Listed below are the requirements for the Urban Studies Programs major. In addition to the requirements for the major, students must also satisfy all of the university general education requirements and the College of Letters & Science breadth and other degree requirements. Degree requirements will vary depending on when you took your first college class. You are strongly advised to consult both the anthropology advisor and your L&S advisor to ensure you stay on track towards a degree. Read more about the degree requirements on the L&S Degree Requirements web page.
Urban Studies Major Requirements
Four required urban studies courses form the foundation of the major: URB STD 150, a core course in which students conduct service learning by working in an urban organization or agency; one of two urban studies survey courses; a theory course on urbanism and urbanization; and a capstone course (URB STD 600) taken in the senior year. Students also take a statistics course, which is a standard requirement for social science majors. In addition, students complete five elective courses selected from urban studies and approved courses in the affiliated areas. Student internships (URB STD 289 or URB STD 489) are encouraged strongly. Students also are encouraged to participate in and present at various urban studies-sponsored events, such as the annual Urban Studies Student Research Forum conference and the Urban Studies State of Milwaukee Summit, and to contribute to the epolis ejournal (currently, each issue includes one paper from an undergraduate).
To declare a major in Urban Studies, students can complete the declaration form on the Urban Studies website which will be followed by an appointment with the Urban Studies Associate Director to review needed courses and plan upcoming semesters.
Course of Study
The Urban Studies major requires a minimum of 30-31 credits, including at least 18 credits in the College of Letters and Science with coursework from at least two L&S departments. No more than 9 credits in a single curricular area outside of urban studies may count toward the major. SOCIOL 377, which is jointly offered in the Urb Std curricular area, will count as an Urb Std course for this purpose. Students must complete at least 15 credits in upper-division (numbered 300 and above) L&S courses for the major in residence at UWM. In addition, students must attain a minimum GPA of 2.0 in all UWM credits attempted for the major. The College of Letters and Science also requires that students attain a 2.0 GPA in all major credits attempted, including any transfer work. The following are required:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Core | ||
| URB STD 150 | Multicultural America | 3 |
| Survey | ||
| URB STD 360 | Perspectives on the Urban Scene: | 3 |
| or URB STD 250 | Exploring the Urban Environment | |
| Statistics | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Quantitative Analysis in Geography | ||
| The Quantitative Analysis of Historical Data | ||
| Political Data Analysis | ||
| Introduction to Statistical Thinking in Sociology | ||
Or equivalent course approved by the program director | ||
| Theory | ||
| SOCIOL/URB STD 377 | Urbanism and Urbanization | 3 |
| Capstone | ||
| URB STD 600 | Capstone Seminar in Urban Studies (satisfies L&S research requirement) | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select 15 credits (see below) | 15 | |
| Total Credits | 30-31 | |
Electives
15 credits selected from the following courses or other appropriate courses approved by the program director. (No more than nine credits from the same department outside of urban studies may apply to the 30- or 31-credit minimum in the major.)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| URB STD | All U and U/G courses | |
| URBPLAN | All U and U/G courses | |
| AFRIC 125 | Economics of the Black Community | 3 |
| AFRIC 300 | Urban Violence | 3 |
| AFRIC 319 | African American Urban History | 3 |
| AFRIC 341 | Black Politics and City Government | 3 |
| AFRIC 416 | Race and Social Justice in the United States | 3 |
| ANTHRO 431 | Cities and Culture | 3 |
| ARCH 190 | Living Learning Community: (only with topic "Field School") | 1-3 |
| ARCH 352 | History & Theory III | 3 |
| ARCH 353 | History & Theory IV | 3 |
| ARTHIST 323 | Age of Apocalypse: Western European Art after the First Millennium | 3 |
| ARTHIST 326 | Chivalry and Spirituality: French Gothic Art and Architecture | 3 |
| ARTHIST 356 | American Architecture | 3 |
| ARTHIST 431 | Renaissance Architecture in Italy | 3 |
| ARTHIST 462 | Frank Lloyd Wright | 3 |
| BUS ADM 441 | Diversity in Organizations | 3 |
| CRM JST 291 | Current Issues in Criminal Justice: | 1-3 |
| CRM JST 310 | Race, Crime, and Criminal Justice | 3 |
| ED POL 111 | Introduction to Community Action and Change | 3 |
| ED POL 113 | The Milwaukee Community | 3 |
| ED POL 114 | Community Issues, Policies, and Solutions | 3 |
| ED POL 203 | Communities and Neighborhoods in America | 3 |
| ED POL 630 | Race, Ethnicity, and Public Policy in Urban America | 3 |
| GEOG 114 | Geography of Race in the United States | 3 |
| GEOG 140 | Our Urban Environment: Introduction to Urban Geography | 3 |
| GEOG 215 | Introduction to Geographic Information Science | 3 |
| GEOG 441 | Geography of Cities and Metropolitan Areas | 3 |
| GEOG 443 | Cities of the World: Comparative Urban Geography | 3 |
| GEOG 464 | Environmental Problems | 3 |
| GEOG 520 | Physical Geography of the City | 3 |
| GEOG 525 | Geographic Information Science | 4 |
| GEOG 540 | Globalization and the City | 3 |
| GEOG 564 | Urban Environmental Change and Social Justice | 3 |
| GEOG 625 | Intermediate Geographic Information Science | 4 |
| HIST 192 | First-Year Seminar: (Living in Ancient Rome or The Burbs: History of American Suburbs) | 3 |
| HIST 200 | Historical Roots of Contemporary Issues: | 3 |
| HIST 303 | A History of Greek Civilization: The Greek City-State | 3 |
| HIST 307 | A History of Rome: The Republic | 3 |
| HIST 308 | A History of Rome: The Empire | 3 |
| HIST 404 | Topics in American History: (Big City Life Viewed Through HBO’s 'The Wire' or A Tale of Two Cities: Milwaukee and Los Angeles) | 3 |
| HIST 436 | Immigrant America Since 1880 | 3 |
| HIST 440 | History of the American Working Classes | 3 |
| HIST 446 | African Americans Since the Civil War | 3 |
| HIST 450 | The History of Milwaukee | 3 |
| HIST 460 | The History of Poverty in America | 3 |
| HIST 463 | History of the American City | 3 |
| POL SCI 213 | Urban Government and Politics | 3 |
| POL SCI 243 | Public Administration | 3 |
| POL SCI 450 | Urban Political Problems | 3 |
| POL SCI 452 | Administrative Law | 3 |
| PUB ADM 243 | Public Administration | 3 |
| PUB ADM 452 | Administrative Law | 3 |
| SOC WRK 306 | Introduction to Social Welfare Policy | 3 |
| SOC WRK 630 | Families and Poverty | 3 |
| SOCIOL 224 | Race and Ethnicity in the United States | 3 |
| SOCIOL 235 | Social Change in the Global Economy | 3 |
| SOCIOL 323 | Perspectives on Latino Communities | 3 |
| SOCIOL 324 | Race and Ethnicity in Global Contexts | 3 |
| SOCIOL 325 | Social Change | 3 |
| SOCIOL 330 | Economy and Society | 3 |
| SOCIOL 350 | Environmental Sociology | 3 |
| THEATRE 305 | The Theatrical Experience: (With topic: Out and About in Milwaukee) | 3 |