UrbanPlan for Universities
UrbanPlan for Universities aims to develop land use professionals–developers, planners, architects, investors, and policy makers–who are more sophisticated and effective when they enter the workforce. UrbanPlan moves students from a theoretical and ideological understanding of their discipline to the practical realities and demands of the development team and process. In addition, the module is a challenging team building exercise and introduction to ULI and key leaders in the industry.
In the 12-15 hour unit, students address challenging financial, market, social, political, and design issues, develop a pro forma, and create a three-dimensional model of their plan. The module culminates when the teams present their proposal to a “City Council” of ULI members that awards the development contract to the winning team.
Who is UrbanPlan for?
In UrbanPlan for Universities, the primary target is graduate students whose focus is land use: city and regional planning, business, real estate, architecture, and law. It can be effective in carefully selected fourth-year undergraduate classes where the course ties into land use.
UrbanPlan for University Brochure
How UrbanPlan Works in the Classroom
Facilitators
At strategic times during the project, land use professionals who have been trained in the UrbanPlan curriculum, interact with the student teams. Through the Socratic method, these volunteers visit the teams and challenge the students to think more critically about the UrbanPlan issues and the specific responsibilities of their “roles” (Financial Analyst, Marketing Director, Site Planner, City Liaison, Neighborhood Liaison).
Presenters
UrbanPlan volunteers engage in interactive discussions with students on the member’s own project work or specific professional challenges. Through thoughtful questioning, the presenter helps students relate these issues and decisions to struggles the students are experiencing in UrbanPlan.
City Council
UrbanPlan volunteers hear student presentations, challenge their proposals as would happen in an actual city council hearing, and award the development contract to the winning development team.
WHAT PROFESSORS SAY ABOUT URBANPLAN
SUSANNE ETHRIDGE CANNON,
Director, The Real Estate Center, and Professor of Finance, DePaul University “UrbanPlan poses a complex development problem that drives students to propose remarkably sophisticated solutions within a short, focused module of a course. It engages my students as no other exercise I have ever used.” |
DAVID GREEN,
Associate Principal, Perkins + Will, and former Professor of Urban Design, Georgia Tech “UrbanPlan distills and transmits the essence of the development process more effectively, more comprehensively, in less time, with more lasting results than any other program suitable for a classroom environment.” |
ANDREW HANSZ, PhD,
Professor, Finance & Real Estate, and Director, Graduate Real Estate Programs, University of Texas “University of Texas–Arlington is dedicated to offering an MBA real estate program that produces sophisticated, effective developers, investors, and lenders. UrbanPlan is a key component of that effort.” |
Get Involved
If you are a professor interested in bringing UrbanPlan to your course, please contact us at [email protected]
Are you a ULI member and have an interest in serving as a volunteer?
Schools, teachers, and students – contact us at [email protected].
UrbanPlan at Old Dominion University
See how ULI is preparing the next generation of business leaders at ODU