Majors

Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Planning and Environmental Product Design

Environmental Design provides you with an interdisciplinary, hands-on education. Set a foundation with a three-semester introduction to design theories and practice, and then choose a major from our four tracks.

Our Majors

The architecture major focuses on the design and development of the built environment. At ENVD, we encompass broad topics of sites, program, materiality, structural systems, modern technologies, human interconnectedness and social interaction. This specialty endeavors to teach our students to be responsible citizens and stewards of aesthetic, ethical, social, economic and environmental concerns.

The Environmental Product of Design (EPOD) major creates design leaders prepared to take on challenges facing humanity and our environment(s) through the rigorous development of design solutions. Students will implement a critical and hands-on design process that leverages design thinking, ethical consideration and speculative design in conjunction with rapid prototyping, experimentation, fabrication techniques and product development. 

EPOD majors graduate with creative confidence and a diverse problem-solving skillset poised to make innovative solutions towards improving our human, natural, and built environments.

The landscape architecture major teaches students to design environments in urban, rural and agricultural contexts at all scales. Students learn strategies to repair and strengthen ecological systems, create and restore habitats, manage stormwater, express cultural values, and support human health and well-being. This major encourages students to explore the cultural value of landscapes, to redefine how landscape architects can transform the urban fabric, and to design resilient, climate-responsive projects.

The sustainable planning and urban design major examines issues of sustainability and social justice in communities, cities and regions around the world. Heavily centered around community engagement, this major allows students to focus on a variety of topics, such as housing, environmental planning, transportation planning and urban design. Students examine these topics through a combination of design, policy and management perspectives.

In the Classroom