Dr. Yan Wang and Ph.D. Student Su Jeong Jo Publish Research on Planning Career Mobility in the Journal of the American Planning Association 

Dr. Yan Wang, Associate Professor in the University of Florida Department of Urban and Regional Planning, alongside Ph.D. student Su Jeong Jo, recently published the paper “Career Mobility of Planning Alumni in the United States: Evidence from Professional Profile Data Using Large Language Models” in the Journal of the American Planning Association (JAPA). 

The research team utilized large language models to analyze the career mobility of more than 130,000 planning alumni utilizing data from LinkedIn profiles. Their findings revealed that those with the highest upward mobility were those who had experience in multiple sectors, and while technical skills were most useful for entry level roles, soft skills were more critical in senior positions.

The paper sought to answer two key questions:

1. How do sectoral backgrounds, spatial contexts, network characteristics, and skill acquisition shape career advancement among planning alumni?
   
2. What mechanisms and opportunity structures are associated with upward career mobility in the planning profession?

By integrating perspectives from sociology, geography, organizational studies, and labor economics, the researchers sought to answer these questions and better understand how educational practices can reduce barriers to mobility and network participation while cultivating broad skill sets in an effort to yield a more effective and equitable planning profession.