Urban and Regional Planners

ANZSCO ID 2326

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
22,100
Future Growth
18.6%
Weekly Earnings
$2,177
Full-Time Share
81%
Female Share
46%
Average age
38

Summary

Urban and Regional Planners develop and implement plans and policies for the controlled use of urban and rural land, and advise on economic, environmental and social factors affecting land use.

Specialisations: Land Planner, Town Planner, Traffic and Transport Planner.

A bachelor degree in urban, regional or environmental planning is needed to work as an Urban or Regional Planner. Many workers have a postgraduate qualification.

Tasks

  • compiling and analysing data on economic, legal, political, cultural, demographic, sociological, physical and environmental factors affecting land use

  • conferring with government authorities, communities, Architects, social scientists, Legal Professionals, and planning, development and environmental specialists

  • devising and recommending use and development of land, and presenting narrative and graphic plans, programs and designs to groups and individuals

  • advising governments and organisations on urban and regional planning and resource planning

  • reviewing and evaluating environmental impact reports

  • staying up-to-date with changes in building and zoning codes, regulations and other legal issues

  • may serve as mediators in disputes over planning proposals and projects

  • may speak at public meetings and appear before government to explain planning proposals

Characteristics

Job Type
Professionals
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
Unemployment Rate
Below average
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
Interests
  • Analytical
  • Creative
  • Enterprising
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary
  • Light

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. The latest data are for the five years from November 2021 to November 2026. Over this period, the number of workers:

  • is expected to grow very strongly
  • is likely to reach 16,200 by 2026.
  • Source: Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.

    Notes: The number employed includes people who work in this occupation as their main job. People who work in more than one job are counted against the occupation they work the most hours in.

    Employment projections figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Calculations based on these rounded figures may result in differences to the numbers that are displayed on this page. Employment projections data (including occupations) can be downloaded from the Employment Projections page.

Projected Change
18.6%
(or 2,500 jobs)
From
13,600
in 2021
To
16,200
in 2026

Number of Workers

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.
Year Employment
2011 10,100
2012 13,600
2013 10,600
2014 10,500
2015 7,900
2016 14,100
2017 13,700
2018 14,000
2019 15,600
2020 18,400
2021 13,600
2026 16,200

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 80% of people employed as Urban and Regional Planners work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 14 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 42 hours per week in their main job. This is similar to the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    More than a third of workers regularly work overtime or extra hours (either paid or unpaid).

    Median full-time earnings are $2,177 per week, this is much higher than the all jobs median ($1,593):

    • 3 in 4 workers earn more than $1,821
    • 1 in 4 earn more than $2,250

    Median hourly earnings are $58, this is more than the all jobs median ($41 per hour).

    Sources: Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average. Overtime hours: ABS, Characteristics of Employment, 2021. Full-time median earnings and median hourly earnings: ABS, Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021. Compared to all jobs median.

Weekly Earnings (Before Tax)

Source: Based on ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021, Customised Report. Median weekly total cash earnings for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate. Earnings are before tax and include amounts salary sacrificed. Earnings can vary greatly depending on the skills and experience of the worker and the demands of the role. These figures should be used as a guide only, not to determine a wage rate.
Earnings Urban and Regional Planners All Jobs Average
Full-Time Earnings 2,177 1,593
Total Earnings 0 0

Source: Based on ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021, Customised Report. Median weekly total cash earnings for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate. Earnings are before tax and include amounts salary sacrificed. Earnings can vary greatly depending on the skills and experience of the worker and the demands of the role. These figures should be used as a guide only, not to determine a wage rate.


Industries

Main industries

1
Public Administration and Safety
63.8%
2
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
28.8%
3
Construction
4.0%
4
Transport, Postal and Warehousing
1.7%
5
Other industries
2.3%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

32.3% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

26.8% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

20.3% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

5.6% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

11.9% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.5% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.6% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

1.1% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Urban and Regional Planners All Jobs Average
NSW 32.3 31.6
VIC 26.8 25.6
QLD 20.3 20.0
SA 5.6 7.0
WA 11.9 10.8
TAS 1.5 2.0
NT 0.6 1.0
ACT 1.1 1.9



Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
38
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
46%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Urban and Regional Planners is 38 years. This is similar to the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 25 to 34 years.

    Females make up 46% of the workforce. This is similar to the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Urban and Regional Planners All Jobs Average
15-19 0.1 5.0
20-24 6.0 9.3
25-34 31.5 22.9
35-44 29.3 22.0
45-54 19.3 21.6
55-59 6.4 9.0
60-64 4.6 6.0
65 and Over 2.8 4.2
Median Age 38 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in urban, regional or environmental planning is needed to work as an Urban or Regional Planner. Many workers have a postgraduate qualification.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Urban and Regional Planners All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 36.8 10.1
Bachelor degree 47.9 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 5.9 11.6
Certificate III/IV 3.0 21.1
Year 12 4.9 18.1
Year 11 0.6 4.8
Year 10 and below 0.8 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Urban and Regional Planners who can communicate clearly, work well in a team and have strong interpersonal skills.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 63%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 61%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 61%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 61%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 57%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 57%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 57%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 57%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 57%

    Systems evaluation

    Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

  • 57%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 55%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 55%

    Operations analysis

    Understanding needs and product requirements to create a design.

  • 55%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 54%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

  • 52%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 52%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 48%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 46%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 46%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 43%

    Learning strategies

    Figuring out the best way to teach or learn something new.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 76%

    Geography

    Describing land, sea, and air, including their physical characteristics, locations, how they work together, and the location of plant, animal, and human life.

  • 72%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 68%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 67%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 65%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 63%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 62%

    Sociology and anthropology

    Group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

  • 60%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 58%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 58%

    Technical design

    Design techniques, tools, and principles used to make detailed technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

  • 57%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 53%

    Transportation

    Moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road.

  • 52%

    History and archeology

    Events of the past, their causes, how we learn about them, and how they influence the way we live today.

  • 50%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 50%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.

  • 48%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.

  • 48%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 47%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 45%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 37%

    Building and construction

    Materials, and methods used to construct or repair houses, buildings, or other structures like highways and roads.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 66%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 63%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 63%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 61%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 59%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 57%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 57%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 57%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 57%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 57%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 57%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 55%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 55%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 55%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 55%

    Visualization

    Imagine how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

  • 54%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 52%

    Mathematics

    Choose the right maths method or formula to solve a problem.

  • 52%

    Working with numbers

    Add, subtract, multiply, or divide.

  • 48%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 45%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 87%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 86%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 84%

    Coming up with systems and processes

    Deciding on goals and figuring out what you need to do to achieve them.

  • 84%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 79%

    Coordinating the work of a team

    Getting members of a group to work together to finish a task.

  • 78%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 78%

    Scheduling work and activities

    Working out the timing of events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

  • 78%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 76%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 76%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 75%

    Negotiating and resolving conflicts

    Handling complaints and disagreements, and negotiating with people.

  • 74%

    Thinking creatively

    Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.

  • 74%

    Making sense of information and ideas

    Looking at, working with, and understanding data or information.

  • 73%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 73%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 70%

    Leading and encouraging a team

    Encouraging and building trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.

  • 67%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 67%

    Checking compliance with standards

    Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

  • 62%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 54%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 95%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 67%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 57%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

  • 43%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 43%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

  • 29%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 76%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 71%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 71%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

  • 67%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.

  • 62%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 52%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 100%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 99%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 97%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 91%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 91%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 90%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 89%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 86%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 84%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 79%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 79%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 77%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 75%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 72%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 72%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 71%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 71%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 70%

    Conflict situations

    Deal with conflict or disagreements.

  • 67%

    Angry or unpleasant people

    Deal with unpleasant, angry, or rude people.

  • 67%

    Public speaking

    Talk to a group of people.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 19-3051.00 - Urban and Regional Planners.


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