The Department of Architecture

Architecture was one of the four original departments at MIT, and it was the first signal that MIT would not be narrowly defined in science and technology. Through recognition of architecture as a liberal discipline, the Department has long contributed to learning in the arts and humanities at MIT.

The Department conceives of architecture as a discipline as well as a profession. It is structured in five semi-autonomous discipline groups: Architectural Design; Building Technology; Computation; History, Theory and Criticism of Architecture and Art; and Art, Culture, and Technology. Each provides an architectural education that is as complex as the field itself, and all five contribute to a mutual enterprise.

The several disciplines of the Department house a substantial body of research activity. Moreover, the Department's setting within MIT permits greater depth in such technical areas as computation, new modes of design and production, materials, structure, and energy, as well as in the arts and humanities. The Department is committed to a concern for human values and for finding appropriate roles for architecture in society. It is a place where individual creativity is cultivated and nurtured in a framework of values that are humanistically, socially, and environmentally responsible.

Student Organizations

ASC, The Architecture Student Council, is the student organization of the Department of Architecture at MIT. They relay student concerns and input to the faculty and administration of this department. To accomplish this, ASC members are represented on various departmental committees in addition to conducting regular meetings with students to discuss issues of concern. Contact the ASC at asc@mit.edu.

The American Institute of Architecture Students, or AIAS, is a national organization with local chapters at universities throughout the US. The AIAS is an organization dedicated to helping architecture students at MIT, in particular, the undergraduate community. The AIAS works to address issues affecting students, including studio culture, internships, the accreditation process, and the advancement of architecture itself.

QuBE, Queers in the Built Environment, aims to highlight and create dialogue around the intersection of queer identity and the built environment though a variety of media including speakers, conferences, partnerships, publications, and social events. QuBE also serves to support and increase the visibility of queer students, faculty, and staff in the School of Architecture + Planning and the MIT community at large. More information can be found at http://qube.mit.edu or you can contact QuBE directly at qube_officers@mit.edu.

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Giving to the Department

Graduate Student Aid

Graduate student aid is the highest fund-raising priority of the Department of Architecture. Aid is crucial to attracting the best graduate students because few outside grant opportunities exist for master's and doctoral students in this field.

Department of Architecture Unrestricted

This fund allows the Department of Architecture the flexibility to invest as needed to create an optimal academic experience for students and faculty.

Lawrence B. Anderson '30 Fellowship Fund

This fund honors our beloved former dean who himself contributed immeasurably both to architecture and education.

Make a gift on-line

http://giving.mit.edu

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Faculty Positions Open in Architectural Design

Searches are open for the following full-time faculty positions in Architectural Design.

At a moment of significant design change within the School of Architecture and Planning at MIT, the Department of Architecture is searching for colleagues with a demonstrable talent and passion for the making and teaching of architecture, as well as the capacity to work within a vigorous research environment.

Dedicated to a humanistic and technologically sophisticated vision of design, MIT's department of Architecture is uniquely positioned in a larger institution that strongly supports innovation and entrepreneurial activity. The structure of the Department of Architecture itself is unique in that each of the five disciplines (Design, History Theory & Criticism, Building Technology, Visual Arts, Computation) work at equal intensity throughout the department, creating an environment in which depth of knowledge and innovative research and scholarship fuse with the pedagogical agendas of the studios and ongoing design inquiry. Given this context, the Department of Architecture is explicitly committed to excellence in both pedagogical and research activities. Believing that the cross-current between the two creates a charged atmosphere for study and a critical edge for research, we are seeking candidates with an ability to thrive within this context.

Assistant or Associate Professor (either position is tenure track) in Architectural Design 1

Primary criteria for the position are proven excellence in the field of architectural design, urban design, and the design of landscapes with experience in teaching design studios and strong promise of significant creative achievement in the field through design work, design inquiry, professional practice, or a combination thereof. Though a junior position, special emphasis will be given to candidates with a record of scholarship, research and practice. Beyond the development of the design curriculum, candidates should be able to demonstrate the potential to make a significant contribution to the development of courses on urban history and theory. Also relevant would be accomplished research and scholarship in new forms of urban expansion -- in developing economies, countries and sociopolitical contexts. In this sense, candidates with experience in the global arena who have a distinct understanding of the geographic dimension of urban planning, design and speculation will be given special consideration. This is a full-time tenure track position in architectural design at the level of assistant or associate (not tenured) professor level, commensurate with the candidate's qualifications.

Assistant Professor (tenure track) in Architectural Design 2

Primary criteria for the position are proven excellence in the field of architectural design, experience in teaching design studios and strong promise of significant creative achievement in the field through design work, design inquiry, professional practice, or a combination thereof—with an emphasis on computation, digital fabrication, and a rethinking of building culture. An ability to advance our teaching and research among the following areas is desired: contemporary culture and theory; computational methodologies; sustainability; design, technology and media; and innovation in structure and material assemblies. We seek candidates with the character and energy to participate in the intellectual life of the department and readiness to teach both graduate and undergraduate studios.

Application requirements

Initial screening will be conducted on the basis of: letter of interest that includes a list of three current references with complete contact information, curriculum vitae, and a ten-page 8.5 x 11 hardcopy non-returnable portfolio of design work. We will begin reviewing applications September 15, 2011 with the intention of hiring for January 2012 or September 2012. Please indicate in your letter of interest the position for which you are applying.

Please send all materials to:

  • Chair, Design Search Committee
  • Department of Architecture
  • Room 7-337
  • 77 Massachusetts Avenue
  • Cambridge, MA 02139

MIT is building a culturally diverse faculty and strongly encourages applications from women and minority candidates.

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Faculty Positions Open in Building Technology/MITEI

Senior Faculty Chair In Energy for the Built Environment

The MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), started in 2006, is an Institute-wide initiative designed to help transform the global energy system to meet the needs of the future and to help improve today's energy systems. The MIT Energy initiative is undertaking a search for a senior faculty member in the field of energy for the built environment. The faculty member will have the opportunity to work with the expanding MIT energy research and educational programs in architecture, building technology, city planning and design, and engineering applied to the built environment. Programs range from those focused on cities and regions, to the neighborhood and district scale, to individual buildings and building components.

The emphasis of the search is on candidates who will provide leadership for new initiatives in energy that will integrate and build on existing programs at MIT and initiate new research directions. The successful candidate could be appointed in the School of Architecture and Planning or in the School of Engineering, or could have a joint appointment in more than one department. The candidate should have an outstanding record of research and teaching and should thrive in a multidisciplinary environment. Research could address a number of areas related to the built environment such as urban design and energy performance, development policy and infrastructure planning and implementation to achieve major energy objectives, as well as research creating passive and active designs of energy efficient buildings and urban environments involving advanced technologies.

Application requirements

Interested candidates should provide a curriculum vitae, a three to five page statement outlining energy related scholarship, research, teaching, professional and institutional service, three to five sample publications, along with the names of five or more references. Other media can be submitted where appropriate.  This information must be entered electronically via the following website:

https://school-of-engineering-faculty-search.mit.edu/mitei

It is anticipated that candidate interviews will take place in early spring 2011 with the successful candidate appointed and in place as early as fall 2011.

Contact

Please send all materials to: Kathleen Ross

MIT is building a culturally diverse faculty and strongly encourages applications from women and minority candidates.

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Faculty Positions Open in Art, Culture and Technology

Director, MIT Program in Art, Culture and Technology—Full or Associate Professor with Tenure

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is seeking an individual of international standing and critical acclaim in the field of art to serve as director of its Program in Art, Culture and Technology (ACT). His or her accomplishments may be in the combination of inventive artistic production, and critical and theoretical works. Appointment will be at the Full or Associate Professor level with tenure.

The ACT program focuses on the development of critical visionary strategies in artistic practice within the context of the advanced technological community of MIT. The ACT faculty is composed of outstanding artists with international reputations and with active careers in artistic production. Students in the program include undergraduates and graduate students majoring in a variety of fields from engineering to media studies as well as a small, select group from varying disciplinary backgrounds that include art, film, sound, architecture, urban studies, and philosophy, who comprise the ACT graduate program. The students are intellectually gifted and highly motivated. Under the aegis of the School of Architecture and Planning, ACT has the capacity to create links with Architectural Design, History, Theory and Criticism (HTC), the Media Lab, as well as other MIT research and teaching units. Important programs and centers at the Institute with a history of interactions with the ACT include: Science, Technology and Society (STS), Comparative Media Studies (CMS), Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS), Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab (CSAIL), Material Sciences and Engineering (DMSE), Aeronautics and Astronautics, and many other cross-disciplinary groups.

Qualifications: The candidate should be inspirational and highly articulate in contemporary and historical issues of art, media, and visual culture. The candidate will be expected to develop existing educational structures and methods that help bridge student skills and interests with the creative practice and broad knowledge of art. The position requires the administrative and leadership skills necessary to guide the evolution of the ACT Program and to represent the Program effectively within the MIT community and externally. A substantial record of teaching at the college, university, or art school level is desirable. PhD and/or MFA degrees are preferred.

Please submit materials on DVD or CD to Chair, ACT Director Search Committee, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Room E15-213, Cambridge, MA 02139. Submissions will not be returned to applicant. Email submissions will not be accepted. Included with materials should be (in digital format on disk):

  • Curriculum Vitae
  • Letter of intention and teaching philosophy
  • Well-organized selection of artistic work, presented in a manner to make it easy to review
  • Names and contact information of at least four references
  • Other supporting material is appreciated such as selection of applicant’s writing (writings, interviews, statements) and/or critical reviews of applicant’s work by others

The appointment can begin as early as September 2012. Review of applications will begin in mid-February 2012 and continue until the finalist has been selected.

MIT is building a culturally diverse faculty and strongly encourages applications from women and minority candidates.

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