Transportation is a dynamic field: technological, economic, social, political, and regulatory changes continually alter the environment in which transportation services are demanded and provided. The design, operation, and effectiveness of transportation services are closely connected to other social and economic systems.
Rapid changes in the transportation environment and the interrelationships between transportation, urban systems, information services, and production planning require transportation professionals to be well-trained in fundamental disciplines, to be able to adapt to change, and to have the vision and insight needed to implement creative options in a dynamic world.
Our objective is to prepare our students to identify, analyze, and solve complex transportation problems, and to communicate those solutions toward their successful implementation. We are particularly proud of the close and supportive relationships between our faculty and students, which help make the Northwestern transportation program an effective community environment for research and professional and personal development.
Learn more about research in this department
Curriculum Overview
The specialization in transportation systems analysis and planning stress conceptual and quantitative approaches to the analysis of transportation and related systems. Our goal is to develop our students’ analytic, quantitative, and communication skills so that graduates are well prepared to face the exciting and challenging transportation environment of today and tomorrow. Our courses and research integrate theory, methods, and applications. The strong quantitative focus of our program provides students with skills for analyzing all modes of transportation used for the movement of people and goods, within and between cities, under both public and private operation.
Research
The Transportation faculty are committing to finding solutions to the dynamic and rapidly changing transportation environment. There are particular foci on the interrelationships between transportation, urban systems, information services, and production planning, as well as an adaptability to change. and to have the vision and insight needed to implement creative options in a dynamic world.
Graduate students researching transportation will work closely with the Northwestern University Transportation Center (NUTC). In August 2020, NUTC has been awarded one of four new Tier 1 University Transportation Centers (UTC) funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation to advance research and education programs to address critical transportation challenges facing the nation. Telemobility, the name of Northwestern’s new UTC in consortium with the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Texas, Austin, will focus on assessing how ICT technologies and e-commerce processes will impact the demand for travel and mobility in the future, taking into consideration lessons learned from this dramatic natural experiment.
View faculty who are recruiting PhD students for fall 2025
Eligibility and Admissions
To be admitted to the PhD program in transportation systems analysis and planning, the student must meet one of the following requirements:
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A BS or MS degree in engineering or
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Non-engineering degrees emphasizing quantitative coursework in mathematics, operations research, computer science, statistics, or econometrics.
Applications from candidates completing or having earned MS degrees are expected to display evidence of strong research promise.