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Colorful miniature city model with high-rise buildings, roads, vehicles, and railway tracks showcasing urban infrastructure and planning.

Online Master of Design Studies in Urban Design

Online Master of Design Studies in Urban Design

Cities today face climate, housing, health, and equity challenges — including sustainability, resilience, and post-crisis reconstruction — that cannot be solved by traditional design education alone. The Online Master of Design Studies in Urban Design at Boston Architectural College prepares working professionals from diverse backgrounds to apply design thinking at the scale of urban systems, communities, and places.

Delivered fully online, this project-based program emphasizes applied learning, interdisciplinary collaboration, and real-world relevance — without requiring students to pause their careers or relocate. Designed for working professionals, the program combines flexible pacing with scholarship support to make advanced urban design education accessible while remaining rigorous and professionally focused.

New Online Master's Program Launching Fall 2026!

The BAC Difference

  • Design education grounded in real-world conditions: Students learn within an institution whose pedagogy is shaped by practice, realism, and professional relevance. Design is taught as a method for engaging real urban challenges — not as abstract theory detached from context.
  • Interdisciplinary by design: Built on BAC’s strengths in Sustainable Design, Historic Preservation, Landscape Architecture, and Design Studies, the program prepares students to work across disciplines, sectors, and scales in response to complex urban issues.
  • Purpose-built for global, professional learners: This fully online program reflects The BAC’s long-standing commitment to access and relevance, bringing design education rooted in real-world conditions to professionals wherever they live and work.
  • Access without gatekeeping: Open admissions, flexible study options, and scholarship support reflect The BAC’s belief that talent is widely distributed — and that opportunity should be as well.
Architect reviewing sustainable house scale model with solar panels during eco-friendly design planning session in introductory studio.

Curriculum

The curriculum is designed to help students think and operate at the scale of cities, connecting design, systems, and communities.

  • Learn to operate at the intersection of urban design, planning, and sustainable development, applying design thinking to complex urban systems.
  • Shape streets, corridors, districts, and regions while understanding the legal, economic, civic, and environmental forces that influence urban outcomes.
  • Apply urban design strategies to challenges of sustainability, climate resilience, housing, and post-crisis reconstruction at neighborhood, district, and city scales.
  • Develop strong design and visual communication skills, producing portfolio-ready work that demonstrates spatial thinking, systems awareness, and applied urban design strategies.
  • Build the confidence and professional capacity to lead collaborative, interdisciplinary urban initiatives across public, private, and nonprofit contexts.
Curriculum
Construction and city workers in safety gear using surveying equipment on a city street with traffic cones, palm trees, and parked cars.

Career Options

Work full time, and study from anywhere in the world as you prepare for the next stage of your professional growth. Graduates are prepared to pursue roles where design thinking is applied at the urban scale – increasingly focused on sustainability, resilience, housing, and recover-oriented urban design – including:

  • Urban Designer
  • Urban Planner
  • Community Development Specialist
  • Real Estate Development Professional
  • Resilience and Regeneration Specialist
  • Sustainable Design Consultant
  • Public Realm or Streetscape Designer
  • Studio Lead or Director of Urban Design
91%

of BAC graduates are working in the design field

12

Average class size: 12 students

27%

of BAC Students are International

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