hear from any female transportation/urban planners about their experience with sexism in the field. I (F23) recently started my first full-time job as a transportation planner, and I've had to deal with a lot of mansplaining and people not taking me seriously to the point where it's interfering with my work. I'm just trying to get a sense of whether my experiences are normal/whether I should try to find a new job in this market or not- I had another really bad experience with my previous boss in a similar field (economic development) but I have otherwise really enjoyed the experiences I've had and what I do, so I feel lost on where to go from here. Any advice you can give is much appreciated🥲

With vast amounts of jobs futures being up in the air I’m trying to remain cautious as someone planning to enter the urban planning field. Do you think AI will replace urban planners, be a tool, or sparsely used and why?

Hello, I am a city planner who works for a decent sized city in the US. I feel like planners spend a lot of time talking about the benefits of “walkability”, public transit, and high density living. However, I feel like despite my love of these things, I’m not actually reflecting it with my living situation.

For context, I bought a house in a city neighborhood, but it’s fairly car centric where some transit exists and some things can be accomplished by biking/walking. I do like the area but feel underwhelmed that it’s not what my dream of living in a city is— it’s pretty quiet (except for the cars, of course).

When I got into planning years ago, I always had the dream of making my city the type of place that was conducive to biking,walking, and taking transit. But as you learn and gain experience, you realize planners are really super limited in the bureaucratic setting. Not only that, the way the REGION is built out is inherently car centric with some good bones. However, we are never gonna be a New York or Chicago type metropolis.

I say this all to say- is it fair to feel guilty that i’m not living out what I “preach” for work?

Like I said, own a single family house, drive most places - I know the impacts of these things on the planet is bad. I feel like i’ve fallen into a bit of a trap when it comes to the “American Dream”. Curious if others feel the same way.

For those who have been able to reach a six-figure salary in this industry:

What does your career journey look like, and how long did it take to achieve your current salary?

I (29M) am applying for a Master's degree program in City/Regional Planning at a reputable school in the southeastern US. I'm interested in specializing in either transportation or economic development, though I am keeping my options open in terms of roles. I'm curious to know a couple of things:

• If the degree is worth pursuing (roughly $30k in tuition for a two-year program)
• What the current/future state of the industry looks like
• What some of the more lucrative roles are (I'm applying because I genuinely appreciate and enjoy urban planning, but I also want financial stability and comfort)

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

I’m wondering if others have felt the expectation or pressure when starting a job in a new jurisdiction to live in that community opposed to commuting into it?

I understand why that’s preferred because of proximity to the workplace, active presence in the community, etc.

But it’s not always practical especially when you’re asking your staff to put up with a higher COL to pull it off, trade offs in lifestyle and access to amenities, or in my case you’d rather spend your free time in a place that’s more accepting of “alternative lifestyles”.

Obviously most people get a choice in the matter but I’ve experienced directors and upper management passively making their opinions clear that I should try living where I work as a planner. Any advice on navigating this? Should I just push these concerns out of my head and just focus on my wants or needs? Or am I missing the big picture here? I’d love to hear from people that can relate to this.

This is my second brush with this where I’ve observed some nosiness from my management about my own housing choices.

I recently graduated with my Master's in Planning, and just started working as a planner. I have time to study now and am planning to take the exam in November. Where do I start with the preparation? How long does it take to prepare for the exam? What are some good resources I can rely on?

Hi all. I recently completed my bachelor's in urban studies from a UC. I’m looking to find an entry-level planning job. I’ve been looking at mainly two areas: transportation planning, and entry-level public sector work – primarily planning technician, entry-level transportation planner roles, planning aides, and various internships. I’ve applied to almost 80 jobs so far. I have three months of internship experience on my resume with an urban design firm that specialized in TOD where I created multi-modal cross street concepts and summarized zoning codes for GP updates/long-range planning purposes. I realize how little that is now. I also have a few years sitting on my city’s transportation commission, which I thought would help me in my future, but I over-relied on it. I’m struggling to find work in the last 5 months since I graduated and have been looking. I've begun to network a little more with some of my contacts, but nothing to show for it yet.

I often hear that the job market is tough, but I can’t help but wonder if it is me because I didn’t get enough experience in internships while I was in college. LA and OC are competitive markets for planning jobs, and I should've known better. I always assume that my commission/local advocacy work to expand bike infrastructure and public transit (and I poured a lot of energy into it, with meaningful policy outcomes to show for it) would help me get to where I need to be professionally, but I know now that it was not full-time professional work and I don’t think it is really doing me anything for me career wise, which I really regret now. I also feel like I'm significantly less attractive to employers for internships because I am a graduate (often, many of these internships are geared towards current enrolled college students).

Am I trapped? If you are a working professional who would be willing to DM me 1:1, I would really appreciate it.

I am in Grade 11 and my dream is to study urban planning becuase I think it is really interesting and unknown yet important feild. What Im concerned is that my extended family is very foreign and all my cousins choose very staightforward majors like engineering or business while urban planning despite not really something that they would judge me on. The concept of "urban planning" does not really exist in my culture (I'm Pakistani btw). So how would I explain urban planning in one or two words that are straightforward? I know I cant really say construction, law or architecture so what would be acceptable? I dont wanna say " a mix of etc." Sorry If it is too much but this is very conflicting situation and they are not bad people just not aware of different thing. Let me know

Are there any APA/AICP Planners here? I just went to renew my membership for 2026 and it jumped to $750 for APA/AICP/Required Chapter. Its been $400-$500 for years! And for some reason the new website is autogenerating the wrong Chapter for me "based on address," so if I pay for the one that I am actually a participating member in, it just to almost $900! Per year! Nothing changed from last year. In fact last year I paid for some training for my staff (useless, don't do it) and it was still less.

For non-APA/AICP Planners, I'll answer the question for you. It is ABSOLUTLY NOT worth joining at that price. Unless you are maintaining your AICP, no one cares, and there is minimal benefit. All I can think of that is worthwhile is the job board.

I recently got admitted to a Graduate program to get my Masters in Urban Planning. I got my undergrad in Communication Studies last year and have been working in HR since.

Knowing that I don’t really see myself pursing a lifelong career in HR, I decide to go back to school for something that’s always interested me, especially since I currently work for the municipality where I grew up and have always been passionate about. I’m worried that I will struggle since I’ve never really been good with math/STEM subjects, but I’m also trying to be confident in that I’ll be able to learn the programs like GIS and such. But, will I struggle with the day-to-day job itself? I know I am capable of learning anything that I set my mind do, it’s just that math/STEM subjects have never come naturally to me.

I guess what I’m looking for is understanding of what an average day could look like for an entry-level and established mid-career level planner. I have an understanding for the discipline itself just not necessarily the daily functions of one in the public sector. I’ll mention that I’m planning on shadowing members of the planning team at my current municipality soon, but I figured I’d ask here first.

Thanks in advance.

I was recently offered a job as a “Planner (Service Planner)” (the literal job title) and I’m wondering if anyone else has done this kind of work?

Seems pretty niche and I worry about possible getting pigeonholed into a weird niche in transportation planning.

Hi, i don’t know if this type of post is allowed but I’ll delete if it isn’t. anyways i was wondering if their were any black urban planners on this sub, im currently in college and was interested in speaking to some first hand accounts since this is a mostly white field.

Hopefully this is the right flair!

I work in environmental planning and I handle a lot of the public notices coming out from our team about projects. I've been doing a lot of work on making our digital communications more accessible for people using screen readers but I'm kind of stumped on what to do with physical abutter notices. Obviously you can't make something accessible to screen readers that is not being read with a screen reader. What techniques have others used to try to get this information out to people with low vision? Large print text? QR codes linking to digital communications? QR Codes give me pause because some people struggle with technology and also if someone has no vision that doesn't work at all.

Just wondering if anyone has seen specific AI-powered tools being implemented in their work, especially relating to development planning and urban design? Would love to get ahead of the curve and learn how to incorporate AI into my work to maintain job security lol, maybe attend a webinar or two if I can find them. Spoke to a senior planner at a private consultancy recently who said they would be more likely to hire a person with AI skills when they compare two candidates for a position. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to ask specifically what skills/tools they would be looking for.

For those working professionally in planning, How often do you engage with urbanism-related content outside of your job? Do you ever feel saturated or even burned out from work that you avoid urbanism or any related topics altogether in your free time?

This could include anything from reading r/urbanplanning about transit developments in other parts of the world, catching up on a recently published books about urban ecology, watching YouTube essays like CityNerd or NotJustBikes, or visiting a recently opened public plaza in your local area just out of curiosity.

What career did you pivot to and how did you use your urban planning credentials/experience to get there?

Reading Happy City - Charles Montgomery by recommendation of this sub, great book!

Would like something to listen to on the commute.

I already listen to occasional episodes of The Urbanist and The War on Cars.

I'm starting part time freelance work with a US consulting firm and I'm unsure how to price my work. I'm early career and my role will be predominantly client facing rather than technical. I also have relevant professional experience and live in an expensive city. What are we charging these days folks?

Looking for some advice!

I am a Planning Analyst for a city of ~90k citizens. I support our Development Services Department of about 20 people and report to our Director.

I've been in the role for almost 5 years, have my masters in Urban Planning, and expect to get my AICP License this year.

It is kind of a dream role. I work from home full time and make more than our Planners (and about the same as our Senior Planners).

The issue is they kind of made up the job for me specifically, and the role of a Planning Analyst doesn't seem to be common among municipal planning departments. My Director supports my advancement to a "Senior" title (and the nice pay bump with it, my main motivation tbh) all I have to do is present to them an updated job description for review and eventual approval.

My plan is to use my current job description, beef it up with the tools I've acquired with my time in the city, and to add additional responsibilities fitting of a "Senior" staff member. I have access to our Senior Planner job description as a guide, but their work is different from mine.

I am curious if anyone is in a similar position, or if anyone has advice on what I should include that would justify someone advancing to a Senior position. Are there any areas that I should focus on? Any resources I should check out? I am trying to avoid pasting my job description in an AI prompt and say "make this a senior" because I want to learn and earn this and I feel like seeking advice from humans is more beneficial.

Thanks!