UVA Urban & Environmental Planning

[greenchocolatechips]

Does anyone have any information/thoughts on this program? I am specifically wondering what someone thinks of Charlottesville as a place to study urban planning since it is basically a small town. Is this more limiting than studying at a school based in a city (given that ultimately I would prefer to work in a city), or in the end does it not really matter? If anyone has gone through this program or knows about its alumni network, etc. your advice would be appreciated as I am having a hard time making a decision! Thanks!

[csld09]

I think it's worthwhile to mention that Charlottesville is a city, albeit a modestly sized one. A lot of people all over the country live in cities with populations between 25K and 75K, so it's not such a bad thing to learn in an environment like that. This doesn't mean that it's the same setting as NYC, LA, or the Twin Cities; it's just at a different scale, with different challenges and assets. It's also helpful to think of C-Ville as the region's capital: it's well outside (but not too far from) the DC area, fairly close (but not too close) to Richmond, and generally speaking in a really beautiful place. It's also very walkable downtown, and if you've been to Burlington, VT, it will remind you of it. Student work is also not confined to Charlottesville or Albemarle County: the program has recently done studio work in New Orleans, DC, and others major cities, along with a good deal of farther-reaching projects through their Institute for Environmental Negotiation. Having said that, I only visited as a prospective student for a few days, so that's about as much as I can offer. Have you visited the program? If so, did you like what you saw/felt?

[greenchocolatechips]

I did visit and it seems like a really nice program with a lot of personal attention. I guess the thing that threw me off was the size of the city and how non-city it felt. I understand there are many cities this size, but it's not really what I consider a city. I see you are in Amherst, do you go to UMass? I also got into that program. What made you choose UMass over UVA?