About the School of Architecture & Design

Mission and Vision

Our mission within the School of Architecture and Design is to provide a design- and technology-based 21st-century professional education that enables leadership in the profession and within the community. We’ve identified three core values, or educational aspirations, to guide our approach:

  • Design Intelligence, which refers to broad-based skills and intellectual rigor you’ll earn by completing a challenging curriculum that emphasizes individual creativity as well as an appreciation of history, culture, and the contributions made by architects to the art and science of building.
  • Building Technology, which establishes the importance we place on technology within our coursework and approach. This value is manifested in a well-developed, hands-on curriculum in structures, environmental systems, sustainability, and building construction.
  • Leadership, an attribute of character that we aspire to instill in all of our graduates. This is cultivated in many aspects of their education, including the inclusion of program-wide team projects that demand cohesive interaction and the establishment of clear organizational structures to achieve project goals. Leadership is also developed through the holistic and ethical foundations of your New York Tech educational experience. We actively participate in national and international initiatives where you’ll gain self-confidence by working in collaboration with other institutions and organizations.

Lecture Series

History 

The history of the School of Architecture and Design has been closely associated with the development of New York Tech as an institution of higher education. Today we are, in many respects, in the best position we have ever been in. Of note:

  • Accomplished adjunct and full-time faculty are infusing the classrooms and curriculum with new, invigorative levels of expertise.
  • We collaborate on projects with other universities, community groups, government officials, professional associations, and interdisciplinary partners.
  • Our Advisory Board is comprised of world-class leaders in the profession who provide valuable advice and guidance.
  • Our students and faculty receive patents, awards, and invitations to lecture or consult, and have even been invited to testify before the U.S. House of Representatives on the importance of renewable energy.
  • Alumni participation and support have risen to record levels.

Historic Milestones of the School of Architecture and Design

1973: The New York Board of Regents of the State of New York authorized New York Tech to offer a five-year professional architecture program. The degree path is implemented as an option in the third year of the existing four-year curriculum. 

1984: The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design program gains professional accreditation from the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research (FIDER). FIDER was eventually renamed CIDA; the Interior Design Program currently possesses CIDA accreditation status. 

1997: The New York Board of Regents of the State of New York authorizes the offering of a post-professional Master of Architecture in Urban and Regional Design.

2001: Following a national search, New York Tech President Edward Guiliano appoints Judith DiMaio, then an associate professor at Yale University’s School of Architecture and the director of the undergraduate major in Architecture at Yale College, as dean of the NYIT School of Architecture and Design.

2010: The School of Architecture and Design realigns its foundation courses to facilitate greater interdisciplinary/collaborative alignment with the B.F.A. in interior design, the B.Arch., and B.S.A.T. degrees.

Architecture News

Portraits of Sidra Ali and Nicole McCormack

SOLI Scholarship Helps Transfer Students Thrive

As recipients of the 2024 Stay on Long Island (SOLI) Scholarship, Sidra Ali and Nicole McCormack are building toward careers that combine creativity, technology, and problem-solving.

Daisy Madaan standing behind a desk

Designing for Well-Being

After earning a degree in interior design, Daisy Madaan (B.F.A. ’25) became fascinated by the ways design can influence healthcare environments. As a graduate student, she is focusing her research on designing supportive spaces for neurodivergent individuals.

Architectural rendering of the outside of a theater

Confidence and Community

A semester-long design studio project, where students were tasked with proposing a community theater, pushed two architecture students out of their comfort zone. What they discovered is their appreciation for community and their place in their future profession.

Architectural rendering of a building

Applauding Students’ Architecture and Design Work

School of Architecture and Design students are recognized for their academic work at MIT’s Reality Hack and in Metropolis magazine’s Future100.

Architectural model of a city

NOMA Competition: Reimagining Kansas City

Twelve architecture students competed in the 2025 Barbara G. Laurie Student Design Competition sponsored by the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) to propose a model for housing that prioritizes those vulnerable to racialized disinvestment.

Models of housing and landscapes

Community Building

Working on the Institute for Public Architecture’s Modeling Community Visions for a Future Without the BQE project, Marcus Wilford (B. Arch. ’16) turned to his alma mater for support.