Virginia Tech’s School of Architecture + Design, part of the College of Architecture and Urban Studies, has once again earned high marks in national rankings.
The school’s programs in architecture, interior design, industrial design, and landscape architecture were reviewed in the annual DesignIntelligence publication America’s Best Architecture & Design Schools 2015.
DesignIntelligence conducts survey research on behalf of the Design Futures Council and publishes architecture and design school rankings each year in its November/December issue. It is the only national college ranking survey focused exclusively on design.
Deans and chairs from 97 academic programs in architecture, interior design, industrial design, and landscape architecture, along with 1,426 professional practice organizations in the same fields, participated in the 15th annual survey, which was conducted in mid-2014. In addition, more than 3,840 students in programs around the country completed satisfaction surveys about their education.
Architecture rankings
Based on the survey of professional firms, the undergraduate architecture (http://archdesign.vt.edu/architecture/) program ranked No. 4 in the nation, and the graduate program ranked 14th. Architecture also ranked third for educating students on construction methods and materials and among the top 10 for educating for skills in analysis and planning, cross-disciplinary teamwork, and sustainable design practices and principles.
Virginia Tech’s undergraduate program ranked No. 2 and the graduate program ranked No. 4 among architecture schools in the south; defined as encompassing Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Industrial design rankings
The undergraduate program in industrial design (http://archdesign.vt.edu/industrial-design/) appeared in the dean’s survey results for “most admired undergraduate design programs,” where it received a second-place ranking and was recognized for, “…its impressive student work and the quality of new graduates.”
Interior design rankings
The undergraduate interior design (http://archdesign.vt.edu/interior-design/) program ranked No. 9 nationally and No. 2 in the south. The program was also recognized for educating students for skills in computer applications and sustainable design principles and practices.
Of the Virginia Tech students who responded to the survey, 100 percent reported that they believe they’ll be well prepared for their profession upon graduation.
Landscape architecture rankings
In the survey of professional firms, the undergraduate landscape architecture (http://archdesign.vt.edu/landscape-architecture/) program ranked No. 10 nationally and No. 4 in the south. The program also appeared among the top five in the Landscape Architecture Deans and Department Heads poll.
The graduate program in landscape architecture ranked 14th nationally. Virginia Tech students were surveyed about the landscape architecture program, and 100 percent responded that they believe they will be well prepared for their profession upon graduation.
Virginia Tech’s School of Architecture + Design in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies offers bachelor’s degree programs in architecture, industrial design, interior design, and landscape architecture and master’s degrees in architecture and landscape architecture as well as a doctoral program in architecture and design research. In addition, the school offers master’s degrees in architecture, landscape architecture, and urban design as well as a doctorate in architecture and design research through their National Capital Region location at the Washington-Alexandria Architecture Center (http://www.waac.vt.edu/) in Alexandria, Virginia.
Virginia Tech’s College of Architecture and Urban Studies (http://www.caus.vt.edu/) is composed of four schools: the School of Architecture + Design, including architecture, industrial design, interior design and landscape architecture; the School of Public and International Affairs, including urban affairs and planning, public administration and policy and government and international affairs; the Myers-Lawson School of Construction, which includes building construction in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies and construction engineering management in the College of Engineering; and the School of the Visual Arts, including programs in studio art, visual communication and art history.