Urban development today can extend over whole regions, so an urban designer must be prepared to make proposals at scales that range from environmental conservation or regional transportation systems down to neighborhoods, city centers, individual streets and groups of buildings.

Urban Design at PennDesign is a certificate program that students can combine with their professional degrees in architecture, landscape architecture, or city planning. The Certificate requirements include a studio and three additional courses.

Recent urban design studios at Penn have included a study of a 46 square-mile district in the western part of Singapore, the expansion of the city of Hsin-Chu in Taiwan, a downtown urban design plan for Philadelphia, and the expansion of the city of Granada in Spain.

In addition to studios, participants in the urban design degree and certificate programs must complete required courses in the theory of urban design. case studies in urban design, and real-estate finance and investment — the private market context for urban design decisions.

Computer-aided design and geographic information systems have greatly expanded the ability of urban designers to make large and complex proposals. Proficiency in these techniques is also an important element of urban design education.

With smart growth, community design, neighborhood conservation and urban revitalization becoming more and more significant public issues, there has never been a more important time to be an urban designer.