Florida State University
AC-4: Graduate Program

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning at Florida State University strives to: train professionals who are change agents in their communities; create research that transforms practice and scholarship; and promote sustainability, social justice, and the well-being of all persons.

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning at Florida State University enrolls a diverse set of students and educates them to think critically, exhibit technical competence, and effectively engage the political process. The Department conducts research and provides service that contributes to a better understanding and shaping of resilient communities and ecosystems in order to promote human capabilities, equity, sustainable livelihoods, and healthy and safe places locally and globally. The Department recognizes a particular responsibility to document, examine, and enhance planning in the State of Florida.

Students in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning Master’s program complete a minimum of 9 credit hours in the following specialization areas:

- Environmental Planning: The environmental planning specialization deals with the protection and stewardship of air, water, land and other natural resources. Concerns include both the management of natural resources directly, as well as the mitigation of adverse impacts on these resources caused by human settlements and activities. The specialization offers an overview of key environmental issues, and provides the theoretical, methodological, and legal background necessary for the planner to have an effective role in dealing with these issues.

- Neighborhood Planning and Community Design: The Neighborhood Planning + Community Design specialization is concerned with the creation, preservation, and revitalization of neighborhoods and other small-area places, including commercial and public spaces that serve resident populations. It focuses on building the economic, physical, social, and political capital necessary to effect change through neighborhood revitalization strategies that aim to design equitable places and build human capital.

- Planning for Developing Areas: The Planning for Developing Areas specialization prepares students for the challenges of guiding economic and social development in the context of increasing globalization, commonly defined as the increasing interconnectedness of people, places, and institutions worldwide. Development planners work in urban and rural developing areas around the world. Courses address cross-cutting issues such as globalization, democratization, gender and development, and sustainable development.

- Real Estate Economic Development: Real Estate and Economic Development specialization focuses on the ways in which public sector interventions and planning strategies can be leveraged to attract private investment for responsible and equitable economic development. We aspire to develop and implement economic development strategies that will enhance the quality of lives for existing and future community members.

- Transportation Planning: Transportation is essential to the function of cities and the well-being of their residents. Transportation systems make the exchange of goods and services possible, and they help shape the form of the built urban environment. The ways we design and use the transportation system affect all other aspects of planning, from the environment to housing and community development to health and land use development.

The Jim Moran College of Entrepreneurship’s MSE Social and Sustainable Enterprises prepares students to help companies meet the demands of today without jeopardizing future generations. This interdisciplinary and experiential curriculum is taught by university faculty and industry professionals in social entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, innovation, and social and environmental sciences.

A social and sustainable enterprise is determined by its Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) which refers to the three central factors in measuring the sustainability and societal impact of a business. These criteria help entrepreneurs create a business model or executives transition to a business model that incorporates people, planet, and profits which mitigates risk and fulfills the demands of consumers for more equitable and sustainable companies. Throughout the online program, students are taught by Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) leaders and industry professionals to create, manage, and lead social and sustainable enterprises.

The FSU-FAMU College of Engineering Mechanical Engineering program offers an M.S. in Sustainable Energy with the following courses, highlighting energy developed in sustainable methodology: Analysis in Mechanical Engineering I, Engineering Electrochemistry, Energy Conversion Systems for Sustainability, Sustainable Power Generation, Sustainable Energy Utilization, plus electives, seminar, and thesis credits.

Florida State University College of Law in Tallahassee is designed to allow students to complete the requirements while simultaneously completing a well-rounded non-certificate curriculum as well. Upon graduation, students who successfully complete the program receive a certificate along with their J.D. degree, indicating to employers and others that they have achieved special competency in the fields of environmental, energy and land use law.

The College of Law's proximity to the center of Florida's government offers students advantages few environmental, energy and land use programs can match. Externship and pro bono opportunities with government agencies and public interest groups give students a chance to learn about the creation and implementation of environmental law from the inside. The opportunity to watch laws and policies being developed, legislated and litigated provides law students an experience that will make them both astute practitioners and better citizens. Legal educations at Florida State are further enriched by attorneys and public officials in the environmental, energy and land use areas who serve as adjunct faculty and lecturers at the law school.

Aquatic Environmental Science
https://www.eoas.fsu.edu/grad-degrees/environmental/