Real estate development, once solely the purview of policy makers, planners, and attorneys, has become an increasingly viable design territory for architects. Now understood as part of a “value adding” equation to such endeavors, the design intent of architects, and procedures and processes we use to bear them, have found increasing use across various stages of development.
Program Overview
The Master of Science in Design: Property Development and Design (MSD-PDD) is a one-year, entrepreneurial post-professional graduate program that that prepares architects, landscape architects, and design professionals to lead at the intersection of real estate, design, and urban development.
Grounded in studio-based learning, the MSD-PDD equips students to become fluent in both the language of design and the logic of development.
Through interdisciplinary coursework, real-world case studies, and collaborative design studios, students gain the tools to evaluate project feasibility, navigate zoning and municipal constraints, engage with stakeholder and community interests, and model development outcomes—all through a design-forward lens.
The curriculum emphasizes affordable housing, adaptive reuse, innovative financial approaches, and sustainable urban development, with global and cross-cultural perspectives woven throughout.
