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URBAN LAND INSTITUTE

The Urban Land Institute's Gerald D. Hines Student Urban Design Competition is an annual graduate-level competition intended to provide an interdisciplinary learning experience for business and design students. Student teams work on large-scale sites with complex challenges that need innovative solutions reflecting responsible land use. Each team is required to work in a multifaceted way, incorporating design, planning, market potential, and feasibility into their development strategies.

Each year the School of Architecture participates in the Urban Land Institute's Gerald D. Hines Student Urban Design Competition. Participation in the national competition, along with an internal competition at UT Austin, is funded through a generous gift from the Cogburn Family Foundation.

Each year, students from across the School of Architecture's disciplines, from architecture, urban design, landscape architecture, community and regional planning, and the McCombs School of Business have taken part in the competition. UT Austin student teams have performed exceedingly well in the national competition, with two national winners, as well as many finalists and honorable mentions. 

The Urban Design Program at the School of Architecture also offers a ULI studio. The studio works in teams, taking on the same project that is the subject of the competition. The teams will continue to work after the initial ten-day competition to develop the group projects.

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    What roles and responsibilities do fields engaged in shaping the atmosphere of interiors assume in the age of extreme weather events unfolding across a heating planet? How do atmospheric patterns, traditions, metaphors, or mishaps from the past inform current interior responses? <br>
    @utsoa

    What roles and responsibilities do fields engaged in shaping the atmosphere of interiors assume in the age of extreme weather events unfolding across a heating planet? How do atmospheric patterns, traditions, metaphors, or mishaps from the past inform current interior responses?

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    Did you know “Goldsmith Courtyard” is formally named the Eden and Hal Box Courtyard? <br>
    @utsoa

    Did you know “Goldsmith Courtyard” is formally named the Eden and Hal Box Courtyard?

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    Gian-Claudia Sciara, associate professor of community and regional planning (CRP) at The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture, has been selected for a Swiss National Science Foundation Scientific Exchange award to collaborate at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landsc
    @utsoa

    Gian-Claudia Sciara, associate professor of community and regional planning (CRP) at The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture, has been selected for a Swiss National Science Foundation Scientific Exchange award to collaborate at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landsc

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    What is architecture’s role in shaping a sustainable and connected future? On Oct. 6, Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi will examine that in their lecture, “DRIFTING SYMMETRIES: PROJECTS AND PROVOCATIONS.” <br>
    @utsoa

    What is architecture’s role in shaping a sustainable and connected future? On Oct. 6, Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi will examine that in their lecture, “DRIFTING SYMMETRIES: PROJECTS AND PROVOCATIONS.”

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    📝 Applications are open for 2026-2027 undergraduate and graduate programs! <br><br>Apply today to join an interdisciplinary community of designers, planners, and scholars committed to creative exploration, ambitious scholarship and critical practice. <br><br>UTSOA at a glance:
    @utsoa

    📝 Applications are open for 2026-2027 undergraduate and graduate programs!

    Apply today to join an interdisciplinary community of designers, planners, and scholars committed to creative exploration, ambitious scholarship and critical practice.

    UTSOA at a glance:

  • Instagram Post
    Discover the hidden narrative of one of the world’s largest distributed freshwater reserves: aquifers. <br>
    @utsoa

    Discover the hidden narrative of one of the world’s largest distributed freshwater reserves: aquifers.

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    On Sept. 29, architectural designer, researcher and UTSOA visiting lecturer Toshiki Hirano (@artitec of @thd_arch) joins us for his lecture, "AESTHETICS OF (IN)EXCESS." <br>
    @utsoa

    On Sept. 29, architectural designer, researcher and UTSOA visiting lecturer Toshiki Hirano (@artitec of @thd_arch) joins us for his lecture, "AESTHETICS OF (IN)EXCESS."

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    🎉 We are thrilled to announce that Jessica Garza (BSID '26) has won the 2025 Senior Student Scholarship from the Angelo Donghia Foundation! Jessica Garza is one of 15 undergraduate interior design students in North America to receive this honor this year in the form of a $30,000 scholarship.
    @utsoa

    🎉 We are thrilled to announce that Jessica Garza (BSID '26) has won the 2025 Senior Student Scholarship from the Angelo Donghia Foundation! Jessica Garza is one of 15 undergraduate interior design students in North America to receive this honor this year in the form of a $30,000 scholarship.

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    Matt Fajkus already holds the titles of licensed architect, multiple award winner and Austin Design Icon. Now, he adds another achievement to his list: a promotion to Full Professor of Architecture. <br>
    @utsoa

    Matt Fajkus already holds the titles of licensed architect, multiple award winner and Austin Design Icon. Now, he adds another achievement to his list: a promotion to Full Professor of Architecture.