Metropolitan Planning Council FAQ

The entire team at MPC is supportive and vocal about how to improve your research and project management to better target anti-racist policies and solutions to urban problems.

Not enough time in the day to finish all the projects you want!

Important topic to research on. Reasonable workload and nice coworkers.

It is an unpaid position.

Very welcoming environment to students. Opportunities to contribute to meaningful projects in the Chicagoland area. Staff are very interested in helping students gain the experiences and skills they are most interested in.

Not paid unless you have external funding such as work study or other grants.

At MPC you are able to delve into a variety of projects and you are encouraged you to jump to meetings or projects that you are interested in. As someone just starting out in the field, there is a lot of potential to meet others in the field and make great contacts if you decide to make that a priority. Everyone is super sweet and encouraging from the President, Mary Sue, to Vice Presidents, Associates, and other Research Assistants. MPC organizationally leads with its values, which makes them an effective voice in Chicago. I would hear time and time again coworkers talking about their values and why they choose to take on or not take on certain projects.

With limited time it is difficult to fully engage in a project. I would recommend at least devoting 3 days a week to the work. Going downtown everyday is expensive for an unpaid position! They do offer $35 per month in transportation compensation, but that was a drop in the bucket as far as my total spending to get to the office.