Admissions

Financial Assistance

We recognize that program financing is of paramount importance to students. There are several sources of academic funding available to students of the program, including financial aid, research assistantships, scholarships, and travel grants.

UF Student Financial Affairs (SFA)

The University of Florida’s Office of Student Financial Affairs (SFA) is the main point of contact for students and applicants interested in financial aid options. SFA offers a full range of student loan and work-study programs, as well as additional assistance on a competitive basis to minorities, women in “non-traditional” fields, and students with outstanding academic backgrounds. Students and applicants should contact SFA directly to discuss personal financing for academic programs, including loans and federal aid (e.g. FAFSA).

Department Assistantships

Because we have such an active research program, students within the department often receive financial aid in the form of research or teaching assistantships. Selection for assistantships is competitive. These positions involve part-time work, usually from 10 to 20 hours a week, under faculty supervision. Students receive an hourly wage plus a partial tuition waiver.

Applicants wishing to apply for assistantships must submit a completed application and the department funding form by the Priority Deadline. The below assistantships are only available to campus applicants beginning in fall semesters.

Click to apply for department assistantships

This is a two-year graduate assistantship for high-achieving applicants who identify with groups traditionally underrepresented in the field of Urban and Regional Planning. The student is assigned to work with department faculty member on research pertaining to issues of justice and equity in planning. The graduate assistantship includes a stipend, full-time tuition waiver, and GatorCare. Graduate assistants would work approximately 20 hours/week. Only applicants to the campus MURP program are eligible for this assistantship.

Criteria: A 3.5 GPA or higher in the final half of undergraduate study; identification with a group traditionally underrepresented in the field of Urban and Regional Planning.

Application Requirements: Applicants will complete the assistantship form, which includes a brief written statement (max. 500 words, or 1 page single-spaced) describing your interests in social justice and equity in the planning field. Your statement should include, but not be limited to: any URP courses of interest, any URP faculty of interest, and research topics of interest.

This is a two-year graduate assistantship program for high-achieving applicants who are the first in their families to attend graduate or professional school. The student is assigned to work with a department faculty member on research pertaining to a wide variety of issues in planning. The graduate assistantship includes a stipend, full-time tuition waiver, and GatorCare. Graduate assistants would work approximately 20 hours per week. Only applicants to the on-campus program are eligible for this assistantship.

Criteria: A 3.5 GPA or higher in the final half of undergraduate study; first in their families to attend graduate or professional school.

Application Requirements: Applicants will complete the assistantship form, which includes a brief written statement (max. 500 words, or 1 page single-spaced) describing how your experience as a first-generation student will contribute to your academic and professional planning practice. Your statement may include: any URP courses of interest and professional planning interests.

Department Scholarships

The Department offers a variety of merit-based scholarships and need-based scholarships. Applicants wishing to apply for assistantships must submit a completed application and the department funding form by the Priority Deadline. The below scholarships are available to campus and online MURP applicants. Please read the descriptions closely for eligibility.

Click to apply for department scholarships

The Mucci Scholarship is a tuition scholarship awarded to an incoming student of outstanding professional promise from the Orlando/East Central Florida Area.

Application Requirements: Applicants will complete the scholarship form, which includes verification that the applicant is from the Orlando/East Central Florida area, and a brief statement (200 words max.) as to how living in the Orlando/East Central Florida area has influenced your decision to become a professional planner.

Dr. James C. Nicholas is an emeritus professor of Urban and Regional Planning and an emeritus professor of law at the University of Florida. Dr. Nicholas has written widely on land, environmental, and growth management. The Nicolas Scholarship is a tuition scholarship awarded to an incoming student interested in the study of land, environmental, and growth management.

Application Requirements: Applicants will complete the scholarship form, which includes a brief written statement (max. 200 words) describing your interest in land, environmental, and/or growth management planning.

Earl M. Starnes, Professor Emeritus, was a founding faculty of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning and a leader in issues of Florida growth management and the politics and economics of land and water use in Florida. The Starnes Scholarship is a tuition scholarship awarded to an incoming student interested in the study of the politics and economics of land and water use.

Application Requirements: Applicants will complete the scholarship form, which includes a brief written statement (max. 200 words) describing your academic and professional interest in the politics and economics of land and water use.

This scholarship may be given to high-achieving applicants and current students with a demonstrated financial need.

Application Requirements: Applicants will complete the scholarship form, which includes a demonstration of need.

Department Awards

Graduating masters and Ph.D.-URP students are eligible for certain APA, College, and Departmental awards. The awards are presented at the Annual URP Awards Ceremony at the end of each spring semester, and are determined based upon student merit and achievement during their time in their academic program.

The American Planning Association presents this award to one student in each accredited planning program. This award recognizes a student who has performed well in class, demonstrates leadership, and shows promise of early achievement in the planning profession.

URP alumni and friends established this award in honor of Carl Feiss, who was among the founding faculty of URP. He was trained as an architect and was instrumental in founding the planning professional nationally through his work on affordable housing, historic preservation and other regional planning priorities from the Roosevelt (FDR) to the Kennedy administrations. This award is given to a URP student whose focus is in Urban and Environmental Design. The student must have completed at least one semester of studies with some coursework in urban and environmental design. The awardee must have earned at least a 3.5 GPA in all graduate work and must have demonstrated significant promise relative to future professional or academic success, based upon studio work, papers, or presentations in urban and environmental design.

This award is given in honor of James Nevin Beeler, Jr., who graduated from the URP program in Spring 2011 and passed away in Fall of 2012. Jim was active in local political and civic circles everywhere he lived. He was not afraid to get involved in public controversy and public service. Before becoming a URP student, he served on Tampa-Hillsborough County Planning Commission and worked on several campaigns for area politicians. This award is presented to students who engage in public service and make a difference in their communities.

This award is given in honor of Margaret E. Raynal, who was the state trainer for the Florida Traffic and Bicycle Safety Education Program until her death in a bicycle crash in December 1996. This award is presented to an exceptional student who specializes in environmental or transportation (particularly alternative forms of transportation) planning or health education.

Established by URP Professor Emeritus Paul Zwick and his wife, Malea, this award recognizes a student who has best integrated innovative use of technology into their solution for urban and regional planning problems or research.

This award is in honor of Mr. Kanavos who was the president of the Flag Development Company and is funded by the family and friends of Mr. Kanavos. This award is presented to an outstanding student who is interested in real estate and development.

This award is presented in memory of Mario Ripol, who was a research associate in GeoPlan when he was killed in an automobile crash in December 2000. This award is presented to an outstanding student who specializes in information technology for planning.

Additional Funding Opportunities

There are scholarship and fellowship opportunities for incoming and existing students through outside funding sources, such as the University of Florida and the American Planning Association. Students may become members of the American Planning Association at no cost.

The UF Graduate School offers an array of funding opportunities, including fellowships, assistantships, scholarships, and awards.

One facet of the APA Foundation’s mission is advancing social equity in the profession and in our communities. In support of this mission, the Foundation is launching the APA Foundation Scholarship. Recipients of the APA Foundation Scholarship will advance social equity in the profession and demonstrate academic success. For more information, visit: https://www.planning.org/foundation/scholarships/

Six APA Divisions award scholarships and fellowships to qualified planning graduate students. For more information, visit: https://www.planning.org/scholarships/divisions/

Travel to conferences, symposia and special research opportunities is essential to your academic and professional development as a graduate student engaged in research, and there are resources on campus to help you take advantage of it. The UF Graduate School coordinates travel funding for the Graduate School, Office of Research, and Graduate Student Council.

In addition, the department and the San Felasco Section of the Florida Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA-FL) offer travel grants to attend conferences.

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