Master of Community & Regional Planning
The CRP program is the only graduate planning program in the State of New Mexico. It is built on a long-standing commitment to progressive planning and has become known as a regional and national leader in community based planning education. The program serves students from a wide variety of academic backgrounds with a curriculum that emphasizes the art of building community at a local scale and within regions. The program encourages peer support in small classes that provide direct interaction between students and instructors.

The curriculum is designed to foster connection to communities and instill the relevance of the practical application in pedagogy and analysis. The strength of the CRP program lies in its commitment and connection to local community efforts in planning. Students and faculty actively engage in community service as part of the overall mission of the program.

The CRP Program requires a minimum of 50 credit hours of study; 27 hours of these must be taken within the CRP Program. These credit hours include core courses, an emphasis foundations course, and a second methods course. Students must also complete a thesis or professional project. See a listing of all courses offered.

CRP General Core Courses
A core of 5 courses is required of all students.

The core represents the knowledge elements deemed necessary to provide for a solid foundation in planning practice.

Petitions to substitute any other coursework for these requirements will be considered only under extraordinary circumstances.

4 units CRP 500/ Planning Theory & Practice
2 units CRP 510/ Communications Studio
4 units CRP 511/ Analytic Methods
4 units CRP 521/ Advanced Planning Studio
3 units CRP 580/ Community Growth and Land Use
17 units CORE TOTAL

Emphasis Options
The CRP degree is designed to allow students to pursue an emphasis consistent with their professional objectives. The completion of an emphasis allows students to match academic interests with potential employment opportunities.

"There are three emphases offered: Community Development, Natural Resources & Environmental Planning and Physical Planning & Design."

Each emphasis in the CRP Program requires the student to take a foundations course, and a second methods course. The remainder of emphasis coursework can be selected from a variety of offerings. Students choose courses that have a special relevance to a student's professional trajectory. Such courses can be offered outside of the CRP program, but can only be applied if they carry graduate credit.

Emphasis in Community Development
Prof. Teresa Córdova, tcordova@unm.edu, phone:505.277.3922
This emphasis is designed for students who desire to understand the process of community development in rural and urban settings. It will prepare students for practice in a variety of public policy and design-oriented settings and will give the foundation for the preparation, development and implementation of community and regional plans. It will provide students with the theory necessary to understand the process of community development within a regional framework.

The coursework encompasses the economic, political and social aspects of planning. Students are taught the planning concepts and skills necessary to assist and advocate on behalf of communities. The emphasis provides a planning approach for integrating various techniques that help to identify and understand the historical, present and future patterns of individual and collective action as well as to anticipate and predict the consequences of actions on other communities.

3 units CRP 531/ Community Development (Foundations)
3 units 2nd methods
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
2 units Internship or Individual Problems Course
23 units Emphasis Total

Emphasis in Natural Resources and Environmental Planning
Prof. David Henkel, cymro@unm.edu, phone: 505.277.1276

This emphasis is designed for students who are interested in the relationships between human communities, settlements, and their ecological contexts. It will prepare students for practice, research and professional careers with nonprofit and international non-governmental organizations, with private sector firms in environmental and natural resource design, and with public planning agencies at the local, regional, state and federal government levels.

Students are trained to analyze community planning issues in terms of their implications for the natural systems that support them. Communities are formed for diverse reasons, but successful communities adapt to their physical surroundings. Consequently, the scale and character of ecological units affecting planning for a given location may vary. It is expected that students will gain theoretical knowledge of human interactions with natural systems, learn to apply analytical techniques to the assessment of actual problems, and acquire skills for their solution. Particular attention is placed on the sustainable uses of land and water, access to and control of natural resources, and their implications for growth management.

3 units CRP 564/ Natural Resource Planning (Foundations)
3 units 2nd methods
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
2 units Internship or Individual Problems Course
23 units Emphasis Total

Emphasis in Physical Planning and Design

Prof. Steve Wheeler, wheelers@unm.edu, phone: 505.277.3033

This emphasis is designed for students who are interested in the built landscape of cities and towns, including the design of neighborhoods, cities, regions, and public spaces; land use planning and growth management; the planning of transportation and other infrastructure; and development of housing and other projects. It will prepare students for professional careers in local government agencies, regional agencies, private sector consulting firms, and nonprofit organizations.

The coursework emphasizes an understanding of how the built landscape is shaped by a variety of processes, especially those involving local communities. Classes will offer skills of analyzing local codes and regulations, understanding urban design strategies and traditions, developing written planning documents and graphic materials, and working with a variety of constituencies to fulfill community goals related to physical planning and design. Integration of physical planning strategies with environmental and economic planning objectives will be emphasized.

3 units CRP 564/ Foundations of Physical Planning
3 units 2nd methods
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
3 units Elective
2 units Internship or Individual Problems Course
23 units Emphasis Total

CRP Exit Requirements
Students finish their graduate education by choosing either a Thesis (Plan I) or Professional Project (Plan II). Both plans require a minimum of eight credit hours, and vary in the type of final document produced. Both plans require CRP 588, a 2 credit thesis/project preparation course.

Plan I (thesis)
2 units CRP 588/ Professional Project/ Thesis Prep
6 units CRP 599/ Thesis

OR

Plan II (professional project)
2 units CRP 588/ Professional Project/ Thesis Prep
6 units CRP 589/ Professional Project
8 units Exit Total

Part-time Status
Please note that core courses are only offered in a given semester. Part-time students should take the core requirements first and other courses as time and resources permit. Missing a core requirement will delay your progress for a year!

If you do not finish your thesis or project in one semester, you must register and pay tuition for one hour for each successive semester. You must complete all degree requirements within seven years.

Students beginning in the Spring Semester should plan to take a minimum of 5 semesters (excluding summers) to complete their coursework.

CRP Courses Required Plan
(Sample)

Year 1

Fall

Spring

Summer (Optional)
Time to work on research for Thesis or Professional Project
Avoid course overload during semester in which the Thesis or Professional Project will be defended

Year 2

Fall

Spring

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