2025-26 Academic Catalog

College of Architecture, Art, and Design

ANGI E. BOURGEOIS, Dean
Dominic Lippillo, Interim Associate Dean

Office: A110 Hunter Henry Center
Telephone: (662) 325-5150; Fax Number: (662) 325-8872
Mailing Address:1 Hunter Henry Blvd, Box AQ, Mississippi State, MS 39762
Web site: www.caad.msstate.edu

Research Centers in the College of Architecture, Art and Design

Fred Carl, Jr. Small Town Center (CSTC)

Established in 1979, the vision of the Fred Carl, Jr. Small Town Center is to strengthen communities and to promote a prosperous and sustainable future by raising an awareness of the physical environment through research and excellence in design. For further information, contact the Director of the Fred Carl, Jr. Small Town Center at 662-325-2207.

Gulf Coast Community Design Studio (GCCDS)

The GCCDS was established after hurricane Katrina. GCCDS is located in Biloxi and is providing community planning and architectural design services to communities and rebuilding organizations. GCCDS has provided design and construction assistance for hundreds of new and existing homes, produced survey and GIS mapping for Biloxi, and planning work for a collaboration of housing organizations. For more information, contact the Director of GCCDS at 228-436-4461.

The Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Integrated Design and the Built Environment (IDBE)

 
The Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Integrated Design and the Built Environment is a 120-credit hour degree that offers students the opportunity to build a personalized curriculum to support design and construction-related careers. While the College of Architecture, Art, & Design (CAAD) has individual units with dedicated areas of specialization—Architecture, Art, Building Construction Science, and Interior Design—the BA supports those students with an interest in pursuing offerings across multiple units, focusing on complementary interests not recognized by our professionally focused majors.
The Bachelor of Arts in Integrated Design and the Built Environment supports the needs of students who see alternative career paths within design and the built environment.  As design, construction, and related businesses and organizations seek graduates with diversified and varied knowledge across design and construction curricula, the BA in Integrated Design and the Built Environment affords students the ability to have a broader education in the areas of design and the built environment.  This degree allows students to develop a comprehensive knowledge base with a firm foundation in design thinking.  Through the BA in Integrated Design and the Built Environment a student can develop a curriculum that draws on complementary coursework from the College of Architecture, Art, & Design.  Additionally, students are able to seek additional areas of knowledge from areas outside of CAAD.
To earn a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Integrated Design and the Built Environment, a student is required to take a minimum of 6 hours of studio coursework as well as to create a concentration of at least 30 upper division credits divided between 2 or 3 endorsement areas.  Students will build their endorsement areas and concentration with the BA Advisor, which will then be approved by the BA Faculty Advisory Committee. 
All new freshmen desiring to major in Integrated Design and the Built Environment will be admitted into the major in the College of Architecture, Art, & Design at Mississippi State University. For all other students wishing to major in Integrated Design and the Built Environment, to be eligible for admission to the Integrated Design and the Built Environment curriculum, students must have a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or above on all college coursework attempted prior to entering the major.
Students entering the Bachelor of Arts in Integrated Design and the Built Environment program must meet with the BA Advisor prior to registration to develop their curricular pathway, which will be approved by the BA Faculty Advisory Committee.  All majors must have an approved curricular plan by the end of their second semester in the major.  All amendments to the approved degree plan must be reviewed and approved in writing by the BA Advisor in consultation with the BA Faculty Advisory Committee.
 

General Education Requirements

English
EN 1103English Composition I3
EN 1113English Composition II3
Or equivalent combination that meets university General Education requirements
Creative Discovery
Any Gen Ed course3
Natural Sciences
Any Gen Ed course (2 labs required)6-8
Quantitative Reasoning
Any Gen Ed course3
Humanities
Any Gen Ed course6
Social/Behavioral Sciences
Any Gen Ed course6

Major Core Courses

Foundational Studio Courses 16
Choose from the following:
Architectural Design I-A
Architectural Design I-B
Design I
Design II
Drawing I
Drawing II
Three-Dimensional Design
Building Construction Studio A
Interior Design Graphics
Approved Elective
CAAD Pre-Endorsement courses -- BA Advisor 212-15
Concentration Courses (2 Endorsement areas of 15 hours or 3 Endorsement areas of 10 hours) - consult BA advisor 330
History/Theory Courses15-18
Choose from the following:
History of Architecture I
History of Architecture II
History of Architecture III
Architectural Theory
Art History Pre-1300s
Art History Post 1300's
Design II
Global Contemporary Art
Construction and Culture
History of Interiors I
History of Interiors II
Introduction to Historic Preservation
Other approved upper division offerings
Oral Communication
CO 1003Fundamentals of Public Speaking3
or CO 1013 Introduction to Communication
Jr/Sr Writing - Consult BA advisor3
Writing for the Workplace (or another writing intensive course that fulfills the requirement)
Electives 421-33
Total Hours for Degree120

Note: The BA degree program must consist of 120 hours. Students must complete 31 upper division hours in CAAD at MSU. Additional electives or endorsement area courses may be used to achieve 120 hours. 

1

Students will select Foundational Studio courses and CAAD electives to serve as the necessary pre-requisite for their endorsement areas.

2

CAAD Pre-endorsement courses include any necessary pre-requisite courses needed for Endorsement area courses.

3

Upper division courses should be chosen from at least 2 academic disciplines in the college.

4

Electives are intended to compliment the endorsement areas and could be a specific minor field outside of CAAD, open electives outside of CAAD, or open electives inside of CAAD. Between 21-33 hours are needed to complete the required 120 hours for the degree. Students will consult with the BA advisor when building their personalized curriculum.