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PLAN 300Planning Theory and Ethics

Units
0.50
Faculty
Environment
Subject
Planning

When it runs

  1. F24
  2. W25
  3. S25
  4. F25
  5. W26
  6. S26
  7. F26
  8. W27
  9. S27

Ran in 2 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.

This course examines different perspectives on the nature of planning expertise, the ethical and moral frameworks through which planners make decisions, and the desired relationship with community members and other governance actors. Students will learn different theories or models of planning practice, including rational-comprehensive planning, advocacy planning, communicative planning, and others. Students will explore how these theories influence decision-making behaviour and outcomes, as well as express different visions of the roles, expertise, and responsibilities of a planning professional. By exploring different planning models and ethical frameworks, students will also develop their capacities for reflective practice.

Prerequisites

  • Complete all of the following
    • Students must be in level 3A or higher
    • Enrolled in H-Planning

Antirequisites

None listed.

Leads to

No course lists it as a requisite.

Reviewed on UW Flow

33% liked it51% easy24% useful

From 43 ratings and 6 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.

  • vague arts BS course that focuses on social justice (planning?) theories like advocacy planning - wtf is that. Vague arts is a term coined by our Urban Planning cohort to describe this kind of BS: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Vague%20Arts

    Jan 2019 · didn’t like it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this

  • The lectures were frankly boring and unengaging because the prof seemed to lack passion for the content. Mandatory in-lecture groupwork was tedious and serves as an indictment for the unfortunate state of this course. If there were no groupwork marks for attending lectures, everyone would skip.

    Dec 2025 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • You will never use theory once in your time as a professional planner. Professor Khirfan made this the most unenjoyable and confusing course out there.

    Dec 2023 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • With Luna Khirfan. She's the worst professor I've ever had. Makes it harder than it should be

    Sep 2023 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Very similar to PLAN233. There is a major paper at the end (I took this course with J. Dean) that is 5 pages single space applying a planning theory to a topic. The paper was very hard to write (was only allowed a handful of sources) but other than that the exams were easy.

    Jan 2017 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

Discussed on r/uwaterloo

One post or comment in 1 thread mentions PLAN 300, October 2017 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.

Fall 2017

Any way to disable UWCourseLinker from posting? 16 points, 26 comments

“posting a reply to my comment I find the bot annoying.”

u/Jackhofmann: “PSYCH 483 PSYCH 484 PSYCH 485 PSYCH 486 PSYCH 490R PSYCH 499A PSYCH 499B PSYCH 499C PSYCH 621 PSYCH 630 PSYCH 677A PSYCH 704A PSYCH 704B PSYCH 707 PSYCH 710 PSYCH 714 PSYCH 717 PSYCH 720A PSYCH 721A …”

u/Jackhofmann: “… PHYS 781 PHYS 786 PHYS 788 PLAN 100 PLAN 102 PLAN 104 PLAN 105 PLAN 210 PLAN 262 PLAN 281 PLAN 300 PLAN 309 PLAN 320 PLAN 340 PLAN 351 PLAN 362 PLAN 387 PLAN 418 PLAN 451 PLAN 453 PLAN 474 PLAN 485 PLAN 490 PLAN 615 PLAN 619 PLAN 621 PLAN 625 PLAN 646 PLAN 674 PLAN 675 PLAN 700 …”

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Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026

Calendar versions

Undergraduate Calendar