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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
The diversity of our students' profiles is both our strength and our wealth: all types of profiles and backgrounds are sought after, regardless of the first degree and the field of study during the university course (architecture, law, literature, economics, mathematics, business school, engineering or agronomy, etc.).
We look very carefully at your motivation and the coherence of your career plans, and whether you display a real interest in urban and territorial issues, and the transitions underway.
Regarding the elegibility criteria for each programme, the selection criteria and the required supporting documents, please check the admissions website.
Note that a transition to the Master’s in Urban Planning is possible after a first year on the Master's degree in Regional and Urban Strategy.
The professional trajectories of our students are many and various, reflecting the diversity of urban and territorial configurations.
You will have opportunities to work at different levels (local, national, international), in all types of structures (public, private, or associative) in various sectors: public policy, urban planning and development, urban services and mobility, ecological transition, housing and habitat, health and social action, etc.
The Urban School's programmes prioritise practical experience in real-world conditions, facilitating a continuous mix of practice and theory.
From the first year, students work in groups on a "group project" at the request of a public, private, or associative organisation. It is an intense and enriching experience that prepares students for teamwork, and professional life in general.
In the second year, professional workshops and a long internship or apprenticeship help students build their career plans.
The faculty also facilitates professional orientation. The Urban School’s teaching team comprises sociologists, consultants, architects and economists, as well as political leaders and geographers, bringing together practitioners from all the city's professions. A variety of teaching methods are employed (case studies, role playing, simulations, etc.) with the aim of strengthening professional development.
The students enrolled on the main programme are required to complete an internship during their extramural semester (semester 3 or semester 4, depending on the programme). It must be full time for a minimum of 14 consecutive weeks within the same organisation.
The second year of the Master’s degree in Regional and Urban Strategy can be done as an apprenticeship. We intend to develop this offer for the other Master’s programmes in the future.
Depending on the Master’s degree, students have the possibility of joining a bespoke course of study:
- The research track in urban sociology or political science is offered to students on the Master’s programmes Regional and Urban Strategy (STU), Governing the Large Metropolis (GLM) and Governing Ecological Transitions in European Cities (GETEC). Organised in partnership with the Sciences Po School of Research, it is aimed at students wishing to enrol in a doctoral programme at the end of their Master’s degree.
- The Health and Risk track is available for students on the Master’s degree in Regional and Urban Strategy (STU). It offers specific training on the territorial dimension of risk, providing students with the tools necessary for identifying, measuring, representing, evaluating, and managing urban and regional risks.
- The Cities of Africa track (FR) is offered to students on the Governing the Large Metropolis (GLM) Master’s programme. It allows students to strengthen their skills relating to African cities, facilitating access to the continental African labour market.
- The apprenticeship track is possible for students in the second year of the Master’s degree in Regional and Urban Strategy.
Students can choose to participate in an exchange with a partner university during their extramural semester (semester 3 or semester 4, depending on the programme). Partners include: University of Hong Kong, Milan Polytechnic University, Renmin University of China, UCL Bartlett School of Planning, University of Amsterdam, Zhejiang University and UCLA.
The School offers one Executive Masters programmes in partnership with Sciences Po Executive Education:
Customised training can also be designed and offered for public, private, and not-for-profit organisations.
The Master's degree in Regional and Urban Strategies provides the fundamental skills and knowledge needed to work in the French public sector. At the end of the Master's degree, students can take the competitive exams directly, or enrol in the “Prépa Concours” programme, run by the School of Public Affairs.
This one-year programme enables students to prepare for and take competitive exams for the senior civil service, local civil service, or hospital administration.
The Prépa Concours is open to Sciences Po students who have already graduated, without any selection procedure.
The Master's programme for Regional and Urban Strategy contains courses in law, economics, sociology, political science, history, architecture, etc., and can therefore be considered generalist. It opens up the possibility of working in local authorities and preparing for the competitive exams of the local civil service.
The major difference lies in the pedagogical approach: this multidisciplinary knowledge is studied through the prism of local action and territories.
The courses are closely linked to the "Cities are back in town” research programme, and are accompanied by training in technical tools specific to the city’s needs, such as cartography and spatial analysis of urban data. In addition, the "group projects" requested by a public or private organisation, field visits, and study tours allow for practical experience and a real-world situation to learn from.
The goal of the Governing the Large Metropolis programme – taught entirely in English – is intended to train young professionals who will take charge of the design and implementation of public policy in the governance of large cities (i.e. Bogota, Lima, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Mumbai, New Delhi, Tokyo, Nairobi, Lagos, Johannesburg). Larger cities face different challenges to small and medium-sized ones, and these challenges require specific skills.
The Master's programme offers dedicated training unlike any other, combining interdisciplinary theoretical courses, regional and sectoral studies. The “capstone” allows for a professional setting, which is also experienced through case studies and workshops. Students are supported throughout the curriculum to define their career plans – executive, entrepreneur, researcher – and to realise them.
The Master’s in Governing the Large Metropolis is therefore not adapted to all urban contexts, and does not prepare students to work in small and medium-sized European cities; the Master’s in Governing Ecological Transitions in European Cities is better adapted for that purpose. The programme is strongly oriented towards working in major international metropolises.
Several schools offer courses directly related to ecological transition. This important and cross-disciplinary theme features in other courses, in the form of a course, a track, a workshop, a research topic, an internship, etc.
Governing Ecological Transitions in Cities is based on the principle that cities and regions are at the forefront of ecological transition. This question is therefore the focus of this Master’s programme. Students learn about the environmental and climate policies of cities, particularly European cities, to drive sustainable resource use and climate action.
This Master's degree prepares students to interact with the multiplicity of public and private actors involved in urban environmental policies, supporting the effective governance of cities and territories’ ecological transition.
