Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus

Engineering

PhD Urban Studies and Planning at Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States

Programme overview

The PhD requires a minimum of 72 units of coursework plus 36 dissertation units, qualifying general exams in two fields, a dissertation colloquium on the proposal and a dissertation defence. General exams are completed before the start of the third year of residence.

Faculty: School of Architecture and Planning  |  Department: Urban Studies and Planning  |  Study mode: full-time  |  Location: Cambridge, MA, United States

What you will study

Coursework, written and oral general exams in two fields, dissertation proposal colloquium and dissertation.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

Department of Urban Studies and Planning (PhD): requirements are substantially the same as for the master's degree, with added emphasis on academic preparation, professional experience and fit with department research; nearly all successful applicants already hold a master's degree.

USD 66,720 a year (2026-27). Standard MIT graduate tuition for 2026-27, 9-month academic year ($33,360 per fall/spring term; the 12-month figure including the summer session is $89,775). Same rate for all graduate students; excludes the $420 fee, health insurance, housing and living Source

Graduate applications are made to individual departments, which run their own admissions processes and timelines; online applications open in early fall and most deadlines fall around the end of the fall semester.

Graduate deadlines vary by department; most departments use the unified portal at apply.mit.edu/apply. Fee waiver requests are due November 18 for programmes with a December 1 deadline, December 1 for deadlines of December 15-23, and December 15 for deadlines in January or later. Funding offers are honoured until April 15.

Apply through the official page: https://oge.mit.edu/graduate-admissions/

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