M.R.P. Exit Project Options

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General Information

All CRP graduate students are required to complete an exit project paper. Master of Regional Planning (M.R.P.) students can prepare a research paper, professional report, or master's thesis. CRP faculty strongly encourage M.R.P. students to prepare a professional report or a research paper. M.R.P. students also have the option of completing a master's thesis if they secure, by the end of second-semester classes, a conditional agreement by a CRP faculty member to oversee the thesis preparation. M.R.P. students must also pass a final oral examination given by their exit project committee. The student's written document should essentially be complete before the oral examination is scheduled, and the examination must be held in accordance with graduate school regulations. Students must register for exit project credits using this web form. All three options must include CRP 8901, a variable credit research course for 1-4 credits. In addition, each option must also include a specific variable credit writing course: CRP 8902 for a research paper, CRP 8904 for a professional report, and CRP 8906 for a master's thesis. A student may not earn any credit connected to the exit project beyond that awarded for completion of CRP 8901 and CRP 8902, 8904, or 8906.

Students should work closely with their exit project committee regarding the scope, content, and organization of the submitted document and the nature of the final examination. A student's exit project committee must consist of at least two members of the graduate faculty or other faculty members approved by the graduate school. Both committee members must attend the final oral examination and sign the appropriate forms. It is the student's responsibility to ensure the independent writing requirements are satisfied.

All exit project papers must meet the format requirements. M.R.P. students should consult the Academic Programs Coordinator at crpinfo@cornell.edu regarding these requirements. When approved by the student's graduate committee, a copy of the final document will be filed in the Fine Arts Library, and the second copy will be permanently placed in the University Archives.

M.R.P. Project Options

The three options for completing the independent writing requirement are:

Research Paper (CRP 8901 and 8902)

Research papers are generally not more than 40 pages in length, plus notes and bibliography, and constitute the written product resulting from the student's independent research effort. A student earns 4 credits for a research paper (including both the research and writing credits). Typically, a research paper builds on research previously initiated by the student in a particular class. A student may not submit a paper previously submitted during a class. A student may, however, expand on or substantially revise a previously submitted paper as the basis for the research paper. Alternatively, a student may write a research paper to satisfy this requirement without basing it on work previously undertaken during a class. The scope of the research undertaken and the scope of the paper are intended to be substantially less than that required for a master's thesis.

Professional Report (CRP 8901 and 8904)

The professional report reflects a student's efforts to solve a practical, real-world planning problem. A student may earn 4–10 credits for the professional report (including research and writing credits), with the actual number of credits determined by the student's graduate committee. Under most circumstances, the professional report will take the form of a report, study, or other document prepared for a real-world client (e.g., a municipality, a community organization, a research firm, a consulting firm, or a developer, or a federal, state, international, or nongovernmental agency). Under special circumstances, the professional report may have a hypothetical client or be aimed more generally at the public, representing the student's creative solution to an important planning problem. In all circumstances, the student's graduate committee will determine what additional elements may be appropriate for inclusion in the professional report. These additional elements may include materials describing the work done by the student for the client, a literature search, a description of the methodology employed in preparing material for the client, and the student's assessment of their experience in working for the client. The professional report may include but not be limited to work a student does for a client during a summer internship or during a fieldwork class.

Master's Thesis (CRP 8901 and 8906)

Generally, 75–125 pages in length, plus notes and bibliography, the master's thesis constitutes the written product resulting from the student's independent research effort. A student may earn between 6 and 10 credits for the master's thesis (including both the research and writing credits), with the actual number of credits to be determined by the student's graduate committee. The thesis should make an original contribution to knowledge in the field of planning and demonstrate the student's familiarity with the literature and current debates in the field. Students planning to pursue a Ph.D. in the future should choose the thesis option, as most Ph.D. programs require it.

Suggested Exit Project Schedule

The following time frame is recommended in order to complete the M.R.P. degree within two years. Please be aware that this schedule is very tight.

Two-year M.R.P. time frame.
Year Term Tasks
First Fall Explore ideas, meet with faculty, and attend seminars across campus.
First Spring Begin discussing exit project ideas with chair; start initial background reading.
First Summer Begin research of fieldwork
Second Fall Clarify focus; work with chair on defining a question that links the literature to your data and method.
Second January Finish analysis and writing
Second Early February First draft submitted
Second Late February First draft returned with comments
Second March Final draft submitted before spring break
Second April Exit Project defense must be scheduled a minimum of one week in advance of the defense date.

Direct questions about M.R.P. credits, core requirements, and format of the thesis to the academic programs coordinator.

Defense Procedure

Final examinations to defend exit projects are scheduled at the discretion of the committee, based on the project's level of completion. The defense is a discussion between the student and the special committee about the student's project.

Note: Some students record their defense to capture the conversation for future use when making final edits.

At least one week (7 days minimum) prior to the defense date, complete a Schedule of Examination Request form (visit the Academic Forms page to fill out).

  • Submit the form to the academic programs coordinator with all required signatures.

Publishing on eCommons

Publishing your exit project is done through Cornell Library's eCommons. This is a digital archiving space that is a permanent online repository for academic work of students and faculty. Documents uploaded to eCommons are searchable through the university catalog and Google Scholar.

Any format is allowed, but for archival purposes, PDF is highly recommended.

Benefits of Using eCommons

  • Documents will have a stable, permanent URL
  • The staff at eCommons will update the file type to make sure documents are always readable and accessible (i.e., when PDFs are obsolete, staff will update to whatever file type is the new standard)
  • Ability to share documents that are too large to be emailed
  • Documents can be accessed by anyone, including those not affiliated with Cornell

Submissions to eCommons

CRP Collection on eCommons

Users can view previously submitted exit projects and other student work in the CRP collection on eCommons.

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