Assistant Professor in Urban and Regional Planning

Classification Title:

Assistant Professor in Urban and Regional Planning

Classification Minimum Requirements:

The candidate must have a PhD in urban and regional planning or closely related field.

A successful candidate must have expertise and a strong fundamental background in the planning field, though education and experience, to enable them to support specialized and core courses for the MURP and BUSP programs.

The PhD must be completed prior to the start date of August 16, 2026. An ABD at the time of interviews will be considered with a letter from the candidate’s supervisor confirming the candidate’s date of graduation.

Job Description:

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning within the University of Florida’s College of Design, Construction and Planning invites applications for a nine-month, tenure-accruing faculty position at the rank of Assistant Professor to begin in August 2026.

The Department encourages applications from candidates with background and expertise in the urban and regional planning field. The Department has particular interest in candidates whose research and teaching contribute to future-oriented, innovative urban and regional transformation and the empowerment of communities and residents. We seek a high-caliber candidate whose work focuses on achieving equitable and sustainable outcomes related to: affordable housing, climate resilience, physical and social mobility, or integrated land use and urban governance. Candidates should demonstrate the ability to leverage advanced and integrative planning, design, policy, and technology to make significant contributions to one or more of these areas. Ideal candidates will collaborate with other disciplines, bring professional experience, and have interest in relating their work to Florida communities.

Key Responsibilities

The selected candidate will conduct research and publications commensurate with a tenure-track position and be entrepreneurial in obtaining research grants. The candidate should be open to collaborating with other faculty and researchers, such as in research centers across and beyond the College (see below) and establishing relationships with related discipline programs on campus.

The position requires teaching a total of four courses per year (two in fall and two in spring), which may be graduate and upper-level undergraduate courses delivered in-person and online, in the candidate’s areas of expertise and in general planning topics. Anticipated courses include at least one core general planning course. The successful candidate should have a well-developed pedagogy that includes methods to engage a multicultural student body.

The candidate would also be expected to conduct community outreach and service consistent with the missions of the Department and the land-grant University.

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning consists of a collegial faculty of thirteen core members and an additional eighteen members affiliated with research centers and other academic programs. Our faculty is the most productive in the College and consistently attracts the highest amount of research funding, with close to $4 million in new grants secured in the past year. We foster a family friendly environment and promote career development at every level, including mentorship of junior faculty.

The Department, founded in 1975 and first accredited in 1978, offers a Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP), a Master of Science in Urban Analytics (MSUA), a PhD URP concentration with STEM designation, a graduate minor in URP and certificate in UA, an undergraduate minor in URP, and a combined (4+1) bachelor-master degree. The Department’s fully-online MURP was the country’s first and remains the only accredited such program. In 2023, the MURP program (campus and online) was ranked 22nd in the nation, sixth in the South, and the 10th largest by enrollment. The Department recently established a Bachelor of Urban Sciences and Planning (BUSP) to begin in Fall 2026.

The School and College

As one of the two units in the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning, the Department of Urban and Regional Planning has a strong relationship with the Department of Landscape Architecture, as well as other units in the College, which include Architecture, Construction Management, Interior Design, Historic Preservation, and Sustainability and the Built Environment. The School of Architecture has established two off-campus CityLab program