Applications to Hillier College Rise in Parallel With Notable Successes

Recently released data shows a substantial increase in the number of people applying to Hillier College of Architecture and Design since 2019, attributed largely by college officials to better marketing and communication efforts.

The college saw 732 applicants in 2021, up 16% from 2020 and 39% from 2019, according to the NJIT admissions office.

About two-thirds of applicants in all years aimed to be architecture majors. Interior design applications increased 68% since 2019 while digital design grew 43%. Across majors, 85 people also applied to Albert Dorman Honors College in 2021, an increase of 21% compared to 2020 and 31% versus 2019.

With the COVID pandemic as a backdrop for this academic year, perhaps the most consequential recent news from Hillier College was their role in designing the Mobile Medical Care Unit, which is a modular healthcare facility built from standard 40-foot shipping containers that can be quickly set up, taken apart, or moved to a different location. The initial unit here at NJIT, called M2CU, is used for coronavirus testing and is installed on Warren St. next to Greek Village. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton installed a similar unit.

The college further advised on how to design healthcare facilities during a pandemic, restarted the student chapter of a minorities in architecture organization, hosted design justice advocate Bryan C. Lee Jr. and is hosting a sustainability forum this week. Digital design major Kaylin Whitmeyer became a semi-finalist for the prestigious Fulbright scholarship.

Members of the college also added online certificate programs for the School of Art + Design, created a lecture series focusing on responsibilities of architects and designers, and unified engagement with city officials and other local stakeholders for Newark design projects, such as the Newark Police Precinct redesign studio currently underway.

Hillier's undergraduate architecture program is among the top 12 most-hired from and the top 35 most-admired, according to Design Intelligence. The college's game design major is the best in New Jersey and in the top 25 on the east coast, Animation Career Review stated.

Hillier Dean Branko Kolarevic said the NJIT Makes campaign, social media efforts such as the college's Twitter account and the college's monthly architecture and design newsletters as some of the driving factors for their increased visibility.

"The world out there needs to learn about the excellent work we do at NJIT and here in our college. We need to do more to promote ourselves not only locally, but also nationally and internationally," which requires extensive planning and resource allocations, Kolarevic added.