The DOE Building Technologies Office awarded its first-ever Zero Energy Design Designation (ZEDD) to 17 leading educational programs of study at 12 institutions around the world. These schools have excelled at preparing tomorrow’s architectural and engineering leaders to design and build the most sustainable buildings possible.

DOE’s Zero Energy Design Designation program distinguishes post-secondary academic programs that teach best practices of zero energy design and require students to apply those concepts in zero energy design projects.

The educational programs that earned the ZEDD are:

  • Appalachian State University (Boone, North Carolina) - August 2022
    • Master of Science in Technology with a Sustainable Building Design and Construction Concentration
    • Bachelor of Science in Building Sciences with a Sustainable Buildings Concentration
  • Ball State University (Muncie, Indiana) - August 2022
    • Bachelor of Architecture
    • Master of Architecture
  • Hawkeye Community College (Waterloo, Iowa) - August 2022
    • Sustainable Construction and Design Program
  • Howard University (Washington, D.C.) - August 2022
    • Master of Architecture with an Equitable High-Performance Energy Design Concentration
  • Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago, Illinois) - August 2022
    • Master of Engineering in Architectural Engineering
    • Master of High Performance Buildings
  • Myongji University (Seoul, South Korea) - August 2022
    • Zero Energy Design Certificate for Bachelor of Architecture, College of Architecture
    • Zero Energy Design Certificate for Bachelor of Traditional Architecture
    • Zero Energy Design Certificate for Bachelor of Space Design
  • The Catholic University of America (Washington, D.C.) - August 2022
    • Master of Science in Net Zero Design/Master of Architecture Joint Degree
  • University of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, Ohio) - August 2022
    • Net Zero Energy Design Track in the Architectural Engineering Program
  • University of Colorado, Boulder (Boulder, Colorado) - August 2022
    • Bachelor of Science in Architectural Engineering
  • University of Missouri (Columbia, Missouri) - August 2022
    • Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies
  • Vermont Technical College (Randolph Center, Vermont) - August 2022
    • Bachelor of Science in Architectural Engineering Technology
  • Western Washington University (Bellingham, Washington) - August 2022
    • Bachelor of Science in Energy, Science, and Technology - Net Zero Energy Design Track

To prepare for the 2023 application, please review the instructions and checklist.

Email ZEDD@nrel.gov with questions.