The Master of Urban Design (MUD) is an advanced post-professional degree program for individuals who seek a career in urban design practice or for current planning and design professionals who want to enhance and expand their existing practice with urban design knowledge and expertise.
Using Colorado’s diverse urban landscapes as a laboratory for real-world learning experiences, our MUD program teaches and trains students to become exceptional urban design thinkers, practitioners, and leaders in their communities; collaborates with urban designers to advance the profession and position it at the intersection of the city-building disciplines; and engages with the community to create great places that are sustainable, inclusive, equitable, healthy, and inspiring.
Learn more about our urban design vision and mission at the College of Architecture and Planning.
The MUD curriculum features a mix of lecture and studio courses that comprehensively cover the spectrum of urban design theory and practice and emphasizes hands-on experiential learning and skills development. At the heart of our curriculum are our four Program Hallmarks, which are present in all courses as common themes.
The curriculum consists of nine courses: one studio and three lecture courses taken in the fall semester, one studio and three lecture courses taken in the spring semester, and the final requirement—a capstone project or travel studio (student’s choice)—taken during the summer. To earn the MUD degree, a student must successfully complete all nine courses totaling 36 credits.
Students entering the MUD program who lack certain design knowledge or skills may be required to take the program’s Design Skills Workshop before the start of the Fall semester, as determined by the program’s admissions review committee.
The table below shows the required courses in the MUD curriculum, effective Fall 2021.
Fall Semester:
Course # | Course Name | Course Type | Credit Hours |
URBN 6500 | Urban Design Studio I | Studio | 6 |
URBN 6525 | City Design Fundamentals | Lecture | 3 |
URBN 6550 | Design Policy, Process, and Regulation | Lecture | 3 |
URBN 6575 | Advanced Visualization for Urban Design | Lecture/Lab | 3 |
Spring Semester:
Course # | Course Name | Course Type | Credit Hours |
URBN 6600 | Urban Design Studio II | Studio | 6 |
URBN 6625 | Urban Design Economics and Equity | Lecture | 3 |
URBN 6650 | Urban Design and the Environment | Lecture | 3 |
URBN 6675 | Design Practice and Leadership | Lecture | 3 |
Summer Semester - Student’s choice of one of the following:
Course # | Course Name | Course Type | 6 Credit Hours |
URBN 6700 | Urban Design Advanced Travel Studio | Studio | |
URBN 6725 | Urban Design Capstone | Individual Project |
Total Required Credits | 36 |
Expand the sections below to read the course descriptions for the MUD curriculum:
Fall Semester Course Descriptions
Spring Semester Course Descriptions
Summer Semester Course Descriptions
CU Denver MURP students may apply to the MUD program after they have completed at least 12 MURP credits. Students can then take MUD lecture courses and apply them to both their MURP and MUD degrees. After graduating with their MURP degree, students conclude the MUD program by taking the two MUD studios, any remaining MUD lecture courses, and the final MUD studio/capstone requirement.
MURP students are allowed to take up to 6 credits of open electives offered by other programs, plus four of the MUD lecture courses—City Design Fundamentals; Design Policy, Process, and Regulation; Urban Design Economics and Equity; Urban Design and the Environment—are cross-listed as URPL electives. Therefore, MURP students could potentially take all six of the MUD required lecture courses as MURP electives, reducing the total credits required for both degrees by 18. How many of these six overlapping MUD lecture courses a student takes, and which ones, is up to the student. MUD lecture courses taken prior to a student’s acceptance into the MUD program can be applied retroactively toward the MUD degree.
For more information, please review the MURP + MUD Overlapping Degree Option guide or contact your academic advisor.
CU Denver M Arch students may apply to the MUD program after they have completed at least 30 M Arch credits. Students can then take MUD lecture courses and apply them to both their M Arch and MUD degrees. After graduating with their M Arch degree, students conclude the MUD program by taking the two MUD studios, any remaining MUD lecture courses, and the final MUD studio/capstone requirement.
M Arch students are allowed to take up to 6 credits of open electives offered by other programs, plus two of the MUD lecture courses—City Design Fundamentals, Urban Design Economics and Equity—are cross-listed as ARCH electives. Therefore, M Arch students could potentially take as many as four MUD required lecture courses as M Arch electives, reducing the total credits required for both degrees by 12. How many of these four overlapping MUD lecture courses a student takes, and which ones, is up to the student. MUD lecture courses taken prior to a student’s acceptance into the MUD program can be applied retroactively toward the MUD degree.
For more information, please review the M Arch + MUD Overlapping Degree Option guide or contact your academic advisor.
CU Denver MLA students may apply to the MUD program after they have completed at least 24 MLA credits. Students can then take MUD lecture courses and apply them to both their MLA and MUD degrees. After graduating with their MLA degree, students conclude the MUD program by taking the two MUD studios, any remaining MUD lecture courses, and the final MUD studio/capstone requirement.
MLA students are allowed to take up to 9 credits of open electives offered by other programs, plus two of the MUD lecture courses—City Design Fundamentals, Urban Design and the Environment—are cross-listed as LDAR electives. Therefore, MLA students could potentially take as many as five MUD required lecture courses as MLA electives, reducing the total credits required for both degrees by 15. How many of these five overlapping MUD lecture courses a student takes, and which ones, is up to the student. MUD lecture courses taken prior to a student’s acceptance into the MUD program can be applied retroactively toward the MUD degree.
For more information, please review the MLA + MUD Overlapping Degree Option guide or contact your academic advisor.
The Master of Urban Design at CU Denver is an advanced post-professional degree. In order to be admitted to the program, an individual must hold (or will hold by the start of their MUD studies) a professional degree in architecture, urban planning, or landscape architecture (minimum GPA 3.00) from an accredited program. (Current CU Denver M Arch, MLA, or MURP students - please see the MUD Overlapping Degree Options section.) Professional degrees in architecture, urban planning, and landscape architecture can be obtained at either the undergraduate or graduate levels.
Qualifying Architecture Degrees:
(M. Arch)
(B.Arch)
Degree must be accredited through the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) for programs in the United States. For international applicants, please contact us for more information.
Qualifying Urban Planning Degrees:
(MUP, MURP, MCP or similar)
(BSUP, BSURP or similar)
Degree must be accredited through the Planning Accreditation Board (PAB) for programs in the United States. For international applicants, please contact us for more information.
Qualifying Landscape Architecture Degrees:
(MLA)
(BLA or BSLA)
Degree must be accredited through the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board (LAAB) for programs in the United States. For international applicants, please contact us for more information.
Program Start: Fall 2021
Application Opens: October 15, 2020