There are two major tracks within the Architecture and Design Research degree, each of which has topical areas. The requirements for the tracks vary slightly, but both provide significant flexibility for each student to develop a plan of study consistent with his or her academic goals. The two tracks are Architecture and Design Research.
The Architecture track includes Architectural Representation and Education, Architectural History and Theory, Historic Preservation, and Computing and Representation.
The Architecture track will share resources on the Blacksburg Campus and the Washington Alexandria Architecture Center in the National Capital Region. At the latter location, students have the best resources to develop their topics in architectural representation, since they can make use of the many research libraries available in the Washington, DC area, including the Library of Congress, National Building Museum library, American Institute of Architects Library, CASVA, Smithsonian Institution, the Dumbarton Oaks Library and many privately owned architectural archives.
The Design Research track includes advanced study on Building Science, Industrial Design, Interior Design, and Landscape Architecture. The Landscape Architecture Track includes concentrations in: Design Learning and Professional Paradigms; Regenerative/Ecological Design, Planning and Technology; and Concepts of Community and Place .
The Design Research track is currently located in Blacksburg, VA at the Virginia Tech Main Campus. In this location students have the best resources to develop their topics in design research given that the faculty of the School of Architecture Design have established collaborative relationships with other university centers and institutions.
The faculty are seeking to admit a highly selective group of students who have master's degrees in closely allied fields, such as Architecture, Environmental Design, Building Science, Landscape Architecture, Architecture History and Theory, Interior Design, and Industrial Design. In addition to the application requirements of the Virginia Tech Graduate School and those pertaining to all graduate programs within the School of Architecture Design, applicants to the PhD degree in Architecture and Design Research must submit a portfolio and a 2,500 word statement of research focus.