Pratt M.S. city & regional planning

[lala]

As scholarship/financial aid info starts to roll in for all of us, the harsh reality about being able to live, pay bills, AND go to school is getting that much bolder.

I wanted to try to start this thread about Pratt's M.S. in City & Regional Planning to get insight from anyone who may have visited the school, knows someone who went there, or is a graduate of the program.

I have gotten into some great schools (in my opinion at least ) and despite the fact I have not yet heard from Pratt, assuming I am admitted, I am starting to weigh this program very heavily. I simply cannot afford to go to Columbia (many of their classes are during the day and they weren't very generous with aid). As a NY'er, going to Pratt would allow me to keep my job and still go to school (at night).

My main concern is the reputation of Pratt and the opportunities after graduation not just on the local level, but on the national level, as well (I hope to return to California after graduating). I've heard that Pratt's program is extremely heavy on the Community Development side and often ignores other aspects of planning. As someone who is not going to grad schools to specialize in Community Development, this really concerns me. FYI, if I were to end up there I'd specialize in Physical Planning.

Any insight would be so, so, so appreciated!!

[milodesc]

i'm not familiar w/ Pratt, but a few things lead me to believe that their physical planning specialization may be strong:

- The masters program in city and regional planning is housed in an architecture school
- Planetizen's guide lists Pratt in their list of schools which are strong in urban design

on the other hand, the students surveyed for Planetizen's guide don't list physical planning or urban design as one of the strengths of the program and say that community development is the real focus of the program.

like i said, i don't know much about the program (other than what i read in planetizen's guide) so take this for what it's worth.

[urbandiva6]

I was excited about Pratt too...except why are they not telling us about admissions/financial aid? How are we supposed to weigh them against our other choices when they might not tell us until after April 15? Argh.

[lala]

I was excited about Pratt too...except why are they not telling us about admissions/financial aid? How are we supposed to weigh them against our other choices when they might not tell us until after April 15? Argh.

I had to call Pratt a few weeks ago re: my app and they said that they hoped to mail out, yes mail, decisions by the first week of April. Additionally, I received a letter in February, about a month after submitting my application, and in that letter they stated that we should have a decision by April 5th.

Urbandiva: Have you visited Pratt/ gone to an open house there? Pratt wasn't initially my top choice, but with the economy being where it is and the the fact schools have not been so kind with financial aid- it's too risky for me to leave my job ! I keep hearing Community Development is the top game at Pratt, but I am kind of hoping the small size of the program would allow me to 'stretch' the Physical Planning/Urban Design as much as possible... What do you know about the program?

I hope to hear from them soon so that I can sleep a wee bit easier!

[Teatime]

I visited Pratt during December, and I was very impressed with their focus on community development. It seemed their strengths also included Urban Sustainability and environmental planning. They are not strong however in transportation planning. The teachers seemed very passionate and approachable. They also emphasized the progressive nature of the program, that you could enter with one intended degree (ex. Historic Preservation) and leave with another degree, seeming very fluid and flexible. They were very honest about their strengths and weaknesses, so I would contact the department directly if you have a focus already in mind like economic development, housing, etc.