Urban Studies (BA)
Career prospects
Labour market surveys show an increasing demand for students in the field of Urban Studies, particularly those who have been trained in a broad programme including social and cultural perspectives on cities and urbanisation processes.
Labour market
With your degree in Urban Studies, you’re more than a specialist in the many-sided and complex issues that cities are faced with. Alongside your subject expertise, you’ve developed a broad set of academic skills that give you a strong start to your career. Graduates in Urban Studies often find roles where the ability to select and process complex information, written and verbal communication, the ability to collaborate and forming an opinion play a central role. There are a surprising number of directions you can take after completing your studies.
Why employers find you interesting
Urban Studies graduates often secure roles that require a high level of education. Within two months of graduation, 50% find a job, and 75% are employed within six months. Research among alumni shows that for 50%, their first job was at a higher professional or academic level. After gaining a few years of experience, this rises to 80%.
Gaining relevant experience alongside your studies strengthens your position. Alumni say that internships – whether abroad or in the Netherlands – and studying abroad contributed most to their career start.
Where can you work after graduating?
Your expertise and capabilities open doors in many different sectors. Our alumni work at Dutch and international companies and organisations in a variety of sectors.
Source: Labour Market Survey 2025 among Urban Studies graduates from 2020 to 2024.
Many graduates continue with a master’s degree after their bachelor’s. Further study pays off: those with a master’s degree are more likely to secure higher-level positions.
Graduates at work
A glimpse of workplaces where recent Urban Studies graduates have started their careers:
- Research officer at United Cities and Local Governments
- Advisor Strategic Urban Planning at Witteveen+Bos
- Project manager at the Dutch Ministry for Defence
- Advisor Mobility at Goudappel