Student Capstone Projects

UCLA Luskin master’s students are required to complete a capstone project to earn their degree. Master or Urban and Regional Planning (MURP) projects can take the form of an applied planning project (client project), a comprehensive group project or a thesis. Master of Public Policy students complete an applied policy project. 

  • The Client Project is applied planning research on a real-world problem conducted by MURP students. ITS-supported client projects have taken national honors in recent years, including 2023, 2022, and 2021.
  • The Comprehensive Projects are similar, in many respects, to the client project, but larger in scope and scale. These projects simulate real world planning practice in that they incorporate students from various areas of concentration working together to research a problem from multiple planning angles.
  • Master’s theses focus on posing and answering a research question in planning that has not previously been answered. Research is conducted by a MURP student in conjunction with a faculty committee.

Do you have a student research project idea? Let us know by July 19, 2024

Propose Project Idea




Total Results: 46

2024 | Student Client Project

Enhancing Mobility and Access for Carless & Car-Deficit Households in Los Angeles
Alyssa Suzukawa

Client: Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT)

Public Transit, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2024 | Student Client Project

Lost Hours, Lost Opportunities: The Toll of Extreme Travel on Lower Income Communities in the San Fernando Valley
Alejandra Rios Gutierrez

Client: Pacoima Beautiful

Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2024 | Student Client Project

Next Stop: Transit Oriented Communities
Adria Stauber

Client: Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT)

Public Transit, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2024 | Student Client Project

Piloting the Future: Strategies for Short-Term Transportation Projects
Josephine Dine

Client: Southern California Association of Governments

Public Transit, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2024 | Student Client Project

Progress, Priorities, and Obstacles to Providing Adequate Shade and Lighting at Bus Stops in Los Angeles
Monisha Reginald

Client: Kounkuey Design Initiative

Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2024 | Student Client Project

Revitalizing Rural Transit: Transit Analysis and Recommendations for Siskiyou County, California
Mia Lewis

Client: Siskiyou County Local Transportation Commission

Public Transit, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2023 | Student Client Project

A Blueprint for Connected Public Transport for Los Angeles County
Isabelle Garvanne

Client: LA Metro

Public Transit, Transportation Finance

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2023 | Student Client Project

Bus Shelter Equity: A Study of the Distribution of Bus Shelters in Los Angeles County and Unincorporated Communities
Anne Yoon

Client: Office of Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell

Access to Opportunities, Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2023 | Student Client Project

Life in the Bus Lane: Best Practices for Envisioning a Better Los Angeles
Kevin Liu

Client: Alliance for Community Transit - Los Angeles

Public Transit, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2023 | Student Client Project

Rethinking Transit Safety: Understanding and Addressing Gender-Based Harassment and Enhancing Safety on San Francisco’s Muni System
Pearl Liu, Greer Cowan

Client: San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA)

Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2022 | Student Comprehensive Project

Planning Indicators: Non-Auto Mobility
Paul Guirguis, Antara Murshed, Karen Phan, Benjamin Silverstein, Miranda Mead-Newton, Ellen Schwartz

Client: LA Metro Office of Extraordinary Innovation

New Mobility, Public Transit, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2022 | Student Client Project

Saved by the… Bus? Analyzing Safety Outcomes on Streets with Bus Lanes
Erik Felix

Client: Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT)

Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2022 | Student Client Project

Try Transit! Lessons Learned From Metrolink Riders to Incentivize a Post-Pandemic Mode Shift to Commuter Rail
Elizabeth Owen

Client: Southern California Regional Rail Authority

Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2022 | Student Client Project

Using Data Science for Equity at SFMTA
Ryan Caro

Client: San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA)

Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2021 | Student Client Project

Assessing Public Outreach About Slow Streets in San Francisco
Lena Rogow

Client: San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA)

Environment, Public Transit, Traffic, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2021 | Student Client Project

Daylighting Public Funding Streams: Increasing Equitable Access to Public Transit Across California
Eric Dasmalchi, Natalie Amberg

Client: Caltrans

Public Transit, Transportation & Communities, Transportation Finance

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2021 | Student Client Project

Equity Lenses: Targeting Equitable Community Investment Across Southern California
Jayne Videecharoen

Client: Southern California Association of Governments

Public Transit, Transportation & Communities

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2021 | Student Client Project

Evaluation of Bus All-Door Boarding: Analysis of Dwell Time Performance
Alexander Murray

Client: LA Metro

Environment, Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2021 | Student Client Project

Matching L.A. Travel Patterns and Metro Bus Service
Edgar Mejia

Client: LA Metro

Environment, Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF

2021 | Student Client Project

One Light, Two Light, Red Light, Green Light: An Analysis of Signal Priority on the Metro G Line
Yu Hong Hwang

Client: LA Metro

Environment, Public Transit

REPORT | POLICY BRIEF