2009 Design Rankings Just Out: UC Recognized for Prized Programs
The nations 2009 report card for design programs is just out, and the University of Cincinnatis architecture, interior design and industrial design programs continue to build a national following in the DesignIntelligence annual poll of employers.
Across the board in architecture, interior design and industrial design, employers consistently placed these UC programs among the nations Top Three in their respective disciplines when it comes to preparing students for professional practice.
The 2009 DesignIntelligence special report also includes a lengthy feature on pioneering partnerships integrated into a UC design education in the universitys College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. This Partner and Prosper article, written by a UC architecture faculty member at the invitation of DesignIntelligence, examined recent and ongoing collaborations between national industry and UCs design programs, as well as collaborations between design and other academic disciplines at UC.
Below is a summary of UCs placement in the 2009 rankings:
UC ARCHITECTURE (GRADUATE PROGRAM) MOVES UP TO NO. 2 IN THE NATION
UCs graduate architecture program moved up in the rankings. It now holds the No. 2 spot in the nation, right behind Harvard University. Last year, UCs graduate architecture program stood at No. 7.
- Harvard University
- University of Cincinnati
- Columbia University
While the rankings from DesignIntelligence, a publication of the Design Futures Council, are based on employers hiring experiences, the survey also asks students from each ranked school about the quality of their respective programs. An extremely high percentage of UC students in the graduate architecture program 98 percent believe theyll be well prepared for their profession upon graduation, and 90 percent give very high marks to the quality of the UC program relative to educational costs.
UC INTERIOR DESIGN (UNDERGRADUATE) AT NO. 2 IN THE NATION
UCs undergraduate interior design program is ranked at No. 2 in the nation, tying with Pratt Institute in that slot. Previously, UCs interior design program had ranked No. 1 in the nation for nine straight years.
- Kansas State University
- University of Cincinnati (tied with Pratt Institute)
Again, while the DesignIntelligence ranks are based on employers views, the publication also surveyed the deans of design programs. These educational leaders made particular note of the strength of UCs cooperative education program, ranked Top Ten in the nation by U.S. News & World Report; UCs model campus, which is home to a rare collection of internationally renowned architecture; and the integrated design curriculum at UC.
UC INDUSTRIAL DESIGN PROGRAMS RANKED NO. 3 (UNDERGRADUATE) AND NO. 8 (GRADUATE)
With its No. 3 ranking, UCs undergraduate industrial design program tops a number of national programs. The same is true of its No. 8 graduate industrial design program ranking (tied with North Carolina State University).
Undergraduate industrial design programs
- Art Center College of Design
- Carnegie Mellon University
- University of Cincinnati
Again, DesignIntelligence also asked educational leaders, the deans of design programs, about the top programs in the country, and UCs industrial design program was noted for the strength of its co-op program, the well-rounded design education that UC delivers and the design excellence of UC programs.
Co-op is the practice wherein students alternate academic quarters with quarters of paid, professional work related directly to their majors. UC is the global birthplace of co-op, having founded the practice in 1906. UCs design students co-op with firms around the world and gain about 18 months of paid, professional experience upon graduation.
Of these UC co-op students, Architect magazine has stated: Not surprisingly, they emerge [from school] highly employable .
- Apply to UCs graduate architecture program.
- Apply to UCs undergraduate interior design program.
- Apply to UCs undergraduate industrial design program or graduate program in design.
- Learn more about UCs Top Ten ranked co-op program.
- Get the latest news from UC.
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