Rankings

Is "Urban Planner" One of the Best Careers of 2011?

Once again, US News and World Report singles out the world of planning as one of the best careers for the coming year. But the online comments tell another story.

December 20, 2010 - US News and World Report

U.S. is 9th in List of Most Prosperous Countries

The Legatum Institute, a London think tank, has published a report ranking countries in terms of prosperity. The U.S. took a big hit for health care.

November 3, 2009 - Foreign Policy

Deciding if You Want to be a Planner

Not sure if you want to be a planner? Recently my colleagues and I have received a spate of emails from prospective students around the world wanting to know whether planning is a field they should pursue. Their extensive lists of questions show that this is a pressing issue for them. This entry answers some of the more common questions and aims to help prospective students come to programs with a shorter and more focused set of topics to explore.

April 5, 2009 - Ann Forsyth

The Best Places to Live in America

CNN Money has released its ranking of the best places to live.

July 15, 2008 - CNN Money

Top 10 Most Livable Cities

Monocle Magazine looks worldwide for the most livable cities.

June 20, 2008 - Monocle Magazine

Zurich, Geneva and Vienna: Best Quality of Life?

Central European cities lead the world in this assessment of 'quality of living.' The survey is oriented towards companies who could locate workers in those countries and need to calculate 'hardship allowances.'

June 13, 2008 - Citymayors.com

Fast Company Picks 'Fast Cities 2008'

Fast Company highlights Chicago and London, their picks for U.S. and Global Cities of the Year, respectively. Whatever you think of the way such lists come together, these are interesting profiles of two vibrant municipalities.

June 5, 2008 - Fast Company

Best U.S. City to Raise a Family: Honolulu?

Let the controversy begin -- Best Life Magazine named Honolulu #1 on its list of "The 100 Best Places to Raise a Family", while Flint, Michigan scrapes the bottom. Where does your city rank?

May 21, 2008 - Best Life Magazine

Planning Schools: To Rank, Or Not To Rank?

Professor Lance Freeman's recent post about Planetizen's rankings of graduate planning programs does an excellent job of summarizing some of the thorniest problems with school rankings. The editors of Planetizen certainly agree with Professor Freeman when he states that rankings cannot accurately predict whether a particular program will provide a particular student with the type of education he or she would deem best. There are far too many individual factors involved, and any student who makes their decision primarily on the basis of such rankings would be doing themselves a great disservice. This point is also the reason why most of the 142 pages of the 2007 Planetizen Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs consist of detailed profiles of programs -- not rankings.However, we continue to believe, as Professor Freeman also acknowledges, that rankings do provide a useful measure of comparison for students who are evaluating a graduate program of study in planning -- something that is likely to be the largest single investment in their educational career. Therefore, we are planning to publish a new edition of the Planetizen Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs in the spring. In addition, we're working to improve our rankings process to help address some the concerns that Professor Freeman and others have raised.

December 5, 2007 - Christian Madera

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.