---

sustainable design/architecture

Types of Degrees sustainable design/architecture Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing sustainable design/architecture can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Bachelor’s Degree	1
Master’s Degree	46

What sustainable design/architecture Majors Need to Know

Coursework for sustainable design/architecture emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that sustainable design/architecture graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in sustainable design/architecture emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.6 / 7.
• Design — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.8 / 7.
• Building and Construction — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.6 / 7.
• Communications and Media — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills emphasized by a sustainable design/architecture program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to sustainable design/architecture careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, sustainable design/architecture graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.5 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.5 / 7
Working with Computers	4.5 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.4 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.4 / 7
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.3 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	4.2 / 7
Developing Objectives and Strategies	4.2 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by sustainable design/architecture professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Adobe InDesign	Desktop publishing software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Autodesk AutoCAD	Computer aided design CAD software	✓
Computer aided design CAD software	Computer aided design CAD software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Adobe Creative Cloud software	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Adobe Photoshop	Graphics or photo imaging software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for sustainable design/architecture graduates include:

• Architectural Drafting Instructor
• Lecturer
• Faculty Member
• Interior Design Instructor
• College Professor
• Interior Design Faculty Member
• Instructor
• Architecture Faculty Member
• Landscape Architecture Professor
• Adjunct Instructor
• Associate Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Architecture Instructor
• Professor
• Architectural Design Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to sustainable design/architecture graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	40.2%
First professional degree	18.7%
Bachelor’s degree	16.9%
Master’s degree	14.8%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	8.4%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	1.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in sustainable design/architecture?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 59.6% women and 40.4% men among sustainable design/architecture graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	28	59.6%
Men	19	40.4%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of sustainable design/architecture graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	22	46.8%
Asian	6	12.8%
Hispanic or Latino	1	2.1%
Black or African American	3	6.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native	1	2.1%
Two or More Races	2	4.3%
Race Unknown	6	12.8%
International Students	6	12.8%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do sustainable design/architecture Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of sustainable design/architecture graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$40,905
4 years	$52,970
5 years	$59,648

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $59,648 — roughly 46% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online sustainable design/architecture Programs

Distance learning are documented by IPEDS for sustainable design/architecture. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Master’s	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in sustainable design/architecture Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, sustainable design/architecture graduates earn a median of $52,970 four years after completion — roughly 39% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Environmental Design	04.04
Environmental Design, Other	04.0499
Environmental Design/Architecture	04.0401
Healthcare Environment Design/Architecture	04.0402
City/Urban, Community, and Regional Planning	04.0301
Architectural and Building Sciences/Technology	04.0902
Architectural Conservation	04.0802
Architectural Design	04.0202
Architectural History, Criticism, and Conservation, Other	04.0899
Architectural Sciences and Technology, Other	04.0999
Architectural Studies	04.0803
Architecture, Other	04.0299

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.