Urban Studies is an interdisciplinary field grounded in the physical and social spaces of the city and the larger built environment. The Urban Studies major is situated within Yale’s liberal arts framework and draws on the broader academic context and expertise of the Yale School of Architecture, including the areas of urban design and development, urban and architectural history, urban theory and representation, globalization and infrastructure, transportation and mobility, heritage and preservation, and community-based planning. The major introduces students to the following bodies of knowledge: history, theory and contemporary analysis of urban morphologies, spaces, societies, and political economies; conceptual tools and analytical methods to understand urban environments and issues through spatial terms; and practices of and speculative approaches to urban planning and design.

 

The major prepares undergraduates for a variety of future careers and fields of graduate study related to urban planning, design, and development. These include professional and practice-oriented fields such as urban planning, law, non-profit management, public policy, real estate development, and architecture; as well as research-oriented fields such as geography, sociology, anthropology, urban planning, and architecture. 

 

 

Urban Studies at Yale

Urban Studies in the City of New Haven

Yale has a long intellectual tradition of grappling with the nature of urban growth and decline, the social and cultural life of cities, and the politics of urban change. In recent years, the University has made a renewed commitment to New Haven, its home for three centuries. Many students deepen their understanding of cities by becoming involved in the life of New Haven.