Assistant Professor in Urban and Regional Planning

The candidate must have a PhD in urban and regional planning, urban studies, geography, public policy, finance and real estate, public administration, or related field.

A successful candidate must have expertise in housing and a strong background in the planning field, either through education or experience, to enable them to teach specialized and core courses for the MURP and BUSP programs.

The PhD must be completed prior to the start date of August 16, 2027. An ABD at the time of interviews will be considered with a letter from the candidate’s supervisor confirming the candidate’s date of graduation.

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning within the University of Florida’s College of Design, Construction and Planning invites applications for a nine-month, tenure-accruing faculty position at the rank of Assistant Professor to begin in August 2027.

The Department encourages applications from candidates with a background in the planning field and expertise in housing. The Department has particular interest in candidates whose work incorporates housing policy and finance, resiliency and disaster recovery in housing, socio-economic sustainability, and/or land use. Preferred candidates will have a proven track record of engaging with public interest concerns and interdisciplinary scholarship.

Key Responsibilities

The selected candidate will conduct research and publications commensurate with a tenure-track position and be entrepreneurial in obtaining research grants. The candidate should be open to collaborating with other faculty and researchers, including the Shimberg Center for Housing Studies, Florida Institute for Built Environment Resilience (FIBER), GeoPlan (for more, see below), and establishing relationships with related discipline programs on campus, such as real estate and political science.  The candidate should also engage with housing innovation and practitioners working with Florida communities and beyond.

The position requires teaching a total of four courses per year (two in fall and two in spring), which may be graduate and upper-level undergraduate courses delivered in-person and online in the candidate’s areas of expertise and in general planning topics. Anticipated courses include introduction to housing, housing finance, advanced housing topics, and at least one core general planning course. The successful candidate should have a well-developed pedagogy that includes methods to engage a multicultural student body.

The candidate would also be expected to conduct service and community outreach consistent with the missions of the Department and the land-grant University.

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning

The Department of Urban and Regional Planning consists of a collegial faculty of fourteen core members and an additional eighteen members affiliated with research centers and other academic programs. Our faculty is the most productive in the College and consistently attracts the highest amount of research funding, with close to $4 million in new grants secured in the past year. We actively support mentorship of junior faculty, promote career development at every level, and foster a family-friendly environment. 

The Department, founded in 1975, offers an accredited Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP), a Master of Science in Urban Analytics (MSUA), a PhD URP concentration with STEM designation, a graduate minor in URP and certificate in UA, an undergraduate minor in URP, and a combined (4+1) bachelor-master degree. The Department’s fully online MURP was the country’s first and remains the only accredited online program. In 2023, the MURP program (campus and online) was ranked 22^nd in the nation, sixth in the South, and the 10^th largest by enrollment. The Department recently established a Bachelor of Urban Sciences and Planning (BUSP) that began in Fall 2026.

The School and College

As one of the two units in the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning, the Department of Urban and Regional Planning has a strong relationship with the Department of Landscape Architecture, as well as other units in the College, which include Architecture, Construction Management, Interior Design, Historic Preservation, and Sustainability and the Built Environment. Located in the Rinker School of Construction Management, the Shimberg Center for Housing Studies is the state’s primary public source of housing data for policymakers and local governments, and conducts wide-ranging research on housing topics such as affordability, preservation of assisted housing, and the intersections of housing with disaster recovery and climate resilience.

In addition, the School and College are home to a range of research institutes and centers, including the GeoPlan Center, the Center for Health and the Built Environment, the Center for Landscape Conservation Planning, and FIBER. Other collaboration opportunities exist with the School of Architecture, which operates two off-campus CityLab programs in Orlando and Jacksonville to enhance access to highly urban contexts.

The University of Florida

The University of Florida is ranked #8 among the nation’s public universities according to the 2027 U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges” list, and #4 among public universities in the inaugural TIME magazine “America’s Best Colleges of 2026-2027” ranking. As the flagship university of the state of Florida, and as a major land-grant research university in the Association of American Universities (AAU), the University offers many opportunities for faculty to develop a national and international reputation for research on issues that showcase Florida and the Southeastern United States as a living laboratory, and to shape the next generation of urban and regional planning professionals. Opportunities exist for cross-disciplinary appointments and collaboration, such as with the Warrington College of Business (including Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate), the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (including the Political Science and Geography), the Levin College of Law, the School of Natural Resources and Environment, and UF’s six health-related colleges on campus, as well as university-wide institutes like the Water Institute and the Florida Climate Institute. In addition, UF’s HiPerGator, the nation's fastest university-owned supercomputer, is available to faculty for large-scale data analysis, spatial modeling, and AI research.

The Campus and Gainesville

The College is located on the University’s historic main campus, which is characterized by gothic brick buildings and expansive oak trees. The broader campus boasts world-class museums, a performing arts center, a childcare center, and a nationally ranked hospital complex. Situated within the city of Gainesville, the campus is surrounded by historic neighborhoods and a vibrant downtown, and the campus connects to the larger community and beyond by over one hundred miles of bike paths, a regional transit system, and a regional airport. The Gainesville metropolitan area within Alachua County is home to 280,000 residents and serves as the commercial, cultural, educational, and medical center of the north central Florida region. Alachua County schools are highly rated and offer a variety of specialized programs. The County’s nature parks, waterways, and freshwater springs provide nature-lovers with abundant outdoor activities. The major cities of Orlando, Tampa, and Jacksonville, and the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, are all two hours or less away.

Salary is commensurate with qualifications and experience. Compensation includes a full benefits package with health insurance, retirement options, and paid leave. The University has a dual career academic hire program.

The candidate must have a Ph.D in urban and regional planning, urban studies, geography, public policy, finance and real estate, public administration, or related field.

A successful candidate must have expertise in housing and a strong background in the planning field, either through education or experience, to enable them to teach specialized and core courses for the MURP and BUSP programs.

The Ph.D must be completed prior to the start date of August 16, 2027. An ABD at the time of interviews will be considered with a letter from the candidate’s supervisor confirming the candidate’s date of graduation.

Preferred candidates incorporate housing policy and finance, resiliency and disaster recovery in housing, socio-economic sustainability, and/or land use into their research, teaching, and service; connections with related discipline programs are also desired.

Candidates should have a demonstrated track record or potential to publish in peer-reviewed journals and attract extramural research funding, particularly nationally competitive grants. Candidates should also have evidence of student-centered classroom instruction at graduate or undergraduate levels. An interest in incorporating online modalities and a willingness to serve the academy, the profession, and communities are also desired.

Lastly, professional planning experience is desired, with AICP or other relevant credentials preferred.

To be considered, submit a complete application with the following:

• Letter of interest describing your:
• Vision for the roles that housing and its intersection with planning will play in the future, and how you expect your work to contribute to this vision.
• Research agenda, including your goals and how you will build upon past work, including publications, projects, funding, and partnerships.
• Teaching philosophy and pedagogies; a list of courses of interest in teaching; a summary of courses taught including evidence of teaching effectiveness; and any instructional trainings and certifications received.
• Academic leadership, professional experience, and community service in relation to future academic goals.
• Specific interests in joining the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Florida.
• Writing sample or products demonstrating your research interests and strengths such as a portfolio of relevant research, design/creative, or professional work.
• Teaching evaluations (if received).
• Curriculum vitae.
• List of three references, including affiliations, phone numbers, and email addresses.

To ensure full consideration, a complete application should be submitted by October 26, 2026. Applications received after this date may be considered at the discretion of the search committee and/or hiring authority. Review of complete applications will begin upon receipt and will continue until the position is filled.

Three letters of reference will be required for shortlisted candidates. Submittal instructions will be provided upon notification.

Inquiries can be sent to the search committee chair, Dr. Kristin Larsen, klarsen@ufl.edu.

If accommodations due to a disability are needed to apply for this position, please call 352-392-2477 or the Florida Relay System at 800-955-8771 (TDD). Hiring is contingent upon eligibility to work in the US. Searches are conducted in accordance with Florida's Sunshine Law.

All candidates selected for employment are subject to a pre-employment screening which includes a review of criminal records, reference checks, and verification of education.

The selected candidate will be required to provide official transcripts to the hiring department upon hire. A transcript will not be considered "official" if a designation of "Issued to Student" is visible. Degrees earned from an education institution outside of the United States are required to be evaluated by a professional credentialing service provider approved by National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES), which can be found at http://www.naces.org/