About FRIENDS & The School of Architecture and Design

About the School of Architecture and Design (SoAD)

The School of Architecture and Design is a vibrant community dedicated to academic excellence. Our transformative and continuously evolving learning experiences prepare students to engage with leading design practices in both local and global contexts. We prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in all its forms and encourage action and leadership. We are committed to interdisciplinary research initiatives and professional degree plans that promote collaborations with the schools and colleges on our campuses and sites, as well as with national and international communities, institutions, partners, and organizations, as evidenced also by the growing number of International Agreements and Memoranda of Understanding established. The School of Architecture and Design is a place where ideas infuse innovation and advance discovery while also fulfilling the requirements of the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), which in 2025 successfully confirmed accreditation with ALL CRITERIA MET for both our B.Arch and M.Arch Programs upon a truly successful visit and accreditation process. We like to call New York Tech the home of makers, doers, inventors, and innovators, a place where we reinvent the future while addressing the most relevant issues of the present. This is also confirmed by the continuous assessment and updating process of our curricular and extracurricular offer, which includes new and attractive programs such as the BSAT with a concentration in AI, already fully integrated into all our courses; our Practicum with a semester of academic credits obtained while working in an architecture office; our new Not-for-Credits Certificates for professionals; our opportunities for new Accelerated Paths -all in progress; and our ongoing full semester abroad in Italy. This reflects the creative work of our outstanding students, faculty, staff, alumni architects, and designers. The School of Architecture and Design is composed of talented and diverse students supported by distinguished faculty and exceptional staff with extensive credentials and competencies. Our current campuses in New York City and on Long Island attract accomplished practitioners to become a part of our faculty, mentors, and potential employers, while a new campus location in Querétaro, Mexico, as part of the ELISIA Education Hub, is in progress and will open its doors in the fall semester of 2027, expanding opportunities for our SoAD communities at large. The school prides itself on this direct connection to the profession. A large population of our alumni is fully engaged, creating robust working relationships and partnerships. We are grateful to the outstanding firms that hire our graduates and support our students with generosity and guidance.

School of Architecture and Design Mission

The mission of the School of Architecture and Design is to provide a design- and technology-based 21st-century integrated education in architecture, construction, interior design, and digital arts that fosters leadership in the professions and within the diverse local and global communities.

The school established three core values that guide its mission: Design Intelligence, Building Technology, and Leadership.

• Design Intelligence is about cultivating intellectual rigor by emphasizing dynamic creative processes and knowledge-based innovative practices.
• Building Technology underlines the importance of combining technological advances with interdisciplinary learning experiences.
• Leadership is an attribute of character instilled in students through collaborative, program-wide team projects.

To help students think and act creatively and critically as designers within a global framework and fully aware of their professional and social responsibilities, the School of Architecture and Design actively pursues local and international educational and professional exposure opportunities through:

• Summer and fall semester study abroad programs and opportunities for visiting professors and scholars, partnerships, experimental design studios, collaborative projects, and workshops.
• Support for projects, lectures, scholarships, collaborations, and activities that benefit architecture, interior design, and digital art programs.
• Mentoring programs and input regarding current industry trends and exposure to advanced applied research, while strengthening innovative approaches and experimentation.
• Identifying and promoting internships and new career opportunities for current New York Tech students.

FRIENDS of the School of Architecture and Design Mission

To promote a working relationship between the architecture, construction, digital arts, and interior design professions and the School of Architecture and Design. And to:

• Provide support for technology upgrades, specific projects, lectures, scholarships, and programs that benefit architecture and interior design programs.
• Promote study abroad and international travel experiences.
• Support participation in prestigious design exhibitions and competitions
• Provide input on current industry trends.
• Identify and promote internships and career opportunities for current New York Tech students.
• Support a mentoring program for current students.
• Promote and enhance New York Tech’s student-led industry clubs (e.g., AIAS, NOMAS, ASID, and CMAA).