Urban design is a practice intended to help shape cities and towns while establishing and implementing plans to allow for future growth. Common areas of study for students of urban design include architectural design, urban planning, highway engineering and landscape design.

Education in the United States is mainly provided by the public sector, with control and funding coming from three levels: state, local, and federal, in that order. The common requirements to study at a higher education level in United States will include your admissions essay (also known as the statement of purpose or personal statement), transcript of records, recommendation/reference letters, language tests

Requirements for the PhD program often involve the student having already obtained a Master’s degree. Additionally, a thesis or dissertation primarily consisting of original academic research must be submitted. In some countries, this work may even need to be defended in front of a panel.