Bachelor of Urban and Regional Planning

URBAN PLANNING&REGIONAL

The program is designed to meet labor market needs fully and is subject to continuous updates and developments based on demand assessments. It focuses on equipping students with a high level of knowledge and practical skills, enabling them to design and implement planning projects at various levels. Graduates of the program have contributed to meeting the demand for job opportunities in municipalities, regional and rural municipalities, national government agencies, ministries and departments, private consulting firms, real estate development companies, and research and academic institutions. They have also contributed to developing and improving the efficiency of urban growth management, development monitoring, and improving living conditions in urban and rural communities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The program also aims to introduce students to the nature of human settlements, their social, economic, and physical aspects, and to address existing, emerging, and anticipated problems in light of planning theories, strategies, and techniques. The curriculum equips students with the necessary skills to implement spatial development plans at the local, regional, and national levels for both urban and rural communities, including how to address, rehabilitate, develop, and improve informal settlements and slum areas in cities. The Bachelor of Science in Urban and Regional Planning program was originally designed by a team of specialists from Harvard University as a six-year program requiring 182 credit hours for graduation. The program was initially divided into three years of core and three years of specialization. In 1999, the college transitioned to a new, enhanced program consisting of 165 credit hours, completed in five years, in response to labor market demands and graduate feedback. In the first semester of the 2014/2015 academic year, a new curriculum was adopted, reducing the required credit hours for graduation to 155. Under this new curriculum, students are admitted directly to their departments after successfully completing the university preparatory year, in accordance with national education policies and international standards. Starting in the current academic year (2016/2017), the program has been offered under an enhanced curriculum of 165 credit hours, and a bridging program to the Bachelor of Science degree, based on this new curriculum, was implemented in the second semester of the same year (2016/2017).