MS in Architecture

1 Year On Campus Masters Program

Syracuse University

Program Overview

The MS in Architecture at Syracuse University is a research-and-design-focused post-professional program for architects and emerging scholars interested in using architectural design to investigate contemporary challenges in energy, sustainability, the built environment, and emerging technologies. Students develop an individual research agenda through advanced design, architectural research, interdisciplinary electives, and a final directed research project, with work spanning areas such as high-performance buildings, urban design, VR, computational simulation, materials, and product design.

Curriculum Structure

First Semester: Students begin with ARC 707 Architectural Design, a core design studio focused on developing a research-driven architectural project, alongside ARC 770 Architectural Research, which introduces research methods and supports the student’s preliminary investigations. The semester establishes the design and research foundation for the individual project that will develop throughout the degree.

Second Semester: Students continue ARC 770 Architectural Research while selecting architecture electives that directly support their individual research project. Elective options include ARC 511 Advanced Structural Resolution, ARC 552 Politics of Public Space, ARC 568 Real Estate Design and Development, and ARC 572 Advanced Computer Applications to Architecture, allowing students to build specialized knowledge around their research interests.

Focus areas: Energy and the built environment, sustainable and resilient architecture, climate change, urban design, high-performance buildings, VR and computational simulation, building materials, product design, emerging technologies, and interdisciplinary architectural research.

Learning outcomes: Students develop the ability to formulate architectural research questions, conduct design-based research, apply advanced architectural and computational methods, investigate contemporary environmental and technological challenges, develop independent design-research projects, and document and communicate their findings through professional and academic formats.

Accreditation: The MS in Architecture is a post-professional research degree and is not a professional degree leading to eligibility for the Architectural Registration Exam or architectural licensure in the USA; Syracuse identifies the MArch, rather than the MS, as its accredited professional architecture degree.

Employability: Syracuse Architecture reports that over 90% of its graduates are employed within six months, with salaries reported as 20% higher than the national average; its alumni work in more than 42 countries and at 31 of the 50 top firms ranked by ARCHITECT magazine. Syracuse also describes its School of Architecture as one of the first and most respected architecture schools in the nation.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

Students in Syracuse University’s MS in Architecture gain practical experience through a research-and-design model that combines an intensive design studio, architectural research methods, elective study, and a culminating independent project. The program’s Design | Energy | Futures focus encourages students to investigate sustainability, climate, energy, new technologies, materials, and computational approaches, while Slocum Hall’s fabrication and digital facilities allow research ideas to be developed into physical and digital prototypes.

Experiential learning opportunities include:

Research studio: The first semester includes ARC 707 Architectural Design, a core design studio in the Design | Energy | Futures area, where students develop an individual research/design direction.
Research methods: ARC 770 Architectural Research develops research methods and applications that support students’ individual design/research projects; the course is taken twice for six credits.
Independent research: The culminating term places students in a directed research course, where they complete independent work within a collaborative framework and present a final project to their committee.
Advanced computer applications: ARC 572 Advanced Computer Applications to Architecture is an available elective, supporting advanced digital approaches within the architecture curriculum.
Digital fabrication: The School’s fabrication facilities provide access to 3D printers, laser cutters, CNC equipment, and digital fabrication tools for developing models and working prototypes.
Fabrication Lab: The Slocum Hall Fabrication Lab supports architecture students in producing work ranging from small-scale models to full-scale working prototypes, while the Smith Hall Digi Fab Room provides additional 3D printers and laser cutters.
MATR Lab: The Material Archi-Tectonic Research (MATR) Lab supports research into material systems affecting light, heat, and air and includes 3D printers, a desktop CNC machine, foam cutter, ceramic extruder, sensors, and data loggers for prototyping and physical testing.
Interactive visualization: The Interactive Design and Visualization Lab (IDVL) provides immersive VR, large-scale digital projection, motion and infrared sensors, and analysis software for daylighting and energy simulations.
Thinklab: Thinklab supports research, design, and prototyping of hybrid-media environments, including projects involving augmented reality, computational simulation, experience design, and interface design.
Research laboratories: Students can engage with faculty research across areas such as design/fabrication, technology/materials, design-build, landscape/urbanism, and architectural theory, creating opportunities for research connected to different architectural specializations.
Research internships: Syracuse’s architecture program provides opportunities for students to undertake independent or guided research as Research Interns or Research Advisees through faculty research labs and sponsored research.
Architecture Reading Room: The Architecture Reading Room in Slocum Hall provides course reserves, periodicals, architecture books, working drawings, physical material samples, and access support from an architecture librarian.
Collaborative learning: Graduate students can take courses across the School of Architecture and other Syracuse University units, with the MS curriculum specifically encouraging cross-disciplinary interaction and exchange.
Research presentations: The program concludes with a symposium in Syracuse, where students present the results of their design work and research.

Progression & Future Opportunities

The Master of Science in Architecture at Syracuse University is designed for students who want to develop advanced expertise in architectural research, design, and urbanism, with a strong emphasis on independent investigation. Graduates can build careers that combine architectural knowledge with research, technology, sustainability, materials, and design innovation; the university’s architecture career resources also identify roles such as architectural designer, urban planner, real estate developer, and related built-environment positions.

Career opportunities: Architectural Researcher, Architectural Designer, Urban Design Researcher, Building/Environmental Design Researcher.

Career Services: The School of Architecture provides career support tailored to students’ professional goals, including guidance for entering careers in design and the built environment; Syracuse University also provides networking, employer connections, internships/co-ops, résumé development, interview preparation, and other career programming.
Industry experience: SyracuseCoE provides architecture students opportunities for paid, academically relevant internships with partner companies, allowing students to develop technical skills and professional relationships in areas such as high-performance buildings, clean energy, indoor environmental quality, and water resources.
Industry collaboration: The MS program has a documented collaboration with Corning Incorporated, where Master of Science students participated in a semester-long directed research studio exploring architectural applications of Corning’s Willow Glass, Gorilla Glass, and fiber-optic technologies with Corning scientists, engineers, and marketing professionals.
Research opportunities: Students can undertake independent architectural research through ARC 770 Architectural Research, taken twice for a total of six credits, with research projects defined in consultation with a faculty advisor.
Research environment: Students can engage with Syracuse Architecture research facilities and interdisciplinary work through labs such as the Performative Praxis Lab, which investigates sustainable mobility, outdoor comfort, daylighting, building energy performance, and drone-based building-performance inspection.
Employment statistics: Syracuse’s publicly available School of Architecture career report records an 89% placement outcome and $54,346 average starting salary, with employers including Gensler, HDR, Perkins + Will, Perkins Eastman, Payette Associates, and CallisonRTKL; however, these figures are reported for the School of Architecture’s undergraduate degree recipients and are not MS-specific, so the university does not appear to publish a separate current employment/salary figure for the MS in Architecture.
Professional value: The MS provides advanced research preparation, but Syracuse University explicitly states that the Master of Science in Architecture is not reviewed or accredited by NAAB. The NAAB-accredited professional graduate degree at Syracuse is the M.Arch, so students seeking the professional degree/licensure pathway should distinguish the two programs.
Graduation outcomes: The MS is particularly suited to graduates seeking research-oriented or advanced design roles, interdisciplinary architectural research, technology-focused practice, or further academic study rather than serving as Syracuse’s NAAB-accredited professional architecture qualification.

Further Academic Progression: After completing the MS in Architecture, students can continue into doctoral-level architectural research or related interdisciplinary graduate study, particularly where their MS research connects with areas such as building science, environmental systems, architectural technology, urbanism, or design research. Syracuse’s School of Architecture also supports PhD-level research and faculty-led interdisciplinary projects, providing a natural foundation for students who want to progress toward advanced research and academic careers.