We Build Better
Connections / Partnerships / Downtowns / Street Culture / Futures
The University of Maryland’s School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation combines world-class resources, hands-on interdisciplinary opportunities and close-knit learning environments—all just minutes from the energy and opportunity of Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Annapolis. We drive innovation in design, research and community engagement to build a better future.
Design Excellence
From stunning skylines to walkable neighborhoods, our students, faculty and alumni set the bar for creativity, impact and innovation.
World-Class Faculty
Learn from leaders. Our faculty are acclaimed scholars, award-winning practitioners and forward-thinkers shaping the future of the built environment.
Campus to Capitol
Just minutes from D.C., Baltimore and Annapolis, our students learn in a living laboratory of history, design and development—connecting them to the people and places shaping the future of the built environment.
Get to Know Us
By combining hands-on learning with groundbreaking research, we empower students and scholars to shape thriving, just and resilient places.
Undergraduate Programs
UMD’s undergraduate degrees in architecture and real estate development are interdisciplinary, engaging and give students the tools to shape the cities and communities of the future.
Graduate Programs
From designing city skylines to driving neighborhood revitalization, our competitive, professional graduate programs in architecture, planning, preservation and real estate prepare students for careers that shape vibrant, just places.
Research Centers & Institutes
Our research centers and institutes forward groundbreaking research within the built environment that advances dynamic, sustainable and just places.
Student Work
See our students’ ideas come to life—bold designs, thoughtful planning and creative solutions shaping our communities. From concept to creation, explore the innovative work of our students across architecture, planning, preservation and real estate.
Julio Miguel T. Alumbro won the Spring 2025 Thesis Prize Award for his project “The “Church” in the Diaspora.”
Deisy Valasquez's housing development for Antigua, Guatemala won the Fall 2024 Thesis Prize Award.
"The Jacquelynn Residences at Uptown Place," Master of Real Estate Development student, Jack Tintle's independent senior living development. Winner of the Fall 2024 Colvin capstone competition.
Historic preservation students designed a Zine for the sounds of Prince George’s County.
A model created by an ARCH403 Design Studio student for their final project, focusing on the design of an observatory at Monocacy Battlefield.
News
2025 Sustainable Maryland Certified Awards
Sustainable Maryland honored 18 Maryland municipalities at the Maryland Municipal League’s annual Fall Conference on Tuesday, October 14 at the Wisp Resort in McHenry, Maryland. To date, 93 municipalities, or 59% of the state's 157 towns and cities, participate in the program, and 33% are currently designated "Sustainable Maryland Certified".The complete list of the 2025 newly certified and re-certified communities, with their Bronze or Silver level status, includes: View Article Details for 2025 Sustainable Maryland Certified Awards 
UMD-State Partnership will Rehabilitate Historic Jail
The University of Maryland and statewide nonprofit Preservation Maryland are partnering to repurpose the historic Ellicott City Jail, a looming landmark in Howard County, Md. that has stood for more than 170 years. Preservation Maryland anticipates breaking ground on this project in Spring 2026.View Article Details for UMD-State Partnership will Rehabilitate Historic Jail 
MASS Design’s Alan Ricks Joins UMD as 68th Kea Professor
Alan Ricks, AIA, Int FRIBA, the founding principal and co-executive director of MASS design group, joins the University of Maryland this fall as the Architecture Program’s 2025-26 Kea Professor. A celebrated, socially minded, global designer, Ricks will work alongside Associate Clinical Professors Julie Gabrielli and Brittany Williams, Assistant Professor Deok-Oh Woo and Lecturer Dan Curry to teach the fall Integrated Design Studio.View Article Details for MASS Design’s Alan Ricks Joins UMD as 68th Kea Professor
Events
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Kibel Gallery Opening & Talk: STABIAE and the Visual Preservation of Architecture
Kibel Gallery Opening and TalkSTABIAE and the Visual Preservation of ArchitectureCurated by Joseph C. Williams, Lindsey May, and Lauren McNamaraOctober 3, 2025December 22, 2025View Event Details for Kibel Gallery Opening & Talk: STABIAE and the Visual Preservation of Architecture -
Prospective Graduate Student Open House
Open to the MAPP and UMD CommunityInterested in a graduate degree in:October 17, 2025October 17, 2025View Event Details for Prospective Graduate Student Open House -
TerraPlan Publication Launch Party
Join us for the launch of TerraPlan, the University of Maryland’s new student-run planning publication, celebrating the creativity and research of students in the School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation.October 17, 2025October 17, 2025View Event Details for TerraPlan Publication Launch Party