metropolitan college academic courses graduate courses urban affairs

Urban Affairs Graduate Courses

MET UA 500 Environmental Problems and Policy

An examination of environmental concerns such as conserving biological diversity, maintaining atmospheric and water integrity, preservation of human health and well-being, and sustaining adequacy of food, energy, and natural resource supplies with emphasis on problem linkages, interdependence of country fate with that of the world as a whole, and the necessity for planned and cooperative future strategies of management. Sustainable development as a global and national strategy. (4 cr.)

MET UA 501, 502 Undergraduate Directed Study

Limited to a maximum of 8 credits toward degree requirements. Approval by program director required prior to registration. Study of urban and public affairs individually arranged between the student and an appropriate instructor to provide training opportunities not available elsewhere. (Variable cr.)

MET UA 505 Urban Management

Examination of selected cases in municipal and public management. Organization, financial management, personnel relations, program planning and budgeting, and issues of public and private sector relations. The administration of municipal functions, including health, police, schools, and housing. (4 cr.)

MET UA 507 Law and Justice in the City

Operation of the criminal justice system in the urban setting. Special attention is paid to the problems of safeguarding individual rights. Examines relationship between social and economic structure of cities and workings of the system of justice. (4 cr.)

MET UA 508 Real Estate Development

Various factors affecting location, construction, financing, and marketing of real estate in metropolitan areas. Studies the relationship of public policy to the activities of the private sector, market analysis techniques, evaluation of development projects, and problems of real estate investment. (4 cr.)

MET UA 509 Urban and Public Finance and Budgeting

Economic, social, and political aspects of state and local government finances. Theory of public finance; revenues, expenditures, and survey of budgetary processes. Planning techniques in capital budgeting and other finance activities. Selected issues: debt, user fees, property taxes, and incentives. (4 cr.)

MET UA 510 Urban Disasters and Resilient Cities

Prereq: MET UA 301, UA 701, or consent of instructor. This special topics course focuses on the social and policy aspects of natural and man-made urban disasters. Particular attention will be given to public and private sector responses to disasters, including considerations on disaster planning. The course will examine a variety of urban disasters and the responses to them and will focus most closely on the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fires, the Chicago Heat Wave of 1995, the Terrorist Attacks of 9/11, and Hurricane Katrina. In addition to examining the causes and consequences of urban disasters, the course will look at how cities recover from disasters and what factors help them to become ‘resilient cities.’ This course can be seen as investigating the political economy of disasters, so we will examine the political, economic, and social ramifications of urban disasters. We will also look for common aspects of urban disasters as well as the ways in which they differ from each other. There is a burgeoning, but still not highly developed scholarship in this area and we will consult some of it. (4 cr.)

MET UA 515 Urban Planning

History, concepts, and methods of contemporary urban and regional planning practice. Governmental, nonprofit, and private settings of professional planning; plans, research, and policy development; uses and implementation of planning. Political analysis of planning issues, such as comprehensiveness, public interest, advocacy, negotiation, and future orientation. Case materials drawn from redevelopment, growth management, land use conflicts, and service delivery. (4 cr.)

MET UA 533 Environmental Management and Sustainability

The management of environmental programs is rapidly moving toward a systematic approach that focuses on pollution prevention and promotes sustainability. This approach can better protect the environment and provide a long-term competitive advantage to an organization. The course examines current national environmental problems facing both private and nonprofit organizations from a management perspective. These problems include hazardous materials and waste, clean air, and water quality. The emphasis will be on management systems and sustainable strategies to address these complex, technical, and legal problems. We will be exploring a variety of tools and topics including formal management systems such as ISO 14001, pollution prevention techniques, compliance auditing, toxic use reduction, green purchasing, environmental dispute resolution, and risk communication. The course also explores the relationship between environmental protection and health safety issues such as indoor air quality, biosafety, and worker protection. Interactive exercises and class discussion focus on practical management techniques. Guest speakers from different perspectives will join us and there will be a field trip to tour an innovative green building (4 cr.)

MET UA 611 Community Development

Examination of community development challenges in several areas, including housing, economic development, community policing, and resident activism. Analysis of past and present strategies for strengthening communities through case studies, actual government and community programs, guest lectures, and related readings. (4 cr.)

MET UA 613 Designing Urban Space

The role of urban design in the community development process. Examines human behavior, aesthetic foundations of design methods, citizen/client participation, and public policy issues. Analysis of actual community spaces. Student design exercises. (4 cr.)

MET UA 619 Metropolitan Transportation: Theory and Practice

This course will provide students with a broad introduction to important concepts and policy issues in transportation, principally at an urban and metropolitan level. In addition, the course will explore methods planning practitioners can use to analyze transportation problems and propose solutions. The course will use specific examples of planning initiatives (both operations and capital) from transportation agencies within the Boston Metropolitan region. Guest speakers from local, regional, and state transportation agencies within the Greater Boston Metropolitan area will supplement the instructor’s lectures and assigned readings. (4 cr.)

MET UA 620 Urban and Regional Land Use Policy and Planning

Techniques of land use planning, including socioeconomic studies, market analysis and needs forecasting, mapping, environment and service impacts, and transportation/land use coordination. Policies for achieving land use objectives: planned unit development, zoning, development corporations, new towns, and land preservation. (4 cr.)

MET UA 623 Regional and Metropolitan Development Planning

Analysis of regional planning as applied to land use, economic development, infrastructure systems, and other topics. Cases and class projects selected from metropolitan and substate regions, including regional approaches and organizations, economic base, comparative advantage, and growth centers. (4 cr.)

MET UA 629 Urbanization and the Environment

Interrelationships between physical environment and processes of urbanization. Case studies develop historical perspective on social, economic, and physical aspects of the quality of urban life. Special attention to the preparation of environmental impact statements and assessment of urban environmental quality. (4 cr.)

MET UA 701 Urban Problems and Policy Process

Major problems confronting urban areas and the process of policy formulation and implementation. Emphasis on problem interdependence and systems characteristics. Analysis of problem definitions (housing, crime, poverty, etc.), goals, public/private responsibilities, existing programs, and policy options. Analysis of selected comparative international experience. (4 cr.)

MET UA 702 Analytical Methods

Use and analysis of quantitative data in public policy development and planning. Basic skills of organization and presentation of numerical information. Introduction to descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, correlation, and regression; computer use. Math review. (4 cr.)

MET UA 703 Research Methods

Examines research techniques useful for urban policy research. Emphasis on survey research techniques, including sampling, survey organization, questionnaire development, and interviewing. Participant observation techniques. Field data collection and analysis. (4 cr.)

MET UA 704 Urban Economic Issues and Analysis

Basic economic concepts and techniques of analysis necessary for urban public policy development. Analysis of the economic bases of selected current urban problems and evaluation of several policy solutions to common urban problems. (4 cr.)

MET UA 751 Introduction to Urban Planning and Decision Theory

The role and process of planning in terms of theory and historical development. Tradition of rational/comprehensive and incremental decision theory: roles and functions, organization, participation, political relationships, and time and information use. Relationships between planning, ideology, ethics, social change, and implementation. (4 cr.)

MET UA 761 Planning Thesis

Prereq: approval of program director. Topic must be approved by designated instructor or advisor. For MCP students only. Application of program coursework and independent research to a selected topic individually arranged. (4 cr.)

MET UA 801, 802 Graduate Directed Study in Urban Affairs and Planning

Limited to a maximum of 8 credits toward the degree requirements. Approval by program director required prior to registration. Study of urban and public affairs and planning individually arranged between student and instructor to provide training opportunities not available elsewhere. (Variable cr.)

MET UA 803 Special Project

For MUA students only. Approval by program director and project advisor required prior to registration. Students prepare an independent project demonstrating application of previous program coursework to a problem situation or policy issue within their area of specialization. (4 cr.)

MET UA 804 Supervised Fieldwork

Limited to a maximum of four credits toward the degree requirements. Approval by program director required prior to registration. Students spend a minimum of 12 hours working with public agencies, community groups, or private organizations. Seminar participation. (4 cr.)

MET UA 805 The Boston Urban Symposium

The Boston based Urban Symposium will be a thematic spring symposium, required for students in the Urban Affairs and City Planning programs. The class meetings will weave together the interdisciplinary nature of the urban planning and city planning professions. While the symposium topics will change each spring, professionals and industry leaders will be invited to lecture on their experiences, contemporary challenges to the professions, and major problems confronting the public and private sectors. Recognizing the unique and diverse characteristics of the Boston urban environment, the symposium themes will be drawn from topical issues that involve the greater Boston metropolitan area. The course features a combination of guest speakers and academic case studies that emphasize the interdisciplinary nature of urban planning. (4 cr.)