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Community development planner education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a community development planner. Community development planners usually study business, urban planning, or political science. 72% of community development planners hold a bachelor's degree, and 18% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 289 real community development planner resumes to see exactly what community development planner education sections show.
The most common colleges for community development planners are the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
There are also many online community development planner courses to help get the education required to be a community development planner.
What education do you need to become a community development planner?
What degree do you need to be a community development planner?
- Bachelor's, 72%
- Master's, 18%
- Associate, 8%
- Diploma, 0%
- Other Degrees, 2%
What should I major in to become a community development planner?
- Business, 19%
- Urban Planning, 11%
- Political Science, 11%
- Other Majors, 54%
Most common colleges for community development planners
| Community development planner common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 13.79% |
| University of Phoenix | 10.34% |
| Pennsylvania State University | 6.90% |
| Ball State University | 6.90% |
| Clemson University | 5.17% |
Best majors for community development planners
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Business | 18.9% |
| 2 | Urban Planning | 11.0% |
| 3 | Political Science | 11.0% |
| 4 | Public Administration | 5.5% |
| 5 | Geography | 5.5% |
Best colleges for community development planners
The best colleges for community development planners are University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern University, and Columbia University in the City of New York.
A community development planner with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for community development planners. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become community development planners.
1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
2. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$56,225
Enrollment
19,548
3. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
4. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
5. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
6. University of Washington
Seattle, WA • Private
In-state tuition
$11,207
Enrollment
30,905
7. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, MN • Private
In-state tuition
$14,760
Enrollment
31,451
8. University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX • Private
In-state tuition
$10,610
Enrollment
40,329
9. University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$14,184
Enrollment
30,845
10. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,488
Enrollment
30,018
20 best online courses for community development planners
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Top 10 most affordable universities for community development planners
The most affordable schools for community development planners are University of Florida, baruch college of the city university of new york, and hunter college of the city university of new york.
If the best universities for community development planners are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for community development planners.
1. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
2. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
3. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
4. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
5. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
6. City College of New York of the City University of New York, The
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,140
Cost of attendance
14,430
7. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York
Brooklyn, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,240
Cost of attendance
13,991
8. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,410
Cost of attendance
20,456
9. Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,656
Cost of attendance
21,623
10. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Cost of attendance
16,091
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for community development planners
The hardest universities for community development planners to get into are University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern University, and Columbia University in the City of New York.
Some great schools for community development planners are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for community development planners based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
3. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
4. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
17%
SAT average
1,507
5. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
13%
SAT average
1,445
6. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
7. Washington University in St Louis
Saint Louis, MO • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,506
8. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
20%
SAT average
1,419
9. University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,448
10. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for community development planners
The easiest schools for community development planners to get into are Notre Dame de Namur University, wayland baptist university, and mount saint mary's university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a community development planner without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for community development planners.
1. Notre Dame de Namur University
Belmont, CA • Private
Admissions rate
82%
SAT average
983
2. Wayland Baptist University
Plainview, TX • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
1,003
3. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
4. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
5. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
6. Kean University
Union, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
86%
SAT average
991
7. University of North Texas at Dallas
Dallas, TX • Private
Admissions rate
83%
SAT average
992
8. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
9. San Francisco State University
San Francisco, CA • Private
Admissions rate
72%
SAT average
1,054
10. Ottawa University
Ottawa, KS • Private
Admissions rate
78%
SAT average
1,024
Average community development planner salary by education level
| Community development planner education level | Community development planner salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $60,300 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $54,895 |
Community development planner education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025