Also called: City Planner
Plans how land is used: where housing, parks, roads, and businesses should go.
You review a developer's plan for 300 apartments, check it against the zoning code, and write a staff report. In the evening you run a community workshop with sticky notes and maps.
BLS May 2024 median about $81,800.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. Most jobs want a master's in urban planning; AICP certification after a few years.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $60k – $150k.
Majors to look at: Urban Planning, Geography, Public Policy, Environmental Studies.
Growing about average (about 4% over 10 years). BLS projection.
Medium risk for 10 years. AI summarizes data, drafts plans and reviews applications; public meetings, judgment and politics stay human.
Classes: AP Human Geography, Government, AP Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-3051.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.