Urban Studies
The Graduate School of Urban Studies offers a unique multidisciplinary programme, allowing students to develop specific skills in global urban dynamics and city transformations at various scales.
Rooted in geography, history, sociology, urban planning, and local development, this programme addresses contemporary urban challenges in a comprehensive way. It provides the tools and methods needed to analyse urbanisation processes and their economic, social, political, and environmental impacts.
Presentation
The Graduate School of Urban Studies offers an integrated programme at the master’s and doctoral levels, drawing on the research and teaching strengths of Université Paris Cité. The Graduate School combines different disciplines to provide a comprehensive understanding of contemporary urban dynamics. By exploring key topics such as demographic inequalities, urban growth, social fragmentation, and sustainability in the context of climate transition, it prepares students to analyse the processes shaping cities today.
This transdisciplinary approach goes beyond traditional frameworks, using varied methods from urban planning to the analysis of social and environmental dynamics. It emphasises the use of spatial data, the study of urban ecosystems, and governance, addressing tensions among urban actors.
With its vast network of international partnerships (in Europe, America, Asia, and Africa), the Graduate School of Urban Studies gives students privileged access to global collaborations.
Contact
Laurent FARET
faret@u-paris.fr
Masters
Master’s programmes are offered in French and English
- Energy
- Geography, Planning, Environment, and Development (GAED)
- History, civilisations, and heritage
- Studies, consulting, and intervention (MECI)
- Social sciences
Research
The Graduate School Urban Studies is supported by eight renowned research teams at Université Paris Cité, collaborating with major institutions such as CNRS, IRD, and INALCO. This ecosystem puts master’s students and doctoral candidates at the center of an international research network, strengthened by partnerships with institutions like the École nationale supérieure d’architecture Paris-Val de Seine and Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne.
Research platforms, such as Géotéca and RIATE, provide advanced tools for studying geomatics, mapping, and territorial dynamics.
Laboratories
- ANHIMA – Anthropologie et Histoire des Mondes Antiques (UMR 8210)
- CESSMA – Centre d’Études en Sciences Sociales sur les Mondes Africains, Américains et Asiatiques (UMR 245)
- GéoCités – Geography-cities (UMR 8504)
- ICT – Identités Cultures Territoires (URP 337)
- LADYSS – Social Dynamics and Space recomposition Laboratory (UMR 7533)
- LIED – Paris Interdisciplinary Energy Research Institute (UMR 8236)
- PRODIG – Pôle de Recherche pour l’Organisation et la Diffusion de l’Information Géographique (UMR 8586)
- URMIS – Migrations and Society Research Unit (UMR 8245)
Doctoral schools
Executives
-
Jean-Baptiste DELZANT
Lecturer of History -
Laurent FARET
Professor of Geography -
Renaud LE GOIX
Professor of Geography -
Christian POIRET
Associate professor of Sociology
À lire aussi
L’Université Paris Cité renforce sa coopération avec l’Université Jiao Tong de Shanghai
L'Université Paris Cité et l’Université Jiao Tong de Shanghai (UJTS) ont signé un nouvel accord-cadre et une convention de mobilité visant à élargir à toutes les disciplines un partenariat initié depuis de nombreuses années autour de la médecine. Antoine Kouchner,...
Université Paris Cité strengthens its cooperation with Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Université Paris Cité and Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) sign a new cooperation agreement and a mobility agreement aimed at expanding a long-standing partnership, initially focused on medicine, to all academic disciplines.Antoine Kouchner, vice president of...
UPCité, UChicago et le CNRS créent deux laboratoires internationaux
Le 19 novembre 2025, l’Université Paris Cité, l’Université de Chicago et le CNRS ont officialisé la création de deux laboratoires internationaux de recherche (IRL) : HumanitiesPlus et Particle Physics and Cosmology.Antoine Kouchner, vice-président en charge des...
UPCité, UChicago, and CNRS create two international laboratories
On November 19, 2025, Université Paris Cité, the University of Chicago, and CNRS officially announced the creation of two international research laboratories (IRLs): HumanitiesPlus and Particle Physics and Cosmology.Antoine Kouchner, vice president of International...