B.S.,
Regional Planning,
Land Use and GIS Track
College of Humanities and Social Sciences
What You'll Do
Planners look toward the future and make choices that will have an impact on communities for years to come. As a Regional Planning major pursuing the Land Use Planning and Geographic Information Systems track at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, you’ll learn the laws, policies, and design concepts of regional planning as well as the methods used in cartography and GIS.
Some of the topics you’ll study are vector vs. raster vs. object-oriented spatial data structures, cartography, Computer-Aided Design (CAD) applications, satellite imagery, site analysis, land use law, urban geography concepts, methods for designing GIS systems to user specifications, and thermal sensing. In this major, you’ll also have opportunities to acquire hands-on experience through the Department of Geography and Regional Planning’s labs and weather station.
What You'll Become
The Bachelor of Science degree in Regional Planning achieved in pursuit of the Land Use Planning and GIS track prepares you for a career as a land use analyst, county or city planner, geographic information specialist, facility manager, cartographer, or remote sensing specialist. More than 95 percent of IUP Department of Geography and Regional Planning graduates in a recent, five-year span were placed in graduate programs or found jobs in business and industry as environmental professionals, as municipal planners, with regional and state agencies, in federal government, as social science educators, and with engineering firms.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that employment of urban and regional planners is expected to grow by 15 percent from 2006 to 2016. According to the labor report, about 68 percent of urban and regional planners are hired by local governments, with most new jobs centered around rapidly growing communities. Increased interest in GIS is expected.