The Ph.D. in Design and Planning in the Faculty of Architecture focuses on research in the following areas: Planning and Design Theory; and Sustainable Planning and Design; Planning and Design Education; Planning and Design Practice; Design and Planning Technologies. Candidates will be required to specialize in one of these five areas.

The Ph.D. in Design and Planning in the Faculty of Architecture is a Faculty based program under the general supervision of the Doctoral Studies Committee. The Doctoral Studies Committee is responsible for the general administration of the Program, in accordance with the policy guidelines approved by the Faculty of Architecture Council and, where applicable, the Faculty of Graduate Studies. In essence, the Doctoral Studies Committee exercises the responsibilities assigned to a Department Head by the Faculty of Graduate Studies in the case of department-based graduate programs. The Doctoral Studies Committee is composed of five members and is chaired by the Associate Dean: Academic. The remaining members of the Doctoral Studies Committee, all of whom hold a doctorate or equivalent, are appointed by each of the four Departmental Councils of the Faculty of Architecture.
 
In addition to the regulations, policies and procedures of the Faculty of Graduate Studies which govern Ph.D. programs (see the Graduate Calendar of the University of Manitoba), the Faculty of Architecture has adopted additional supplemental regulations to govern the Faculty-based Ph.D. Program.