Finding Your First Job in Land Use Planning

Finding your first position in land use planning can be tough. While I can’t hope to cover everything here, I hope that recent graduates find some helpful advice in this article. 
 
Don’t Get Discouraged
 
I think one of the most important lessons I would share with new graduates is the need for patience. Some students will already have their first job lined up by the time they leave school, while others might take a year or more to find something. It’s important to keep in mind that everyone has their own journey when it comes to finding work in this field. Even if you don’t find something right away my advice is always to keep looking and to continue to work to improve your skills and understanding where possible. You never know what could be on the horizon.
 
Improving Your Chances
 
There are some things you can do to help improve your odds of finding work in planning.
 
1. Get Your Driver’s License
 
I strongly recommend getting at least a G2 before graduating. Most junior land use planning jobs in Ontario require a driver's license. This is generally needed for doing site visits or attending meetings.
 
2. Keep Your Options Open
 
Don’t specialize too early! I recommend that in school you take a varied approach to learning:

• take diverse planning courses
• take elective courses
• apply for internships
• enroll in co-op program
• take part in hands-on exercises
• participate in case competitions

These will help improve your resume and prepare you for assessments and interview questions.
 
3. Keep Learning
 
After you graduate keep up with new changes happening in the areas of planning you are particularly interested in. With so many new bills, programs, and initiatives over the last few years, it’s crucial to be aware of the changes in the industry. For example, read bill summaries on law firm websites and/or industry materials. You can also use online portals, such as Toronto’s Application Information Centre (AIC), to review development application materials, like planning justification reports, site plans, architectural plans, surveys. These help you be familiar with many of the materials you’ll reference or create as a planner.
 
4. Volunteering and Networking
 
Traditional networking events such as mixers and alumni dinners are more beneficial for people working in the industry. I wouldn’t rely on them to find work.
 
Instead, look for volunteer opportunities in advocacy groups, business improvement areas, residents’ associations, city councilor offices, or other volunteer positions related to the field of planning you are interested in. This will help you meet other people in the field and learn about open positions.
 
Cover Letter and Resume
 
Your cover letter and resume are your sales pitch. As such, they should be professional, concise, and detailed enough so that it sells you to the employer. Some more tips:

• Customize them for the position (i.e. don’t send a generic cover letter and resume)
• Highlight your skills and experiences in a way that shows you are a good fit
• Include technical skills
• Include soft skills like customer service, working on teams, or interacting with the public as well as these are all very important skills in our profession.

While I generally think one-page cover letters and one-page resumes are the way to go early in your career, some positions may necessitate a two-page resume in order to get past automated screening and fit in the keywords the position is looking for. If you do use a two-page resume then put the priority items (experience, education) on the first page.
 
Have an Open Mind
 
You may not find that Planner I, Junior Planner, or Assistant Planner position right away and that’s perfectly fine. Lots of students first find planning-related work.  Here is a list of jobs you can apply for:

• Development Coordinator
• Application Technician
• Planning Technician
• Planning Assistant
• Research Trainee
• Research Assistant

Don’t limit yourself to a specific location. Consider applying in smaller communities, or places outside of the province. Working in a smaller community can be a great opportunity and it can expose you to aspects of planning that most planning schools don’t consider, like rural planning and planning in northern communities.
 
Online Job Portals
 
Job posting season tends to be January to mid-May - with some further postings from August to November. OPPI’s Career Centre is a great starting resource for finding work. It has lots of job postings from across Ontario.
 


 
Don’t limit yourself to one job portal. Some positions are only posted on one or two specific portals. Here are some examples of where you can job postings:

1. Provincial and federal planning associations (OPPI, CIP, Atlantic Planners Institute, etc.)
2. Provincial or federal career websites (National Capital Commission, Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, National Research Council, etc.)
3. Municipal career websites
4. School board career websites
5. or agency career websites (Toronto Transit Commission, Toronto Community Housing Corporation, Toronto Parking Authority, Bike Share, etc.).
6. Company career websites
7. Indeed, LinkedIn (including postings not just job ads)
8. Other municipal career websites (the Association of Municipalities of Ontario careers page, Municipal World, etc.)

 
Interviews and Assessments
 
1. Interviews
 
When it comes to interviews, it’s important to act and dress professionally, maintain good eye contact, and come well prepared. Even when you do everything right, there will still be interviews that don’t go as planned — and that’s completely normal. No one is perfect, and sometimes all you can do is learn from the experience, dust yourself off, and keep moving forward. I’ve had my share of interviews that didn’t go well. It happens. You live and learn.
 
Junior planner interviews tend to follow a fairly predictable pattern, with many of the same types of questions coming up. My advice is to prepare thoughtful answers in advance for the questions you notice appearing frequently.
 
It’s equally important to come with questions of your own to ask the interviewers. Employers want to hire people who are genuinely interested in both the firm and its specific area of planning. The more you can demonstrate that interest — through both your answers and your questions — the stronger impression you’ll make.
 
2. Job Assessments
 
Job assessments can vary wildly depending on the position and who is conducting the evaluation. For a junior planner role focus on land use position, her are some key areas to prepare for:

• Official Plans & Zoning By-laws: be able to read and interpret these documents to assess the development potential of a property.
• Site Plans, Surveys & Architectural Drawings: familiarize yourself with how to read these materials and understand concepts such as: Setbacks, Stepbacks, Soft and hard landscaping, Floor Space Index (FSI), and Lot coverage
• Planning Hierarchy: understand how various planning documents and policies fit together — from provincial frameworks to local zoning regulations.

For municipal planning positions, make sure to:

• Review the municipality’s official plan.
• Research current planning issues facing the community, especially those related to the division you’re applying to.

The more informed you are, the better prepared you’ll be to succeed in both the assessment and the interview.
 
In Conclusion
 
Finding your first planning position can be challenging. Don’t give up! Keep networking where you can and developing your skills. You never know what opportunity will be right around the corner!