Planning
Areas of interest

Study planning , Ākona te mahi whakamahere

Improve our neighbourhoods, communities and environment. Create sustainable cities with urban and natural resource planning that responds to climate change and meets current and future needs.

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Study from your place

Massey is a pioneer – the first university in Australasia to offer a bachelor's degree in planning by online and distance study.

Tick of approval

Massey's planning degrees have been accredited by the New Zealand Planning Institute – Te Kokiringa Taumata for decades.

Make a contribution

Make sense of the world from different perspectives through Massey. Contribute to education, defence, sustainability and more.

Get ahead at work

Expand your existing expertise at work or advance your career with Massey. Or change direction with a new qualification.

Overview

Planning shapes our towns, cities and regions – where we live, work and play. Our unique planning degrees combine urban and natural resource planning.

Learn from lecturers with expertise as housing, transport, Māori or environmental planners. Get hands-on with workshops, role-plays, case studies and field trips. Develop a strong focus on sustainable development and help create sustainable, resilient and liveable communities.

Planning is a good fit if you:

  • enjoy school subjects such as geography, sciences or social studies
  • want to help design liveable and sustainable neighbourhoods, cities and regions
  • like thinking analytically and working with people to solve problems.

Learn planning

Massey is known for our interdisciplinary and professionally accredited planning education. Planning students get involved in real-life planning issues and responses in action. Learn planning at Massey to connect with people from local government, central government, local communities and iwi. Get an international outlook in a New Zealand context, for example, Māori understanding of humans and the natural world.

Planning courses may cover:

  • environmental planning
  • Māori studies
  • natural resource policies and planning
  • natural hazards and resilient communities
  • planning law and resourcing consent
  • urban and transport planning
  • sustainable housing development.

NZ Planning Institute on accredited courses

How to study planning

Discover what we offer if you’re interested in planning – whether you’re coming to university for the first time, changing direction or returning to advance your study or career.

Undergraduate study

An undergraduate qualification is generally the first thing you’ll study at university.

Bachelor's degrees

Degrees are the standard qualifications you do at university – the most common is called a bachelor’s. Degrees give you enough time to explore your interests, and also focus on specific subjects.

Graduate certificates

Graduate certificates let you study in a subject you're interested in without doing a second bachelor's degree. Or you can use it as a bridge to postgraduate study if you already have an undergraduate degree.

Undergraduate diplomas

Undergraduate diplomas let you try university study before you commit to a degree. They’re also useful if you need to advance your career.

Postgraduate study

Once you’ve graduated with a bachelor’s degree – or have equivalent experience – you’ll be ready to take on postgraduate study.

Master's degrees

A master's degree normally builds on a main subject of study from your undergraduate degree.

Postgraduate certificates

Postgraduate certificates give you an introduction to postgraduate-level study. They’re shorter than postgraduate degrees. If you’re successful, you may be able to use the credits towards a postgraduate diploma

Postgraduate diplomas

Postgraduate diplomas are postgraduate-level qualifications that are longer than a postgraduate certificate. If you’re successful, you might be able to use the credits towards the longer master’s degree.

PhD and other doctoral degrees

Doctoral degrees, including PhDs, are the highest degrees we award. They’re very demanding and their entry criteria reflect this.

Relevant research areas at Massey

Discover research expertise, projects and initiatives relating to planning at Massey.

Planning research

What our students say

“I secured my graduate job in October, before I completed my degree.”
Kendyll Harper

Bachelor of Resource and Environmental Planning

Jobs in planning

Planners work in local or central government, in conservation or iwi organisations, or for consultancies or developers. Our graduates work in New Zealand and overseas in areas such as:

  • environmental planning
  • land use and property development
  • natural resource planning
  • urban planning and urban design (also called town planning)
  • international development.

Planners bring together a wide range of information, analyse and present it concisely. Communication is crucial — written, verbal and visual — because planners consult communities and other stakeholders with very different views and interests.

Massey planning graduates find jobs quickly because they can respond to economic, environmental and social issues, while thinking about political and technological changes.

Planning careers include:

  • environmental planners, who assess how developments may affect air quality, biodiversity, rivers and waterways
  • resource consent planners or advisers, who check how developments may affect the environment and people, and talk with residents and developers
  • transport planners, who plan for current and future transport demands for pedestrians, cyclists, public transport users, car drivers and more
  • urban planners or urban designers, who plan how land is used in a neighbourhood, such as designing streets, subdivisions, parks, schools or health facilities.

Salary ranges for planning jobs

With a Bachelor of Resource and Environmental Planning, you can earn $60,000 to $70,000 on average in your first year of employment.

Urban or regional planner – $60,000 to $150,000

Salary ranges disclaimer

Indicative pay rates are:

Which planning qualification?

Examples of where our qualifications may take you.

Table showing jobs and what you could study to enter them.
Jobs What you could study
Environmental planner Bachelor of Resource and Environmental Planning
Master of Resource and Environmental Planning
Geospatial (GIS) specialist Postgraduate Diploma in Arts (Geospatial Science)
International development specialist Master of Sustainable Development Goals
Resource consent planner or adviser Bachelor of Resource and Environmental Planning
Master of Resource and Environmental Planning
Transport planner Bachelor of Resource and Environmental Planning
Master of Resource and Environmental Planning
Urban planner or urban designer Bachelor of Resource and Environmental Planning
Master of Resource and Environmental Planning

Accreditations and rankings

New Zealand Planning Institute

Massey's planning degrees have been accredited by the New Zealand Planning Institute – Te Kokiringa Taumata for decades.

Learn more

Get an information guide

Download our guide to find out more about studying planning at Massey.

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