Rice School of Architecture rises in rankings

RSA is third for undergraduate education, fifth for graduates in DesignIntelligence poll 

The Rice School of Architecture (RSA) took sole possession of the No. 3 ranking and the graduate program rose dramatically from 15th to a tie for No. 5 in the DesignIntelligence list of the nation’s best architecture schools for 2014, announced this week.

The rankings are based on a survey of the leaders of hundreds of architecture firms who have had direct experience hiring and judging the performance of recent architecture graduates. Participants were asked which accredited programs have best prepared their students for real-world practice.

“I have long known that our undergraduate and graduate programs are both remarkably strong, and it was very gratifying to have that conviction confirmed this year by the rankings,” said RSA Dean Sarah Whiting, the William Ward Watkin Professor of Architecture. “I’m very proud of the students and faculty for making the RSA such an extraordinary school.”

California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo topped the undergraduate category this year, followed by Cornell.

In the graduate rankings, Harvard was No. 1, followed by Yale, Columbia and MIT, with Rice and Cornell tied for No. 5.