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





Total Results: 46

2016 | Student Client Project

Commuter Rail Maintenance Contracting: Analyzing The Impacts on Quality & Costs
Zoe Unruh

Client: Southern California Regional Rail Authority

2016 | Student Client Project

Measuring Risk of Residential Displacement Around LA Metro’s New Light-Rail Stations
Camille Stewart

Client: East Los Angeles Community Corporation

2016 | Student Client Project

To Live and Ride in LA: Are Bike Lanes Making Angelenos Safer?
Ryan Taylor-Gratzer

Client: Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition

2015 | Student Client Project

Re-inventing the Bus Stop: Design Guidelines and Analysis for Transit-Friendly Parklets in Alameda County
Ben Kaufman

Client: Alameda County Transit

2015 | Student Client Project

The Bus Stops Here: Best Practices in Bus Stop Consolidation and Optimization
Daniel Berez

Client: Houston METRO

2006 | Student Client Project

The Choices of Choice Riders Demand for Light Rail Transit in the Polycentric City: A Look at Culver City and Mid-City Exposition Line
Stephen Crosley