Master of Urban Planning Studio/Thesis

Information for students in the final 100 points of the Master of Urban Planning.

MUP Studio

Contact Handbook

ABPL90384 MUP Studio is a stand-alone 25 point studio subject.  It can be taken by students who began their Master of Urban Planning prior to 2020 as their core capstone, or by all other Master of Urban Planning students as an urban planning elective.

This subject provides an opportunity to those students who would like to sharpen the skills necessary to work in a team addressing practical planning problems. MUP Studio offerings are all designed according to the MUP Studio Handbook description, but will each be led by different studio leaders, and will each focus on different studio themes.

The following studio in  ABPL90384 MUP Studio will be offered in Semester 2, 2023:


MUP Studio


MSD Minor Thesis

Contact Handbook

ABPL90396/7 MSD Minor Thesis is the core capstone in the Master of Urban Planning.  This subject offers students the opportunity to explore a research topic of their choosing under the guidance of an academic supervisor. The subject involves two consecutive semester-long 12.5 point subjects, totaling 25 points.  In the initial semester students will concentrate on the preliminary stages of research, with the following semester more focused on the development and refinement of their chosen project.

Your supervisor will be your academic mentor: the person who guides your research and academic development throughout the year. Your supervisor will give feedback about your work and provide support and encouragement.

Below is a list of urban planning staff showing their availability to supervise and their supervision interests. After enroling in  ABPL90396 MSD Minor Thesis, you will be asked to nominate your area of study, and you will be allocated one of these staff members as a supervisor.

In addition, other academic staff within the Melbourne School of Design may also be available to undertake supervision on a one-on-one basis.

Urban Planning Thesis Supervisors

Supervisor Topics of Interest and Expertise
Prof Michele Acuto
  • Diplomacy (international politics)
  • Global cities
  • Urban development (United Nations)
Dr Kathryn DavidsonDr Stephanie Butcher
  • Citizen participation and governance
  • Gender and diversity
  • Urban inequalities, housing and infrastructure
Dr Andrea CookDr Andrea Cook
  • Social / Community planning
  • Social / Spatial justice
  • Right to the City
  • Contested spaces
  • Citizen engagement
Dr Kathryn DavidsonDr Kathryn Davidson
  • Resilient cities
  • Climate change politics
  • Urban governance
  • Planning sustainability
  • Strategic planning
Dr Jennie DayDr Jennie Day
  • Chinese Cities
  • Effects of resettlement at the urban periphery for Shanghai households
  • Outcomes of rebuilding urban villages
  • The consequences of and alternatives to urban expansion
  • Transport capacity-building
  • Vulnerable populations
Prof Sun Sheng HanProf Sun Sheng Han
  • Institutional and economic restructuring in the Pacific-Asia region
  • Theories of the spatial organisation of urban activities
Dr Anna HurlimannDr Anna Hurlimann
  • Climate change adaptation
  • Planning sustainability
  • Sustainable water resource management
  • Water alternatives
Dr Hyungmin KimDr Hyungmin Kim
  • Asia-Pacific cities
  • Economic development
  • Economic forms and spatial analysis
  • Globalising city-regions
  • Liveability and walkability
Crystal LegacyDr Crystal Legacy
  • Strategic planning
  • Urban governance
  • Planning conflict
  • Participatory planning
  • Transport planning and politics
A/Prof Alan MarchA/Prof Alan March
  • Bushfire management
  • Risk, resilience and planning
  • Post event evaluation
  • Urban governance
  • Statutory systems
Dr Iderlina Mateo-Babiano
  • Transport geography and planning
  • Active transport
  • Bicycle sharing
  • Cycling
  • Walking
  • Gender and transport
  • Transport leadership
  • Urban design
Dr David NicholsDr David Nichols
  • Heritage and Planning
  • Suburbs
Dr Elek PafkaDr Elek Pafka
  • Streetlife and public space design
  • Urban form and planning codes
  • Walkability and the urban DMA (Density-Mix-Access)
Prof Nicholas Phelps
  • Planning and local economic development
  • Growth planning strategies, policies, and practices
  • Suburbs
  • History of urban planning
  • Comparative urban planning
Dr John StoneDr John Stone
  • Public transport international comparative analysis
  • Public transport planning and politics (public transport)
Dr Kathryn DavidsonDr Runing Ye
  • Built environment/urban design and subjective wellbeing
  • Chinese cities
  • Travel behaviour and subjective wellbeing

Previous Studios

MSD Studios Archive

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