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Planning expertise growing through UTAS studies

Published 14th May 2025

A promising solution to the growing need for planning professionals across Tasmania is training people in place. By offering online education, universities can support people already living and working in regional communities to become professionally qualified.

In April 2025, the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) released a survey indicating that nearly two-thirds of planning organisations across Australia struggled to fill planning roles in the past 12 months. The PIA State of the Profession Report also found that 232 local government areas in Australia had no planners working at all. This national shortage of qualified planners is a significant challenge for councils who are looking to support housing and infrastructure in their communities. By growing the planning capacity of existing staff, a double benefit emerges. Valued staff are retained and supported, and councils get insights that they would either have gone without or needed to hire consultants for.

Staff at Central Coast Council and Flinders Council are good examples of local government staff making use of their local university in 2025. Their University of Tasmania (UTAS) studies make space for complex conversations about the role of planning in tackling issues such as housing affordability and supply. Some assessments are flexible enough to allow staff to focus on local needs and undertake strategic and statutory projects that are of direct interest to council.

“When I saw this course, I immediately thought, ‘This is for me.’ It aligns perfectly with my professional goals and offers the opportunity to strengthen my years of experience as a planner in local government. A key attraction was the course’s focus on the Tasmanian planning system and how I could apply this knowledge directly in my current role. Central Coast Council is very supportive of professional development and offers the flexibility to balance work and study, another important factor that made the Graduate Diploma course the right fit for me.”

Kellie Keating, Land Use Planner, Central Coast Council.

Online learning has matured since 2020 when we were all thrown into Zoom. While UTAS has been teaching by distance for a long time, adapting to COVID meant additional resources and support beyond what could be previously offered. The net result is a positive one in being able to offer both live in-class participation as well as enabling people to complete studies in their own time. Professional education does not need to involve leaving town or pausing a career. People around the state are studying planning alongside planning or para-planning roles to the benefit of both the individual and their council.

By studying in Tasmania, state policy, legislation, politics and plans are all relevant to their councils and there is capacity for some benchmarking against best practice. This approach not only deepens learning but also delivers value to Tasmanian communities.

"I am loving the course and the online support. I’m relatively isolated from planning colleagues here on Flinders, so the contact with a diversity of other people, including other council planners, has been great. It’s a juggle, that’s for sure, but I’m being well supported by council and the University staff are very responsive."

Jacci Smith, Development Services Coordinator, Flinders Council.

Anyone wanting more information about postgraduate planning courses is welcome to book in time with the course coordinator, Dr Emma Little. Emma is available for one-on-one study options advice. Emma is part of a teaching team with extensive practical experience and a desire to help local government address a range of planning challenges.

The one-year Graduate Diploma of Environmental Planning is made up of three core units and one elective unit. The two-year Master of Planning adds a research component and a unit about tackling climate challenges. For candidates who already have significant experience, exemptions may be available so that you are only paying for what is needed. There is a GIS unit for those studying part-time. This unit doesn’t fit in the full-time study schedule but can be a useful skill for those working in local government.

Both courses have Commonwealth Supported Places available for domestic students. Additionally, UTAS alumni may be eligible for a University Alumni HECS Scholarship.

"Council has already been generous with my professional development, so I’m undertaking this course in my own time, at my own expense. I’m really glad I enrolled - the flexibility suits my schedule, the Zoom sessions and discussion board allow me to unpack complex issues, and the assignments have encouraged me to look at relevant, local issues from a different angle.

Daryl Connelly, Director Strategic Growth, Central Coast Council.