Rhode Island School of Design Reviews of Master's in Architecture

"Find the right professors and stick with them during your design education. As your own design principles evolve, they will be able to consistently guide you. The fact that they are such accessible mentors is a huge pro for RISD. Cons would be the lack of socio economic diversity and financial aid."

"RISD has the most amazing art and design resources of any university that I have come across. As a graduate student, I am able to experience as much as possible cross-discipline. Creating self driven and faculty advised independent study programs within my degree opens up many doors to other departments and resources. The career services people here are incredible and if you talk with them, they are committed to make sure you get a job. Unfortunately, RISD is absurdly expensive. Their oversight and administration is terrible, often disorganized, and sometimes borderline dysfunctional. If you're able to navigate the politics of the school, be self-motivated, and can somehow afford the pricetag, RISD is worth it."

"Because of RISD's small size and placement within an art school there is a lot of room to direct your education based on your own interests. The handmade work is strongly emphasized which can sometime place digital work at a disadvantage. Additionally, the graduate architecture program is completely integrated with the undergrad program which is fine on most levels, but compared to the other departments, the architecture grads receive less extra resources and it would helpful to have classes or resources specifically devoted to the masters program."

"RISD's Graduate architecture program is valuable for it's integration within the greater scheme of an arts school and the exposure which such a setting brings to other disciplines. The program covers a wide variety of facets of architecture, and allows for substantial creative freedom. The adoption of technology could be better, as could the facilities, which sometimes impact the work itself. Overall the program is excellent."

"Academically challenging in good ways. Provides a deep perspective on issues of design. However, it has unrealistic expectations of production time needs and can be a bit old fashioned."

"The architecture program is very conceptual but you learn how to think!"

"Pros: Outstanding, educated, and committed faculty Excellent collaboration between disciplines and programs Wonderful community Cons: Cost Financial Aid Facilities"

"I respect that they push us so hard to working innumerable hours, and I believe that I thrive because of it. The expectations are high, and in attempting to meet them, we exceed our own. The pros in RISD's masters architecture program would be: emphasis on individual thinking and problem solving, high expectations, career opportunities. Cons would be: the lack of administrative organization as it affects forward-thinking and looking students."

"nice school, nice environment, good teacher."

"Pros: The program is in an amazing art school and the design philosophy is strong. Cons: There is not a culture of computation research. There is an underlying sense of conflict among the faculty."