Students

Hometown: Oakland, CA

Pronouns: He/him

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: As a young man of color born and raised in an urban environment, I have been passionate about equity since a young age. Urban Studies provides me with a unique opportunity to explore my interdisciplinary interests in policy, law, racial justice, and design while weaving a thread of equity throughout tangible, relevant coursework.

What I like best about Urban Studies: It's interdisciplinary, practical, and tangible.

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Hometown: Dallas, TX

Pronouns: She/Her

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: I’m majoring in urban studies because of its interdisciplinary nature and engagement with the community. It is interconnected with geography, environmentalism, health, politics, economy, design, and social aspects of society. Urban studies centers around people and their communities which is very different from other majors across this institution — I truly think this major can make a positive impact in many aspects. 

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Hometown: Newark, Delaware

Pronouns: She/Hers

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: Urban Studies combines my interests in sustainable and participatory design, environmental justice, housing justice and equity, geography, and community organizing in a tangible way. The range of classes, professors, and coursework that you can engage in through the major allows me to really pave my own path of how I would like to engage in different subject matter and take my knowledge and apply it directly in the ...

Hometown: Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Pronouns: He/Him

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: Cities and urbanism impact so much about our quality of life: our environment, health, education, politics, mobility, economic opportunities, and more. Majoring in Urban Studies has given me the skills and history to contextualize my own experiences and meaningfully contribute to building more sustainable, equitable, and accessible cities for all.

What I like best about Urban Studies: The Community!

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Hometown: Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico / Calexico, California

Pronouns: They/them/theirs

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: I am majoring in Urban Studies because I love the emphasis on the interaction between community and policy. Urban Studies brings these things together while ensuring we give back while we learn with folks. I also love the community and how open, raw, and close conversations can feel.

What I like best about Urban Studies: What I like best about Urban Studies is the overall ...

Hometown: South Pasadena, CA

Pronouns: She/her

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: As a premed student and a government official, my path to majoring in urban studies has been shaped by my fascination with how our surroundings affect health. My research into the connections between urban design and public health deepened my appreciation for the field. I began to realize the significant role that features like parks and walkable streets play in shaping both physical and mental health. By majoring in ...

Hometown: San Gabriel, Los Angeles County, CA

Pronouns: He/They

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: Growing up in Los Angeles County, I was fascinated and impacted by urban life and disparities, particularly inequities in urban housing and healthcare. Urban Studies has been an outlet for me to dive deep into these issues in interdisciplinary academic and applied settings.

What I like best about Urban Studies: Urban Studies explores pressing issues through economic, sociological, technical, and ...

Hometown: Oakland, CA

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: Through the Urban Studies major, I am able to incorporate my passion for the arts, and arts education and policy into my studies. I appreciate being able to learn from both my professors as well as from my peers’ diverse interdisciplinary interests and goals.

What I like best about Urban Studies: Urban Studies courses integrate application of skills to real-world problems, with collective imagining of more just and equitable urban futures!

Ho ...

Pronouns: she/they

Hometown: St. Petersburg, FL

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: Growing up, I always heavily romanticized New York City, especially because it was the setting of so many influential books, movies, and musicals: Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby, 13 Going on 30, The Last Five Years, Rent, etc. I also loved reading Humans of New York interviews, and really seeing how urban spaces -- with their huge concentration of people and places -- uniquely shaped the stories and lives of ...

Hometown: San Carlos, CA

Why I'm majoring in Urban Studies: Since as long as I can remember, I’ve always been interested in public transportation—buses, trains, planes, and everything in between—and over time, my passion for traveling by these methods of transportation led me to be curious how transportation and urban planning decisions are made. More broadly, I’m interested in public policy decisions, especially those that affect the built environment, and majoring in Urban Studies has allowed ...

Hometown: Boone, North Carolina

Pronouns: She/her

Why I'm minoring in Urban Studies: I'm minoring in urban studies because I'm interested in political dynamics in urban areas globally!

What I like best about Urban Studies: I like how broad it can be, and how it can encapsulate other fields of interest! I also enjoy the Urban Studies events and speakers

Other academic interests: I'm a Civil Engineering major!