The University’s architecture program is one of the best in the nation, according to a recent report by DesignIntelligence, a bi-monthly design journal.
The undergraduate program tied for first place with the University of California at Berkeley in the sustainable design practices and principles category.
For adjunct associate professor Paul Schwer, the ranking reinforces the reality of the Department of Architecture’s commitment to sustainability.
“It’s in the DNA,” said Schwer, a mechanical engineer who teaches at the University’s Urban Architecture Research Lab in Portland.
University faculty and retirees are national leaders in the field, with more than 30 years of experience in green design, he said.
Frances Bronet, dean of the School of Architecture and Allied Arts, agrees. “Oregon is known nationally, if not internationally recognized for its innovation in this area,” she said.
The annual DesignIntelligence report surveys architecture and design firms that have hired recent graduates and is based on one question: What schools do you believe are best preparing their students for professional practice?
“It’s kind of like a customer satisfaction survey,” said James Cramer, publisher and founding editor of DesignIntelligence.
Overall, the University’s undergraduate architecture program placed in the top 20, but fell three positions since last year. The program’s ranking has consistently dropped since 2004 and the graduate program did not rank in the top 20 this year.
“I wouldn’t be concerned,” Cramer said of the University’s drop in ranking. “When you’re in the top 20, the (school’s) individual ranking is not discernible.” The report considered 220 programs.
In addition to architecture and design firms, the report also surveyed deans nationwide. The University’s interior design graduate program is admired by deans as one of two best programs in the country. Hiring firms ranked the undergraduate program ninth, tied with eight other schools.
“From an outsider’s perspective,” Schwer said, “(this report) makes me proud of the work being done in Oregon.”
DesignIntelligence also named the University a world-class school “With High Distinction,” a recognition determined by several factors, including rankings by professional firms in the past 10 years. Results from deans’ surveys were also considered, as well as schools’ technology assets and learning environments.
Bronet said access to resources could be a factor in the architecture school’s overall decline in the rankings.
“We’re scrappy,” she said. “We’re heroic. We do an extraordinary amount with limited resources.”
“The standard caveat is that none of us believe in rankings,” associate professor Peter Keyes said. “This one I happen to agree with,” because responsible design is already “fundamental to the program.”
Architecture curricula varies with each school, and surveying hundreds of programs can automatically hinder any ranking system, Keyes said.
“To really understand what a school is about, you need to go there yourself to find out,” Keyes said. He teaches a class that challenges students to create models for sustainable housing and settlement systems.
The architecture school’s faculty and students consider sustainable design an important aspect of the architecture program, which attracts out-of-state students, Keyes said.
“It’s not just the architecture program, but it’s the whole environment at the school that’s motivating,” said University junior and architecture major Andrew McClure.
Bronet would like to continue to appeal to students looking for a reputable architecture school. “Attracting the best students to be a part of our vision is our goal,” she said.
“The rankings are only one measure,” Bronet said of the report’s assessment of graduates’ abilities. She shared a list of student architecture groups to show that the University is a ground for critical thinking in design.
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Architecture program earns high marks in design
Daily Emerald
January 29, 2009
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