Master in Urban Planning and Juris Doctor
Harvard Law School (HLS) and the Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD) offer a joint degree program in law and urban planning. The HLS/GSD joint degree program supports and encourages students seeking an interdisciplinary education in urban planning and law, and prepares them for leadership positions at the intersection of these fields. The joint program permits students to pursue a Juris Doctor (JD) degree at HLS and a Master in Urban Planning (MUP) degree at the GSD and to complete both degrees in four years, rather than the five years that would be required if the degrees were pursued independently. Students in the joint program must complete all of the basic requirements for both the MUP and JD degrees, as further described below.
A committee made up of HLS Professor Molly Brady and GSD Professor Jerold Kayden (“Faculty Committee”) oversees the joint degree program. The Faculty Committee is responsible for making decisions regarding the structure and requirements of the program and for working with the students enrolled in the program.
Overview
Prospective JD/MUP students must apply, and be separately admitted, to both HLS and the GSD, each of which will independently review and admit applicants. Questions relating to the admissions process at each school should be addressed directly to JD Admissions at HLS and to the Admissions Office at the GSD.
Prospective JD/MUP students may apply to HLS and/or the GSD, concurrently in advance of admission to either school, or during the first year at either school. Students interested in applying to either school for matriculation the following September should note the HLS deadline is early February while the GSD deadline is in early January. All HLS applicants are required to submit a GRE or LSAT score, in accordance with application guidelines. All GSD applicants are required to submit a GRE score. Once admitted, students should follow the notification procedures at each school regarding acceptance of admission and plans to matriculate.
Students admitted to both schools should email Kristi Jobson, Assistant Dean for Admissions and Chief Admissions Officer at HLS, and Sean Conlon, GSD Registrar, if they intend to enroll in the joint degree program.
The joint degree program is currently limited to six entering students each year. If more than six eligible students seek to start the program in any given year, then the Faculty Committee will rank order the list of students, permitting enrollment of the top six.
Students in the joint degree program have four academic years to complete both degrees and are expected to spend five semesters and two winter terms in residence at HLS and three terms in residence at the GSD, for a total of eight fall or spring semesters/terms and two HLS winter terms.
In the first two years of the joint degree program, students are required to enroll for one full year of study at HLS and for one full year of study at the GSD; either can come first. In the third and fourth years of the program, joint degree students will enroll in, and take courses at, both schools. Students must take the majority (at least 12 units of the required 40) of their coursework at the GSD during one of those terms. See below for more information about the coursework at each school.
Students in the joint degree program will have a primary faculty advisor at both HLS and the GSD. Faculty advisors will supervise a student’s academic work and assist in determining the most appropriate sequencing for each student’s course of study, keeping in mind the requirements for both degrees.
For more information, visit the Harvard Law School website .