About the program
Ever wonder what goes into planning things that affect your daily routine? For instance, where you drive your car, take your morning jog, and build your home are all things that have to be carefully planned by your city officials. The College of Charleston’s Master of Public Administration (MPA) Program offers a Graduate Certificate in Urban and Regional Planning. This certificate program adds a specialization to the MPA degree; it can be for anyone interested in taking an active role in their community or for professionals who are already in the field and want to earn additional training. One of the program’s unique features is that it uses the Lowcountry as a learning laboratory to take what you have learned in the classroom and apply it.
Recent graduate: Andrea Harris-Long
Want to know what you can do with a Graduate Certificate in Urban and Regional Planning? Former student Andrea Harris-Long can tell you. Andrea is in her last semester of the College’s MPA program, which she says has “further developed her professional skills.” Andrea realized she was interested in analyzing policy from an urban viewpoint after taking an urban policy course, which is why she decided to pursue the certificate program. Because she had the opportunity to specialize in urban and regional planning, Andrea just recently earned a job as a planner with Charleston County in today’s challenging job market. Andrea explains:
In this position, I will be working on a variety of projects. Regular tasks include working on cases (such as rezoning or ordinance amendments) for the Planning Commission; utilizing ArcGIS to create maps and analyze data; and meeting with citizens to explain and carry out planning functions such as subdivisions, rezonings, and new development. I will also be working with other staff members as the department approaches the five-year update for the County Comprehensive Plan. This will include analyzing special planning areas, gathering and assessing data for needs assessments, and attending public hearings to determine what the public wants to see in the future land uses of Charleston County.
The Graduate Certificate in Urban and Regional Planning is directed by Department of Political Science Assistant Professor Kevin Keenan. For more information about the program, watch the video below or click here.