Urban Studies (BS)

This program was approved for students entering the university in the Summer 2025-Spring 2026 catalog year. For more information about catalog year, go to Catalog Year Information.

Bachelor of Science in Urban Studies
Unit: College of Arts and Sciences
Department: Urban and Public Affairs
Academic Plan Code(s): US_ _BS

Program Information

The Bachelor of Science in Urban Studies is designed to educate, train, and prepare students for future careers in municipal and metropolitan‐related occupations, through the identification, interpretation, and analysis of historic and contemporary issues facing urban areas.  Graduates will carry out research and service work benefitting local or regional communities. 

Urban studies graduates often find careers as public administrators, policy analysts, community development specialists, or planning technicians.  The program also provides students a strong foundation for future graduate training in affiliated disciplines, including urban planning, public administration, geography, or sociology.

The BS in Urban Studies is housed within the Department of Urban and Public Affairs in partnership with the Department of Geographic and Environmental Sciences and the Department of Sociology.

The Department offers Bachelor of Science degrees in four different tracks:

• Urban Administration: designed for students with interests in management, human resources, budgeting, and governance.
• Urban Geography: designed for students with interests in place dynamics, human-spatial interactions, and GIS.
• Urban Planning: designed for students with interests in land development and related topics, such as housing, design, and real estate.
• Urban Sociology: designed for students with interests in human and group interactions within an urban or metropolitan context.

Degree Summary

¹

Some credit hours from the General Education Requirements may be satisfied by courses defined by the program, in which case additional electives will be required to complete the minimum hours for the degree. See the Degree Requirements tab for specific coursework.

Accelerated BS/MUP in Urban Studies and Urban Planning

Urban Studies majors who are considering pursuing a master’s degree (MUP) in Urban Planning can speed up the process by applying some of their undergraduate credit hours toward a master’s degree. Students accepted in the accelerated BS/MUP take four graduate courses (12 credit hours) as an undergraduate that apply toward both the bachelor’s degree and the eventual master’s degree. Applicants must meet the general requirements for admission to the Graduate School.

Undergraduate students interested in participating in an accelerated dual bachelor’s/master’s degree offered through the university’s Soaring Scholar program must first meet with their Academic Advisor and be accepted into the program. Once accepted, students will receive an official admission letter outlining program policies and details. They will then work with their department and academic advisor to register for classes each semester, ensuring they meet the milestones and academic progress requirements of the Soaring Scholar program. A Soaring Scholar student is considered an undergraduate student until their bachelor’s degree is conferred. In their final undergraduate semester, they are expected to apply for admission to their respective master’s program.

Additional questions on the accelerated BS/MUP program should be directed to the undergraduate program director or the MUP program director.

Admission Requirements to the Urban Studies BS

Students will be selected through the standard University of Louisville College of Arts and Sciences admissions process. 

The Change Major Request form can be found under the Academic Progress tile on ULink.

Admission to the Accelerated BS/MUP in Urban Studies and Urban Planning

Students interested in pursuing the accelerated BS/MUP degree should speak with their Academic Advisor and the undergraduate program director for Urban Studies as early as possible in their undergraduate career. Application to the Soaring Scholar program may be made once the student has completed 60 undergraduate credit hours.

General Education Requirements

All degrees require the completion of the University-wide General Education Program (link provided above).  Some General Education requirements may be met in the requirements for the major or supporting coursework, in which case additional electives may be required to complete the minimum hours for the degree. 

College/School Requirements

Program/Major Requirements

¹

Some credit hours from the General Education Requirements may be satisfied by courses defined by the program, in which case additional electives will be required to complete the minimum hours for the degree.

²

Completion of the second semester of a single foreign language; hours will vary depending on the language taken

³

May be incorporated into other degree requirements

⁴

Fulfills WR requirement.

⁵

Students who satisfy General Education Requirements by courses defined by the program will require additional electives to complete the minimum hours for the degree.

Track Requirements 

Track in Urban Administration

Academic Plan Code(s): US_BS_ADM

Track in Urban Geography

Academic Plan Code(s): US_BS_GEO

Track in Urban Planning

Academic Plan Code(s): US_BS_PLA

Track in Urban Sociology

Academic Plan Code(s): US_BS_SOC

Accelerated BS/MUP in Urban Studies and Urban Planning

Academic Plan Code(s): URPLMUPACC

¹

Soaring Scholar course credits will be used to satisfy 9 of the 15 credit hours that are typically taken as Track Requirements; 6 additional credits will be selected toward a track. Students enrolled as Soaring Scholars should take the graduate section (URBS 605) of the Urban Studies core course of URBS 505. Students pursuing the accelerated BS/MUP degree will have thus completed 12 of the 21 hours of the MUP core courses as an undergraduate.  

Flight Plan

Flight Plan for Accelerated BS/MUP  

The accelerated flight plan is the same as the stand-alone flight plan for the BS listed in the table above for years 1 and 2.  

The Flight Plan outlined above is intended to demonstrate one possible path to completing the degree within four years.  Course selection and placement within the program may vary depending on course offerings and schedule, elective preferences, and other factors (study abroad, internship availability, etc.). Please consult your advisor for additional information about building a flight plan that works for you.

Degree Audit Report
Degree Audit reports illustrate how your completed courses fulfill the requirements of your academic plan, and which requirements are still outstanding. Degree audits also take transfer credits and test credits into account. "What-if" reports allow you to compare the courses you have completed in your current academic plan to the courses required in another academic plan.  Should you have questions about either report, please consult with your academic advisor.

Flight Planner
The Flight Planner tool is available for you to create a personalized Flight Plan to graduation.  Advisors have access to review your Flight Planner and can help you adjust it to ensure you remain on track to graduate in a timely manner.

To create these reports:

1. Log into your ULink account.
2. Click on the Academic Progress tile.
3. Select the appropriate report.
   1. To run a Degree Audit report, click on "View my Degree Audit."
   2. To create a What-if report, click on "What-if Advisement Report."
   3. To run a Flight Planner report, click on "Use My Flight Planner."

Click here to run a Degree Audit report, create a What-if report, or run a Flight Planner report.