Urban planning deals with the entire development of districts, cities and regions. In addition to the actual drafting of plans, a large part of the work involves collaboration with very different interest groups. “Today we gained a lot of practical insights and learned: This activity is a broad professional field,” summed up the course director, Prof. Dr. Marcus Menzl.
The Master’s degree in urban planning has been around for many years Bachelor’s degree in urban planning only since the winter semester of 2021.
I am pleased that today, for the first time, we are hosting many students from all study years, 25 alumni and, for a short impulse, Wolfgang Oehler, Guido Sempell and Prof. Achim Laleik from the Association for Urban, Regional and State Planning (SRL).
Prof. Dr. Marcus Menzl
Climate change, sustainability and development of small and medium-sized towns
Prof. Achim Laleik was a professor at the FH/TH-Lübeck from 2006 to 2021: “When the course was newly established here, there were five students per year,” he remembers. Now there are more than ever before: for the current semester there were 247 applications for 25 places. “The small cohorts enable intensive support and good exchange between teachers and students,” says Menzl. The course serves the interface between science and practice; the shortage of skilled workers in this area is already there.
Our focus in the city specialist group is on the topics of climate change, sustainability and the special needs of small and medium-sized towns.
Prof. Dr. Marcus Menzl
How sought-after young professionals in urban planning are was made clear by the reports from the young career starters. Seven young people reported on their different but consistently positive experiences on the job market despite starting their careers during the Corona period. They are all now doing well financially. Ina Scheidt and Freda Lange met again on an excursion to China and are now working in an interdisciplinary team at Claussen-Seggelke Stadtplaner in Hamburg. “We moderate large processes, organize appointments and often present results, so we often have to give presentations freely,” the two report from their practice. “Fortunately, we trained for this in our studies here.” The new students of the course were able to start straight away: after just 14 days of introductory weeks, they presented their first results of the project work in Lübeck in the building forum amidst many building exhibits.
Committees, structures, processes: How does an administration work?
Many students have to re-evaluate the special official structures after graduating. After graduating in 2019, Anika Knösel-Hein ended up working in traffic planning in Hamburg and now supports many participation processes – from children’s playgrounds to residential parking zones. “I am the interface where everything comes together, many committees, many evening appointments, a lot of organization. The job is demanding and varied,” she and Helke Langenthal report.
Julia Rönneburg also confirmed this; Before she graduated in 2021, she still thought that land-use planning was dry. “Now I think: land use planning is cool,” she says. “Mareike Mierau applied to the TH Lübeck before she graduated in 2020, so she was able to start working in the municipality of Henstedt-Ulzburg immediately after graduating and start further training to become a building assessor after a short time. “I can only recommend going into the administration of a small municipality,” she says. Her tip for starting a career in administration: “First understand the processes, don’t want to change anything straight away.” For Alexander Haertel, on the other hand, working in administration is not the right thing: “I need more freedom,” he says. At the specialist center for sustainable mobility planning in Hesse, he now supports municipalities and districts with sustainable mobility planning.
The reports from the seven different starts into the professional world allow us to look optimistically into the future. “We learned today: It is becoming more complex: There is no longer a phase where you learn and then the phase where you work,” says Frank Schwartze.
It’s a constant evolution. As urban planners, we have the opportunity to shape and bring together important future issues.
Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Frank Schwartze