The information and program qualifications related to the Urban Planning Master of Science Program, under the Department of Urban and Regional Planning of the Graduate School, are summarized below.
Information About The Program
In 1946, universities in Turkey were restructured with a modern organization, and Istanbul Technical University gained new chair divisions from this new organization. The Chair of Urbanism, which is part of the Faculty of Architecture, took a special and important role in the architecture curriculum with lecture and studio courses. In 1967, the Institute of Urbanism was established, and in 1974, graduate education began with the only urbanism program affiliated with the ITU Institute of Science and Technology.
In 1982, following the establishment of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, by leaving the Department of Architecture, it started to serve as one of the four graduate fields, namely Urban Planning, Urban Design, Regional Planning, and Landscape Planning. The Department of Urban and Regional Planning had its first undergraduate graduates in 1987. In parallel with the diversification of these four specialization programs in 1988, applications from related disciplines other than Urban and Regional Planning and Architecture graduates began to be accepted to the program.
In the 2001-2002 academic year, the master's and doctorate programs affiliated with the ITU Institute of Science and Technology were restructured, and the four master programs in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning were re-organized as two programs, the Urban Planning and Regional Planning Master Programs. With the establishment of the ITU Graduate Institute in 2020, master programs in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning are still carried out with these two programs.
The rich diversification in the research fields of the academic staff who instruct a course or supervise thesis in the Urban Planning master program allows students to work on various theoretical and practical current issues in the field of urban planning (https://sehirbolge.itu.edu.tr/arastirma/). The ongoing research topics in the program are human settlements, urban economics, and geography, urban policies, planning theory and philosophy, and quantitative and qualitative methods as general headings.
Applicants for the program are expected to have a bachelor's degree in urban and regional planning, architecture, landscape architecture, geography, sociology, law, public administration, economics, business administration, statistics, psychology, geomatics engineering, civil engineering, environmental engineering, geological engineering, geophysical engineering, meteorological engineering, and other related fields/disciplines.
Click here for the program's website.
Registration Requirements
Application Term : Previous Term / 2024-2025 Spring Semester
Application Requirements (For T.C Nationality) ALES Numerical must be minimum 65 (old system GRE Quantitative minimum 652, new system GRE minimum 152 ). Undergraduate GPA must be minimum 2.75/4 (70.83/100). Graduation must be Geography, Environmental Engineering, Economics / Ekonomi, Industrial Engineering, Geomatics Engineering, Law, Civil Engineering, Statistics, Business, Management Engineering, Geophysical Engineering, Geological Engineering, Meteorological Engineering, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Sociology, Urban and Regional Planning.
Quota (For T.C Nationality): 15
Application Requirements (For International Students) ALES Numerical must be minimum 65 (old system GRE Quantitative minimum 652, new system GRE minimum 152 ). Undergraduate GPA must be minimum 2.75/4 (70.83/100). Graduation must be Geography, Environmental Engineering, Economics / Ekonomi, Industrial Engineering, Geomatics Engineering, Law, Civil Engineering, Statistics, Business, Management Engineering, Geophysical Engineering, Geological Engineering, Meteorological Engineering, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Sociology, Urban and Regional Planning.
Quota (For International Students): 5
Transfer Quota : 2
Application Page Graduate Education and Training Regulation Senate Principles
Application requirements, application dates, and quotas are updated in real-time from the Application System.
MasterBee
English Proficiency
Regulations and Guidelines
Academic Calendar
Course Plans
Course Schedules
Course Adjustment and Exemption Procedures
Program Educational Objectives
The urban planning master program aims to enhance knowledge and develop the skills in analytical and critical thinking to understand the complex interaction within economic, political, ecological, and social processes while developing transformative and strategic policies and spatial interventions.
Measurement and Evaluation
Evaluating Student Success
The student success is evaluated considering Articles 56, 57, 58, and 59 of the Istanbul Technical University Graduate Education and Training Regulation Senate Principles.
ARTICLE 56 - Before the enrollment for the courses begins, the faculty member who offers the course informs the Program Executive Committee about the types, number and contribution percentage to the final grade of the studies within the semester, as well as requirements for a right to take the semester final exam. These requirements shall be finalized by approval of the Program Executive Committee and approval of the chair of the department, who declares them to the student and informs the Graduate School.
ARTICLE 57 - A student may appeal the final grade of a course within one week following the announcement of the grades. Appeals must be submitted to the Graduate School in writing. The relevant faculty member shall re-evaluate the student's success status and submit the result to the Graduate School within one week. Appeals not submitted within the prescribed time frame shall not be considered by the Graduate School.
ARTICLE 58 - Courses in graduate programs shall be evaluated according to the following grading system.
| Grade Description |
Grade |
Scale |
| Excellent |
AA |
4.00 |
| Very good plus |
BA+ |
3.75 |
| Very good |
BA |
3.50 |
| Good plus |
BB+ |
3.25 |
| Good |
BB |
3.00 |
| Conditional Pass |
CB+ |
2.75 |
| Conditional Pass |
CB |
2.50 |
| Conditional Pass |
CC+ |
2.25 |
| Conditional Pass |
CC |
2.00 |
| Fail |
FF |
0.00 |
| Fail(No Exam) |
VF |
0.00 |
ARTICLE 59 - Students who wish to improve their cumulative grade point average may retake courses during the course-taking period. The most recent grade will be counted for the repeated courses.
Internship
There is no internship in this program.
Graduation Requirements
Students who successfully complete 4 compulsory courses (12 credits), 3 courses from elective courses (9 credits), and non-credit elective and specialization courses in the program and who complete 30% of these courses in English can proceed to the thesis stage. They defend their thesis to the jury (3-member jury with a single supervisor or 5-member jury if co-supervised), and they are entitled to receive the "Urban Planning Master Degree" if they are successful.
Students who fulfill the conditions defined above submit their thesis in accordance with the thesis template determined by the institute. They graduate from the program after the ITU Graduate School approves their thesis.
The Awarded Degree and Title
Degree : Master of Science Title : -
Program Employment Opportunities
Graduates of the program are employed in the public sector, especially in municipalities, provincial organizations of ministries, and special provincial administrations; additionally private planning and design offices and real estate development companies are other employment potentials of graduates.
Number of Graduates
Graduate Statistics
| Year | Number of Graduates |
| 2013 | 6 |
| 2014 | 9 |
| 2015 | 8 |
| 2016 | 5 |
| 2017 | 10 |
| 2018 | 18 |
| 2019 | 16 |
| 2020 | 12 |
| 2021 | 12 |
| 2022 | 11 |
| 2023 | 16 |
| 2024 | 15 |
Program Outcomes
P.O.1 Developing and intensifying in urban planning, based upon the competency in the undergraduate level (sufficient knowledge) (knowledge)
P.O.2 Grasping the inter-disciplinary interaction related to urban planning (knowledge)
P.O.3 The ability to use the expert-level theoretical and practical knowledge acquired in the area (skill)
P.O.4 Interpreting and forming new types of knowledge by combining the knowledge from the area and knowledge from various other disciplines (skill)
P.O.5 Solving the problems faced in the area by making use of the research methods (skill)
P.O.6 The ability to carry out a specialistic study related to urban planning independently (Competence to work indepently and take responsibility)
P.O.7 Developing new strategic approaches to solve the unforeseen and complex problems arising in the practical processes of urban planning and coming up with solutions while taking responsibility (Competence to work independently and take responsibility)
P.O.8 Fulfilling the leader role in the environments where solutions are sought for the problems related to urban planning (Competence to work independently and take responsibility)
P.O.9 Assessing the specialistic knowledge and skill gained through the study with a critical view and directing one’s own learning process (Learning competence)
P.O.10 Systematically transferring the current developments in the field of urban planning and one’s own work to other groups in and out the area; in written, oral and visual forms (Communication and social competency)
P.O.11 Ability to see and develop social relationships and the norms directing these relationships with a critical look and the ability to take action to change these when necessary (Communication and social competency)
P.O.12 Proficiency in a foreign language – at least European Language Portfolio B2 Level – and establishing written and oral communication with that language (Communication and social competency)
P.O.13 Using the computer software together with the information and communication technologies efficiently and according to the needs of urban planning (Communication and social competency)
P.O.14 Paying regard to social, scientific, cultural and ethical values during the collecting, interpreting, practicing and announcing processes of urban planning related data and the ability to teach these values to others (Area specific competency)
P.O.15 Developing strategy, policy and application plans concerning the subjects related to urban planning and the ability to evaluate the end results of these plans within the frame of quality processes (Area specific competency)
P.O.16 Using the knowledge and the skills for problem solving and/or application (which are processed within urban planning) in inter-disciplinary studies (Area specific competency)
P.O.17 The ability to present one’ s own work within the international environments orally, visually and in written forms (Area specific competency)
Program Coordinator
Head of the Department
Links