31 October 2024
GSAPP, a school that champions climate action through the built environment in its research, pedagogies, and publications, is excited to announce the launch of a new program in partnership with the Columbia Climate School: the Dual Degree in Urban Design and Climate. Beginning in the 2025-26 academic year, students will have the opportunity to receive the dual Master of Science in Architecture and Urban Design and Master of Science in Climate by combining three semesters at GSAPP with two semesters at the Climate School.
“No impact on climate can be made without mobilizing the built environment. This new dual program brings together GSAPP’s leadership in the transformation of the built environment with Climate School’s pioneering climate and environmental sciences,” said GSAPP Dean Andrés Jaque.
The new dual degree with the Climate School further expands the opportunities for interdisciplinary studies both within GSAPP and with programs at other schools at Columbia, and is an unprecedented academic path for students to gain a potent combination of critical, scientific, and design capacities. These skills prepare graduates for a growing number of career opportunities ranging from policy to design dedicated to the adaptation and mitigation of the effects of climate crisis across the world.
Led since 2015 by Professor Kate Orff, the MSAUD program and its faculty have a strong tradition of working with students and communities around the world to develop innovative urban design strategies that address urgent issues related to climate and ecological crisis. By being situated in specific locations – including sites ranging from across the US to Colombia, the Caribbean, or India – the design studios take a critical approach to understanding the confluence of social, political, and ecological factors that require new design solutions responsive to climate justice. Studio topics regularly include water urbanism and building resilience among coastal communities, areas of expertise for Professor Kate Orff, under whose direction GSAPP established the Center for Resilient Cities and Landscapes (CRCL) in 2018. CRCL develops international partnerships with governments and organizations to support climate adaptation and help build resilience through research, education, and design development.
GSAPP embodies a transdisciplinary academic culture in which students bring their specific areas of knowledge to particular questions in real scenarios. In 2022, GSAPP launched Studio Clinics as an innovative course format to bring students together from across the School’s academic programs spanning Architecture, Urban Planning, Historic Preservation, and Real Estate Development. GSAPP now offers 11 dual degree options among its own programs, as well as 6 dual degree options with other schools.
The dual MS in Architecture and Urban Design and MS in Climate degrees can be completed in two years by combining three semesters at GSAPP (45 credits during summer, fall, and spring) and two semesters at the Climate School (32 credits during fall and spring), requiring less time than when the degrees are pursued separately.
More information with application requirements and deadlines can be found online or by emailing arch_admissions@columbia.edu.