Since its founding in 1961, the Department has sought to align its academic agenda with those of leading research universities worldwide, while interpreting developments in Türkiye through the lens of contemporary scientific knowledge.

Planning is a way of thinking -a professional culture. "Good" plans are co-produced with society, implemented with society, and grounded in social legitimacy. Accordingly, the mission of the Department is to provide education, conduct research, and serve society at national and international levels in support of social development and a sustainable economy and environment, while fostering creative and critical thinking within the framework of planning ethics and values. The Department's core values include innovativeness; academic foundations that enable leadership and specialization; a culture and ethics of high-quality research; a high-quality education and training program; sensitivity to the natural and built environment; a commitment to public service and social responsibility; and dedication to urbanism and professional ethics.

As knowledge- and information-based economies increasingly cluster in technology and innovation hubs, the Department benefits from its location on the METU campus, which hosts one of Türkiye's earliest technology and innovation centers. This setting supports an interdisciplinary learning environment that integrates spatial analysis, policy design, and ethical planning practice, equipping students to collaborate effectively with public institutions, local governments, professional organizations, and diverse community actors after graduation. Many graduates also go on to assume academic leadership roles in city and regional planning departments across Türkiye.

City and Regional Planning education encompasses approaches and techniques for planning and designing living environments at multiple scales -from the street to the neighborhood, from the neighborhood to the city, and from the city to its wider region. This education also introduces perspectives and findings from a wide range of disciplines, including visual arts, sociology, philosophy, history, geography, biology, geological engineering, mathematics, statistics, and other social and natural sciences, and equips students to translate these insights into planning and design practice.

This interdisciplinary orientation is reflected in the breadth of the Department's graduate education. In addition to master's programs in City Planning, Urban Design, and Regional Planning, faculty contribute to interdisciplinary and joint graduate programs, including Urban Policy Planning and Local Governments, Settlement Archaeology, Geodetic and Geographic Information Technologies, Earthquake Studies, and Earth System Science. As part of a leading research university, doctoral students conduct extensive research across a wide range of planning-related topics, and the Department plays a key role in cultivating future academics and researchers for the discipline.

From the twentieth century to the twenty-first, the Department of City and Regional Planning at METU has remained forward-looking in its teaching and research, and continues its commitment to improving human settlements and the quality of urban life.