Study Built Ecologies at CASE
Become an Expert in building decarbonization, energy and materials.
We are looking for talented and motivated students with strong design and technical skills and a creative mindset to join CASE (Center for Architecture, Science, and Ecology) in Brooklyn NY, as part of the Master of Science in Built Ecologies, starting Fall 2025. Relevant backgrounds include Architecture, Urban Studies, Engineering or related fields.
Built Ecologies is a unique Master of Science and Ph.D. in Architectural Sciences program catering to students aspiring to pursue professional, academic, or entrepreneurial careers. The program delivers an advanced study curriculum focused on the creation of next-generation technology across scales, to effectively address the Environmental and Social challenges associated with the Built Environment. As professionals, MS graduates become experts in building decarbonization including embodied carbon, renewable materials selection, and energy decarbonization at the building and city scales. As academics, M.S. graduates build strong research backgrounds and become desirable applicants to PhD programs. As entrepreneurs, M.S. graduates have developed and piloted original business ideas for products or services catering to the building industry. Instruction within the Built Ecologies program encompasses both traditional and emerging disciplines, situated at the intersection of architecture, science, engineering, data science, and the humanities.
The core of the program involves the development of an individual research project or thesis in close collaboration with a CASE faculty member. Research can be undertaken within a wide variety of interdisciplinary topics such as:
· Renewable Materials for Construction. Biomaterials, Waste Materials, Circular Economy, Resilient Supply Chains, Environmentally Benign Composites…
· Advanced Manufacturing Methods. Additive Manufacturing, Modular Construction, Composites Manufacturing…
· Urban Renewable Energy Integration. Virtual Power Plants, A.I. Energy Planning, Local Energy Integration, Virtual Power Plants, Controls…
· Energy Harvesting Storing and Distribution Devices and Systems. Climate Adaptive Energy Systems and Building Facades, Energy Storage, Building Simulation…
· Bio-mechanical systems. Phytoremediation, Air Pollution, Bio-Mechanical Feedback Systems, Urban Agriculture…
CASE is a cross-institute research center pursuing advances in the built environment and building professions, through sustainability, technology and new models of professional practice. The Center conducts government agency and industry funded research, provides undergraduate, masters and doctoral academic programs, and develops research and academic engagement with the New York City and global professional communities. The Center benefits from its presence within and access to the New York City professional, technology development and real estate communities as well as access to the faculty collaborators and physical resources of the Troy New York campus.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is one of the premier technological universities in the United States today and includes schools of Architecture, Engineering, Science, Management, and Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences (HASS). Renowned for its contemporary, interdisciplinary, and forward-looking professional and graduate research programs – the School of Architecture is committed to new forms of innovation and discovery as we prepare our graduates for future leadership in the profession.
Interested prospective students should contact the Built Ecologies program director Alexandros Tsamis at tsamia@rpi.edu.