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  • UCSUR

    UCSUR

    Join us in welcoming Dr. Joylette Portlock as UCSUR's inaugural director of our Community Impact Network!

  • WPRDC

    WPRDC

    WPRDC aims to increase data access and literacy across the region.

  • Survey & Qualitative Research

    Survey & Qualitative Research (SQR)

    SQR uses community-engaged methods to collect and analyze data. 

  • Community Impact

    Community Impact Network

    Home for teams of university & community members that aim to use research and action to make a positive impact on a pressing regional issue.

Welcome to the University Center for Social & Urban Research

UCSUR is one of the four main university centers within the University of Pittsburgh.  Established in 1972, UCSUR serves as a resource for communities, researchers, and educators interested in the basic and applied social & behavioral sciences.  We conduct interdisciplinary research to improve communities and address social, economic, and health policy issues.  

Programs & Centers

Urban & Regional Analysis Program
Urban & Regional Analysis Program
Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center
Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center
Survey and Qualitative Research
Survey and Qualitative Research

Featured Services

Center, Census, & Other Miscellaneous Reports
Center, Census, & Other Miscellaneous Reports
Geographic Information Systems
Geographic Information Systems
Regional Research Registry
Regional Research Registry
Graduate Certificate in Gerontology
Graduate Certificate in Gerontology
Pittsburgh Regional Economic Model (REMI)
Pittsburgh Regional Economic Model (REMI)
Acquisition & Management of Secondary Data
Acquisition & Management of Secondary Data

News

March 4, 2026: Meet the Inaugural Director for UCSUR’s New Community Impact Network, Dr. Joylette Portlock
Update to: Profiles of Change in the City of Pittsburgh

Comparison of 2010-2014 and 2020-2024 American Community Survey (ACS) Estimates for the City of Pittsburgh and Neighborhoods - March 2026

Pitt Hosted Symposium Addressing Local History of Racial Displacement

Pittsburgh community members came together to recognize the impacts of mass racial displacements in the Hill District and East Liberty.  This marked the 75th Anniversary of the Lower Hill demolition and the 10th Anniversary of the Penn Plaza eviction. 

‘A really steep lift’: Pittsburghers in their 20s and 30s find homeownership less and less attainable
Student debt, rising costs, aging homes and corporate buyers are colliding and making it harder for younger Pittsburghers to buy their first homes. An article referencing a report by Sabina Deitrick, PhD, and Christopher Briem.
Defining inclusive innovation: challenges and lessons for innovation districts

Diana Morales, Luke Green, David Marlow, Carlos Cadena Gaitán, Sabina Deitrick, Michael R. Glass, & Louise Kempton

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society:  Social determinants of health and mild cognitive impairment in a diverse community sample, Ganguli, Mary, Erin Jacobsen, Ruopu Song, Isabella Wood, Ellen J. Kinnee, Tiffany F. Hughes, Beth E. Snitz, and Chung‐C
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Spotlights

The 2025 Iris Marion Young Awards Ceremony

Associate Professor Sabina Deitrick, an established member of the SPIA community and co-director of the Urban and Regional Analysis program at Pitt's University Center for Social and Urban Research (UCSUR), receives the Faculty Award. 

University Times:  https://www.utimes.pitt.edu/news/sabina-deitrick-wins-iris 

Sabina Deitrick receives the Mary Helen Callahan Distinguished Service Award

This is the highest honor that the Urban Affairs Association grants to individuals who have been inducted into the Distinguished Service Honor Roll and continued to fulfill meaningful service roles within UAA after their induction.

The Straight Talking Economist

"Christopher Briem as been studying Pittsburgh's trends and demograhpics for 30 years - and he's not afraid to tell it like it is."  Gateway Profile, Pittsburgh Magazine September 2025.

UCSUR 50th Anniversary Celebration

The University Center for Social & Urban Research (UCSUR) was established in 1972 with the mandate to "bring together, in an organized and integrated fashion, the many research activities and some of the service activities of the University of Pittsburgh which focus on the urban phenomenon."  Brian Vargus and Clyde McDaniel served as the founding codirectors. Read More

2024 Steven D. Manners Research Development Award announcements
Profiles of Change in the City of Pittsburgh: Comparison of 2008-2012 and 2018-2022 American Community Survey estimates for the City of Pittsburgh and neighborhoods UCSUR
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