Cornell University Registrar

Program Description

The dual master’s degree in city & regional planning (M.R.P.) and landscape architecture (M.L.A.) is a professionally accredited degree intended for students with an interest in both planning and design issues.

Landscape architecture students interested in the social, political, and economic context in which design occurs, or planning students who want to establish a deeper concentration in physical design and planning than the existing planning curriculum can provide, are ideal candidates for the dual degree program. 

The dual degree prepares students for work in areas such as physical planning, environmental analysis, community development, and urban design — skills which are highly sought after in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.

Admissions

Students apply for admission to the dual degree after already being accepted to either the M.R.P. or M.L.A. program, but need to be admitted to both programs separately. Typically, a student will apply to the complementary program during their first semester at Cornell.

Additional Requirements 

• Each student forms an advisory committee of two members, with one member from City & Regional Planning (CRP) and one from Landscape Architecture (LA). The advisory committee assists the student in all aspects of the program, from class selection to completing a final exit project or thesis.
• Students must fulfill the class requirements as specified in the core curriculum for each program. This includes the required minimum credit hours in LA and CRP.
• For candidates in the first professional degree program in Landscape Architecture, a minimum of 120 total credit hours is required for the dual degree. In most instances, it is expected that four years will constitute the normal period at Cornell.

Program Information

• Instruction Mode: In Person
• Location: Ithaca, NY
• Minimum Credits for Degree: 120 for dual degrees
  • 30 required in City & Regional Planning
  • 90 required in Landscape Architecture
• Length of Program: Eight semesters total for dual degrees
  • Three semesters in City & Regional Planning
  • Five semesters in Landscape Architecture

Program Requirements

(Note: Each semester, the studio classes require payment of a supply and field trip fee, and all landscape architecture majors are required to pay an annual technology fee.)

First-Professional Landscape Architecture (MLA) Program Requirements/Sample Curriculum Plan

City & Regional Planning (MRP) Program Requirements 

¹

Note: M.R.P. students may petition to have other Cornell courses fulfill the Economics course requirement.

²

Note: M.R.P. students may petition to have other Cornell courses fulfill the Statistics course requirement.

³

Note: M.R.P. students may petition to have other Cornell courses fulfill the Additional Methods course requirement.

Successful Completion of an Exit Project

Credits vary by option and include:

• A research paper: CRP 8901 M.R.P. Exit Project: Research and CRP 8902 M.R.P. Exit Project: Research Paper-Writing (The combined credits must equal 4 credits in total)
• A professional report: CRP 8901 M.R.P. Exit Project: Research and CRP 8904 M.R.P. Exit Project: Professional Report-Writing (The combined credits must equal at least 4 credits but no more than 10 credits in total)
• A thesis: CRP 8901 M.R.P. Exit Project: Research and CRP 8906 M.R.P. Exit Project: Thesis-Writing (The combined credits must equal at least 6 credits but no more than 10 credits in total)

MRP Students are required to submit the exit project to eCommons – Cornell University Library's online repository for dissertations and theses before the exit project degree deadline.

M.R.P. students complete a minimum of 60 total credits; at least 30 of these credits must be obtained within the Department of City and Regional Planning, including credits earned in fulfilling and completing the exit project and the M.R.P. core requirements.