NDSU's graduate architecture program recently was rated one of the best in the nation, according to a survey of Midwest-based firms. The rankings were part of DesignIntelligence’s 2013 edition of its annual publication, “America’s Best Architecture and Design Schools.”
In the rankings by firms in the Midwest region, NDSU’s graduate architecture program was ranked ninth out of 154 accredited schools nationwide, tied with Columbia University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In the overall regional rankings, NDSU’s graduate architecture program was ranked in the top 10 in the Midwest region.
The Midwest region consists of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin comprising 27 different institutions. A total of 392 U.S. firms and organizations employing architecture, design and landscape architecture professionals, participated in the research. Deans and chairs from more than 100 academic programs in architecture, interior design, industrial design and landscape architecture also participated.
Rankings are based on a survey of practicing design professionals with experience in hiring and supervising the performance of recent architecture and design graduates, according to Ganapathy Mahalingam, interim chair of NDSU’s Department of Architecture and Landscape Architecture.
“At least in the eyes of a group of regional professionals, we already are considered worthy of being in the top 10 in the nation,” he said. “The goal is not to be satisfied with being in the top 10 in the region. We want to be in the top 10 overall nationwide.”
DesignIntelligence also researched school branding to identify strengths in architectural education, recognizing NDSU, University of Puerto Rico and University of New Mexico in the category of Heart of a Pioneer, Soul of an Architect.
For more information on DesignIntelligence, visit www.di.net.
NDSU is recognized as one of the nation’s top 108 public and private universities by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education.