Cornell undergraduate architecture program ranked number one

Cornell Universitys undergraduate B.Arch. architecture program received the top ranking in the 2012 Americas Best Architecture and Design Schools annual survey conducted by DesignIntelligence and the Greenway Group. This is the fourth consecutive year that the Cornell B.Arch. program has been ranked number one. The Cornell graduate architecture program was ranked sixth for a second year in a row. The 2012 rankings of the top 20 programs were based on a survey conducted at more than 185 architecture firms and organizations in the U.S. These leading firms were asked about which academic programs best prepare students for professional practice. Those surveyed have direct experience hiring and evaluating the performance of recent architect graduates. In addition, deans and chairs from 60 architecture programs participated in a separate survey that focused on specific educational issues and more than 1,600 architecture students, both undergraduate and graduate, were surveyed about their satisfaction with their educational programs. Ninety-two percent of students said they believe they will be well prepared for their chosen profession when they graduate. Cornells B.Arch. programs six-year reaccreditation term was effective January 1, 2010 while the professional M.Arch.1 program was granted a three-year term of initial accreditation, effective January 1, 2009. DesignIntelligence reports are produced for the Design Futures Council and have been ranking architecture programs since 1999. The Greenway Group is a management consulting and research firm.

Rankings of the top 20 architecture programs for 2012 from the DesignIntelligence survey:

Undergraduate

1. Cornell University

2. University of Texas at Austin

3. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

4. California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

5. Rice University

6. Rhode Island School of Design

7. Southern California Institute of Architecture

7. Syracuse University

9. Iowa State University

10. Pratt Institute

11. Carnegie Mellon University

12. University of Southern California

13. Pennsylvania State University

14. University of Notre Dame

14. Auburn University

14. Cooper Union

17. Illinois Institute of Technology

18. North Carolina State University

19. University of Miami

19. University of Oregon Graduate 

Graduate

1. Harvard University

2. Yale University

3. Columbia University

4. Washington University in St. Louis

5. Kansas State University

6. Cornell University

6. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

8. University of Michigan

8. University of Pennsylvania

10. University of Cincinnati

11. University of Texas at Austin

11. University of Virginia

13. Southern California Institute of Architecture

14. University of California-Berkeley

16. Rhode Island School of Design

17. Arizona State University

17. University of Kansas

19. Texas A&M University

19. Princeton University